Teleny: Diogo Gama

Robbie von Kampen is pleased to present Teleny, a solo exhibition of works by Diogo Gama.
Comprised of painting, drawing, and embroidery, the show takes its title from the 19th century homoerotic novel of the same name. Published anonymously in London in 1893, the novel has commonly been attributed to Oscar Wilde, though the author’s identity, and the degree to which the novel documents true events, have never been definitely confirmed.

Gama first came into contact with Teleny at the age of 10 when he discovered a copy while
exploring an abandoned house in his native Lisbon. Intrigued by the novel’s subject matter, he hid the book for many years before reading it in full. Gama is still in possession of this copy, and an image of its interior cover accompanies this press release as a compliment to the artworks.

The works in Teleny are a synthesis of borrowed images, words and media. In Before I forget, Teleny Sweats, Albeit Covertly, Elsewhere, Gama utilized a towel purloined from SweatBox, a gay sauna located in London’s Soho neighborhood, as a substrate for a suggestive and witty handshake image lifted from a Faux Real music video. F for Fake takes its title from the 1973 Orson Welles documentary that explores the lives of infamous art forgers and the nature of authorship and authenticity, while the image was sourced in a medieval religious text. Rendered against a black background, the figures appear as if they are emerging from a dream.

Like exhibition’s namesake novel, the original authors of these images and words are obscured or forgotten. Devoid of their original context and intention these elements take on a new meaning through Gama’s skillful remixing. The serious becomes playful, the real surreal, and the dream a reality.

Diogo Gama (b. 1998 Lisbon, Portugal) lives and works in London and is a graduate of Goldsmiths Masters of Fine Arts 2022.