17. January 2021

Bonn. Can physical emptiness be filled digitally? How do the interpersonal relationships change in the era of digitalisation? These are questions that occupy Louisa Clement’s mind and have been occupying mine ever since I visited her. I increasingly understand the power of digital communication which currently appears to help us to mainly maintain the contact with the outside world – while the pandemic is raging. “Your Likes made my day “, so popular now, is assuming a worrying underton …...

15. December 2020

Before starting in an unaccustomed and unusual way, a short explanation of the idea generating process: I met Fabio Borquez for the first time at the beginning of 2020. The reason was his impressive exhibition Flores del Mal at Schloss Benrath in Düsseldorf. On view were photos of nude women who formed almost symbiotic creatures in artistic productions with flowers. The opulent ambience of the castle created the perfect backdrop....

15. November 2020

Düsseldorf-Unterbilk. Even though his Hidden Portraits, which are creations of photographic art and are currently going through the ceiling, may not suggest it at first glance, Volker Hermes is a painter. Originally his very specialised portraits were not planned as an independent series of works, but merely as studies on the history of painting. Similarly, until July 2020 the artist considered Instagram to be an unsuitable medium for presenting his art. But then everything turned out surprisingly different ...

18. October 2020

Tallinn/Estonia, mileage: 28.000. The photo art project FACES OF EUROPE is in countdown as I start my journey as a travelling companion from Estonia via Finland and Sweden to Denmark. What drives Carsten Sander to take portraits of one thousand people in the remaining twenty-seven EU countries and to combine them in highly diverse exhibition formats? How do the people in the respective countries react to the notion of the European idea? And why does the master of photographic staging decide to set up this project in a non-staged way?...

20. September 2020

Cologne. As a board member of Stiftung Museum Schloss Moyland, which houses the worldwide largest collection of Beuys works within the van der Grinten Collection, Franz van der Grinten, who is part of that family, is often consulted in the long-standing, contentious matters of dealing with the copyright to the images of Beuys and his works. However, the fact that an idea for an exhibition for his gallery would develop in connection with the copyright clarification needed for a fashion shoot in the park of Moyland Castle, was precipitated by unexpected events coming together. In addition, this idea was influenced...

9. August 2020

It only needs a fraction of a second and I’m captivated. What a weird photo! The adjoining, relevant, short and snappy profile in the June edition ofart Magazinunder the promising headline “Die Superheldin”1 clinched it for me. Sophia Süßmilch fascinates me immediately. The same day I write her a mail and enquire about a visit to her studio. She promptly replies. It was to become a special encounter ...

5. July 2020

Wuppertal. Even if the sun had not been shining, I am sure that, the moment I entered Laura Aberham’s study, an impression of glorious light would have been created. Bold, vibrant colours wherever you look and an artist who appears to be brimming with positive energy. After she had studied with Jürgen Drescher and Katharina Grosse, she completed her degree at Kunstakademie Düsseldorf as the star pupil of Ellen Gallagher. Immediately after the degree, the Düsseldorf gallery owner Rupert Pfab added her to his program. This was followed by solo exhibitions in Düsseldorf, Frankfurt and London. Sometimes all this seems...

7. June 2020

Mönchengladbach-Rheydt. This locality is of special relevance to Gregor Schneider. Not only was he born in Rheyd, but he also lives and works here as a sculptor, photographer and film maker. When creating the rooms of the Haus u r*, a family home, his work was essentially born. Since the age of sixteen, he has been building the same rooms into existing rooms, duplicating rooms and objects, or makes them vanish. The construction and fitting of twenty-four of these rooms into the German Pavilion of the Venice Biennale in 2001 resulted in him becoming the winner of the Golden Lion...

12. April 2020

Berlin, Dusseldorf. There are exhibitions which – although they succeed in immediately causing the viewer to react emotionally – irritate, and stimulate a closer involvement only when reflecting on them. This happened at the visit to the solo show of Carolin Eidner at Galerie Aurel Scheibler in Berlin....

15. March 2020

Teuillac in Gironde. Time seems to have stopped here. To be exact, the time around 1867, as the crest in the home-cum-studio building that is Barbara Schroeder's home reveals. The house, built in light brick and reddish tile, stands next to a beautiful garden with a pond and is situated in the centre of the Bordelaise wine-growing district. The involvement with the elements of this environment largely determines the work of the artist, which moves between painting, installations and sculpture as well as performance, dance and poetry. As the icing on the cake, her passion for wine and French cuisine...