Tobias Zielony “Manitoba Brokenhead” at KOW Berlin
This week is all about the Transmediale at Haus der Kulturen der Welt. The media-art-festival features concerts, screenings and performances. In addition, HBC. hosts a reading about Hipsters, Figge von Rosen Galerie introduces us to ASDFGHJKLÖ and Tobias Zielony observes teenagers. Additionally, lots of after-show parties invite to dance the night through.
Tuesday, Jan 31
Kristoffer Gansing, the director of Transmediale 2012, has prepared an extensive and exciting program: The media-art-festival includes video art, electronic music, performances, talks and parties. “In/compatible”- the central theme – includes artworks by media-art-heroes such as Chris Burden, Chris Cunningham (Aphex Twin) or Steina and Woody Vasulka. The festival opens with a large private view at Haus der Kulturen der Welt (John-Foster-Dulles-Allee 10, 17h).
Wednesday, Feb 01
Ben De Biel, founder of Maria Club in Berlin and documentary photographer, has been documenting Germany’s capital since it was reunited. HBC. (Karl-Liebknecht-Strasse 9) now presents him in a solo exhibition, exhibiting his pictures from the years 1990-1993. The opening starts at 19h and will be followed by music and live performances by Jochen Arbeit from Einstürzende Neubauten, the journalist Max Dax and others.
It has already been at Woodstock and the Carnegie Hall: For the first time, the New York-based light artists The Joshua Light Show present their popular program in collaboration with several musicians and transform Haus der Kulturen der Welt‘s auditorium into a psychedelic trip down memory lane. On Wednesday, they perform together with Oneothrix Point Never, and on Thursday with Manuel Göttsching. Within the framework of this year’s Transmediale, The Joshua Light Show concerts starts at 21h and cost 15 (12) Euro admission.
Thursday, Feb 02
As every month, Kunstmagazin.de and Bar 1000 host an art-collectors-talk, enabling the “normal” crowd to get to know those people with one of the most expensive and luxurious hobbies in the world. This time, they invited Jan-Philipp Saxauer – a man who only collects art by artists that he knows personally or who he is friends with, as for instance: Christian Achenbach, Andreas Golder and Maike Gräf. The talk takes place at Bar 1000 (Schiffbauerdamm 11) at 20h – a reservation is obligatory and can be done by writing to sammler (at) kunstmagazin.de
Another interesting Transmediale event at Haus der Kulturen der Welt (18.30h) is the screening of “I’m the Enemy. Satellite Stories”, featuring video works by the fantastic Bjørn Melhus, as well as Nadav Assor, Peter Callas, Neozoon, Steve Reinke and Roee Rosen.
Friday, Feb 03
Regarding the density of openings, this week is a little calmer than the last one. Nonetheless, it offers some great events: KOW BERLIN (Brunnenstrasse 9) dedicates a must-see solo exhibition to the emerging and talented photographer Tobias Zielony, who always manages to balance his portraits of teenagers growing up in minority groups somewhere between photojournalism and artistic freedom.
Figge von Rosen Galerie (Potsdamer Strasse 98, 19h) shows an “Arbeitsrhytmus” (working rhythm) by the conceptual artist Ignacio Uriarte. Besides sculptural installation-pieces that often include office items, Uriarte also created a sound installation with the title ASDFGHJKLÖ.
And finally Iris Schomaker is “Doing real things” and presents her newest and traditionally female portrait paintings at Galerie Thomas Schulte (Charlottenstrasse 24). The opening starts at 19h and ends at 21h.
Saturday, Feb 04
The word “Hipster” has become somewhat of a non-word in Berlin: People who fit into the Hipster description deny it or even deny their existence, and those who don’t like Hipsters use it as a swear word. Articles, TV-shows and other publications have discussed it, we have heard it way too often – but Mark Greif wrote a whole book (suhrkamp) about it – and its supposed to be great. HBC., Wibke Wtzker and Oskar Piegsa host his public reading, which will take place at 18h at the cinema, followed by a party with music by Thomas Meinecke and Tobias Rapp.
At Backyard (Gitschiner Str. 22) the exhibition 2&3D celebrates its opening: Assembled by curator Lars Richter, the figurative painter Suzan Rinow and installation-artist Jan Bourquin show their newest creations, which are staged in relation to the space and juxtaposed to each other. The private viewing starts at 21h and is followed by an after-show party.
Sunday, Feb 05
At Möckernstraße 68. the Gesellschaft der Freunde der Stiftung für Medienkunst und Philosophie (only Germans can come up with such a ridiculous name for a venue) opens their newest exhibition with a handful of minimalist and abstract artists, such as Sery C., Imi Knoebel, Maria Munoz and Blinky Palermo. They do not reveal what the exhibit is about, but after such a colorful and media-focussed week, it might be nice with some clear lines and calming purity.
Anna-Lena Werner is a graduate art theorist, writer and freelance curator. On her blog artfridge.de, she collects interviews with emerging artists and other creative people, talent discoveries and exhibition reviews from Berlin, Cologne and London. For the next weeks, Anna-Lena will write The Weekly Art Guide on iheartberlin.
Ben De Biel “Oranienburger 1992”, at HBC.
Mark Greif “Hipster”, reading at HBC.
The Joshua Light Show
Jan Bourquin at Backyard
Suzan Rinow at Backyard
painting by Iris Schomaker
