Kate Gottgens, Fire Pool, 2025

* denotes required fields

In order to respond to your enquiry, we will process the personal data you have supplied to communicate with you in accordance with our Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe or change your preferences at any time by clicking the link in our emails. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google: Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

This website uses cookies
This site uses cookies to help make it more useful to you. Please contact us to find out more about our Cookie Policy.

* denotes required fields

oil on canvas

110 x 110 cm
43 1/4 x 43 1/4 in
framed: 112 x 112 x 5 cm

Though not directly inspired by the recent fires in Los Angeles, this painting inevitably calls them to mind—a reality Kate knows well from South Africa, where high fire risk threatens...

Though not directly inspired by the recent fires in Los Angeles, this painting inevitably calls them to mind—a reality Kate knows well from South Africa, where high fire risk threatens communities living so close to nature. Homes are often lost, often because people choose to settle in close proximity to the natural world while failing to take proactive measures. With climate change always in the back of her mind, her work conveys a growing sense of disconnection from nature—of being at its mercy rather than in harmony with it.

This contradiction—the allure of leisure set against the hidden costs of creating an artificial paradise—runs throughout her work. Middle-class affluence, often associated with carefree indulgence, carries an undercurrent of recklessness, boredom, and consequence. There is a subtle critique at play, reminiscent of the dark satire in Saltburn, which lampoons wealth and excess. In some of her paintings, this satirical edge becomes more overt, exposing the tensions between privilege and the instability lurking beneath it.

We see a male figure staring at a female body, his gaze charged with implication—a predatory moment frozen in time. This unsettling dynamic reflects broader issues of gender politics and the male gaze, themes Kate frequently explores in her work. She enjoys working within these, confronting the uncomfortable power dynamics embedded in everyday imagery. Interestingly, the male figure is based on a photograph of her husband in the pool, adding a personal dimension to the work.

Kate Gottgens South Africa, b. 1965

Join our mailing list

Maruani Mercier

Privacy Policy

Contact

Cookie preferences

Join our mailing list

Kate Gottgens South Africa, b. 1965