Tunneln : An exhibition by Katharina Schücke at The Return Gallery, Dublin
Curated by Jonathan Carroll
March 24 until May 1, 2010
press release
Katharina Schücke (Dresden 1982) was invited by the Goethe-Institut Irland to attend the conference, “Re-Imagining the Nation- Transformations of German Cultural Identity since 1989” in October 2009 and conceived an exhibition as a result of that visit. Schücke’s interest in the architecture of the former GDR (which is incorporated into her collages in the form of reproduced photographs) combined with her fascination with stereotypical Western kitsch (Cowboy gunslingers and the cheesy smile of female bodybuilders) is metaphorically encapsulated in her functioning saloon style doors (The Crazy Barbarian Couple) installed as a temporary entrance to The Return Gallery.
Schücke while being a child of the former East was too young to be affected by the restrictions imposed on those living behind the Iron Curtain. It is this very remove, which results in a humorous and ironic reflection on the passing of a long drawn out period of recent history. Nostalgia and bitterness are conspicuously absent from this artist’s oeuvre.
The work of Schücke continues the dialogue within German art of the post-war period and reflects the anxiety of a society reconsidering its position in the world after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Schücke like Sigmar Polke (who spent his first 8 years in the GDR) seem to encapsulate some of the residue of the divided Germany. Socialist Realism and Capitalist Realism seem to collide in the work of Schücke. It is this feeling of uncertainty contained in Schücke’s work (and many of her contemporaries), through a form of anti-aesthetic and collage, that is captivating. The vibrancy of the work is maintained by the unfinished nature of Schücke’s sculptures with the overworked distorted photographic imagery of a world much removed from Ireland’s very different history. The often crude finish of some of Schücke’s work (visible signs of the glue used to bind the materials, sculpture displayed on the floor with no ceremonial plinth) denies the viewer the assurance of a neat aesthetic as a place of refuge. This denial of certain knowledge to the viewer is exacerbated by the use of an unfamiliar vocabulary (for an Irish audience at least) by the artist. This void in immediate understanding between the viewer and the work lengthens the dialogue and duration of this conversation that Schücke wishes to establish.
The Crazy Barbarian Couple is a composite of a previous work entitled The Crazy Barbarian Combo from 2007 which is cut into small pieces. Each of the pieces show details of photographs of three listed buildings by GDR architect Josef Kaiser in Berlin: Cinema International, Cafe Moscow and the Glaspavillion. They were built from1961 and 1964 and photographed by Schücke in 2007.These pieces are collaged together to form one part of a door. The other part is a saloon door made from a rudimentary drawing.
The title of the exhibition, Tunneln (to tunnel) is provided by a series of collages relating to the architecture of photography. The pictorial space of the architecture of photography can be described as follows, its corner pillars are the grain of the silver emulsion, technical defects, chemical problems and manual errors. Its walls are uniqueness and permanence, fugacity and reproducibility. The physiognomy of this architecture is not cold, empty and abstract. These spaces have been settled by residents.
Architecture is constantly progressing and conditioning our lives. The change of political ideals in society and how they influence the contemporary reception of (existing) architecture always interested Schücke. With these notions in mind, she develops works experimentally, combining both sculpture and photography. For example the object Original Block Hero (lifeguard tower) shows a photo of a lifeguard tower built (and lived in) by Ulrich Müther on Rügen Island. Müther was a unique avantgarde architect of the former GDR. The sculpture represents the artist’s idea of a translation, into three dimensional space. It is also a transmutation of moods and sympathies into forms. The photo/document of the lifeguard tower enlarged onto liquid photoemulsion is alienated by brushstrokes. They overlay and disturb the photographic information but add a subjective so called unique expression.
The Irish Museum of Modern Art generously offered Schücke a short-term studio residency to work on this show.
Jonathan Carroll
List of works
Tunneln 6- 10,
2010, collages, framed, 33 x 27 cm each
The Crazy Barbarian Couple,
2010, wood, silver gelatine, acrylic paint, spray paint, pendular hinges, 120 x 64 cm + 89 x 65 cm
Original Block Hero (lifeguard tower),
2010, silver gelatine on wood, different glues, copper pipe, lamp, 45 x 20 x 20 cm