Tommy Hartung: King Solomon's Mines

In a body of work created specifically for his Rose exhibition, Tommy Hartung (b. 1979) extends his investigation of mythmaking and storytelling tied to powers of surveillance, wealth, and politics. A presentation of Hartung’s sculptures and Polaroid photographs accompanies the display of a new video work, King Solomon’s Mines, which, in the guise of a satirical ethnofiction, weaves a narrative based in a remote territory of the Saharan desert. Against the backdrop of the Tibesti Mountains, a harsh landscape traversed by both safari tourists and the region’s impoverished migrants, Hartung transposes the legend of King Solomon to create a fable that rings true for a modern era. Co-curated by Kim Conaty and Caitlin Julia Rubin, King Solomon’s Mines represents Hartung’s most comprehensive solo museum exhibition to date.