Liv Strömquist offers us a fascinating and revealing epic of our society, skillfully mixing historical characters, contemporary concepts and philosophical and sociological theories in her latest album “La Pythie parle vous”. From Saint Catherine of Siena to the Manosphere, passing through the Oracle of Delphi, the Swedish author weaves a rich narrative web, based on the ideas of Sigmund Freud, Martha Wolfenstein or even Theodor Adorno.
The author, long recognized for her feminist approach, immerses the reader in a universe that is both imaginative and theoretical, provoking a deep reflection on our western society. She brilliantly dissects the paradoxes of our digital age, exposing our vulnerability and contradictions in the face of systematic injunctions to beauty, superficial happiness and hyperindividualism.
The exhibition LIV STRÖMQUIST, A WRITER WHO WANTS YOU WELL, like the book, invites you to confront your own flaws and missteps. Far from being punitive, this comic strip is cathartic, offering a critical look at the “gurus” of the internet while avoiding the pitfall of self-flagellation. Paradoxically, while Liv Strömquist is dismantling the advice providers of our daily life, her album is structured around provocative recommendations:
Lose control of yourself
Lose control of your body
Lose control of your love life
Do not follow any advice
Give more to others than you receive in return
Don’t set yourself any goals
Get out!
Beyond the critique of the digital world, Liv Strömquist addresses fundamental existential and metaphysical questions – life, death, meaning of existence – questioning the narrative patterns that structure our lives. It highlights the glaring absence of a narrative of “the good life” in our capitalist society.
“La Pythie parle vous” is an ode to the irrational, to the deviations and to the rupture with established norms. It is a work that resonates particularly with the experiences of young people facing the challenges of the digital age, offering a critical and empathic look at our collective and individual vulnerabilities. In retrospect, the teenager in you will find in Liv’s drawings a bulwark against the chaos of “fun morality”, “emodify” (emotion that sells itself as a product, according to Edgar Cabanas, doctor in psychology) and “what I eat in a day”.
In the end, the reader finds himself grateful to this modern Pythia, whose illuminating words invite a deep reflection on our contemporary condition – and who wants you well.
