KÖNIG GALERIE presents DREAMING OF ALLIGATOR HEAD by Claudia Comte, a virtual intervention of the gallery’s physical exhibition space. Entering the digital show via smartphone as a diver, the visitor discovers the former NAVE of the brutalist church submerged in an underwater seascape. Perched amongst marine life are a series of Comte’s cactus sculptures which appear to be sprouting sea fauna.

Comte’s interest in the ocean and marine life has become a recurring subject in her personal reflections and her artistic practice. In 2019, the artist created a permanent underwater exhibition in the East Portland Fish Sanctuary in Jamaica during her tenure as TBA21-Academy artist in residence at the Alligator Head Foundation. The park is only accessible by diving and snorkelling. It was designed as a monument for marine protection and is a tribute to the collective effort of the local community to restore the ecosystem. The sculptures support the reinvigoration of the reef and coral regrowth, as they are overlaid with coral over the coming years.

In DREAMING OF ALLIGATOR HEAD, Comte conjures an impossible scenario by replanting her underwater sculpture park inside KÖNIG GALERIE. The digital visitor experiences an intriguing underwater world without traveling, thus the artist raises awareness for marine environments. Comte strives to retain aesthetic formalisms while simultaneously asking how the artistic object can make a difference in the world.