50 years ART COLOGNE, with a special exhibition focussing on the

50 years ART COLOGNE, with a special exhibition focussing on
the relation between Flanders, the Netherlands and Germany
Art Cologne, the world’s oldest art fair, has developed into one of the most important
international art fairs in Europe for modern and contemporary. Every year the fair
attracts over 60.000 visitors with around 250 participating galleries.
This year, a special exhibition titled Eins, Zwei, Wechselschritt is on view at Art Cologne,
from 14-17 April, showing 50 years of avant-garde art from the Netherlands, Belgium and
Germany, together with commissioned new work by three upcoming contemporary
artists.
Curator Ellen de Bruijne (NL) and Stella Lohaus (BE) have put the exhibition together with
works from amongst others Joseph Beuys, Ger van Elk, Panamarenko, Marcel
Broodthaers, Georg Baselitz, Marlene Dumas, Rosemarie Trockel, Daan van Golden, Navid
Nuur and Peter Buggenhout. Melanie Bonajo, Sine Van Menxel (BE) and Nora Schultz (DE)
received commissions for new work.
This exhibition is being organized by Art Cologne in collaboration with the Mondriaan
Fund, the Flanders Arts Institute, the Dutch Embassy in Berlin and the General Delegation
of the Flemish Government in Germany.
The exhibition Eins, zwei, Wechselschritt is built up around five periods of ten years each:
1967-1976
1977-1986
1987-1996
1997-2006
Joseph Beuys – Marcel Broodthaers – Stanley Brouwn
Panamarenko – Georg Baselitz – Ger van Elk
Rosemarie Trockel – Wim Delvoye – Marlene Dumas
Joëlle Tuerlinckx – Manfred Pernice – Daan van Golden
2007-2016
2016
Navid Nuur – Alicja Kwade – Peter Buggenhout
Melanie Bonajo – Sine Van Menxel – Nora Schultz
Eins, zwei, Wechselschritt is organized in the light of the 50th anniversary of Art Cologne
and the Netherlands-Flanders as host countries at the Frankfurter Buchmesse. The
hosting countries were asked to develop an interdisciplinary program in several German
cities. The exhibition Eins, zwei, Wechselschritt at Art Cologne is a prelude to the
Eins, zwei, Wechselschritt – ART COLOGNE, Seite 2
Frankfurt Book Fair (19-23/10). In Frankfurt, the Museum for Modern Art in Frankfurt is
organizing this Fall a big solo exhibition by visual artist Fiona Tan, an exhibition with
Willem de Rooij, and an exhibition with Laure Prouvost. Staedel Museum will present a
creation by David Claerbout. Exhibition space basis is showing work by Dutch, Flemish
and German Artists made during residencies in Antwerp, Rotterdam and Frankfurt: Staat
van de Stad / Zustand der Stadt/ State of the City: Karl Philips, Chislain Amar, Stijn Van
Dorpe, Levent Kunt, Ani Schulze, Mirte Van Duppen. Contemporary architecture from
Flanders and the Netherlands will be shown at DAM – Deutsches Architektur Museum.
Art Cologne is open from 14 until 17 April 2016.
Location: Koelnemesse GmbH, Messeplatz 1, 50679 Köln
Press Information: www.artcologne.de/presseinformation
Please send us a copy of your article.
Eins, zwei, Wechselschritt – ART COLOGNE, Seite 3
Eins, zwei, Wechselschritt. A Half-Century of Art Cologne and the
Avantgarde in Contemporary Art in Belgium, Germany and The Netherlands
Curators Lohaus and De Bruijn on their special exhibition at Art Cologne
In dance, the chassé is technically speaking a sequence of 3 small movements, with the
goal of alternating from one foot to the other. Here the first beat in the count of three is
the heaviest, meaning each time the opposing leg starts the new movement. With this
metaphor we want to show how the avant-garde in Belgium, Germany and the
Netherlands was for decades set in motion. The emphasis alternates between a different
place or a different (new) medium, which subsequently interchanges and passes, before
going in another direction.
The focus is on the trio of Belgium-Germany-Netherlands and specifically Amsterdam,
Rotterdam, Eindhoven, Maastricht, Heerlen, Antwerp, Brussels, Aachen,
Mönchengladbach, Krefeld, Düsseldorf and Cologne. Here the strong concentration of
alternating initiatives between galleries, museums, artists and non-profit spaces means
that in this small region an avant-garde was exhibited that was previously unseen.
The exhibition is built around five periods each spanning ten years. Every time we have
chosen an artist from Belgium, Germany, or the Netherlands, whose work originates
from the chosen period. For the jubilee year 2016, three artists were invited to show new
or recent work. Thus we will look not only to the past, but also exhibit a view to the
present and to the future.
1967-1976
1977-1986
1987-1996
1997-2006
2007-2016
2016
Joseph Beuys – Marcel Broodthaers – Stanley Brouwn
Ger Van Elk – Georg Baselitz – Panamarenko
Wim Delvoye – Marlene Dumas – Rosemarie Trockel
Manfred Pernice – Joëlle Tuerlinckx – Daan Van Golden
Navid Nuur – Alicja Kwade – Peter Buggenhout
Sine Van Menxel – Melanie Bonajo – Nora Schultz
“The gallery is not a space. The gallery is a personality.” - Marlene Dumas
Art Cologne was founded in 1967 by gallerists who initially wanted to give a boost to the
local art market. This is a fine example of the many divergent positions held by gallery
owners and the partnerships they initiate.
Gallery and gallerist find themselves in a crucial place within the labyrinth of the art
world. They function as intermediaries between artists on the one side, and collectors,
curators and art institutions on the other. Asked about the role of the gallerist, a wellknown gallery owner answered: “The gallerist is the gallery cleaner, he is an exhibition
guard, an interior architect, a shipping agent, a storage administrator, [...] certainly a
Eins, zwei, Wechselschritt – ART COLOGNE, Seite 4
bookkeeper. He is an art historian (hopefully), [...] at times a cook, a philosopher (at least
late at night) and a sympathetic drinking companion.” (1)
The gallery functions as a meeting place for artists, art enthusiasts, collectors and
professionals. The gallerist, each in his or her own way, performs the same work: namely,
the representation of art (and the artist).
The relationship between gallerists and the artist whose work they show is long lasting,
during which the gallery actively follows and promotes the artist’s career. The gallerist
thereby acts as a counselor for the artist and supports him or her with connection to the
public, management and exhibitions. (2)
In principal, gallerists seek out artists with whom they can create an enduring
collaboration from the start; this is a relationship that can often span several decades.
The gallerist is also an expert in the oeuvre of “their” artists. How could this be otherwise
when they work for twenty to thirty years on exhibitions and projects with these
artists? The cooperation between the gallerist and artist is particularly focused on the
long-term. It takes the average gallery fifteen years to establish a market for an artist’s
work. (3)
While galleries are often seen as one another’s competitors, gallerists regularly create
collaborative partnerships. An example of this is gallery weekend events in different
cities. These are often organized by a group of gallerists to create renewed attention for
the platform function of the gallery, which can also act as a meeting place.
Furthermore, gallery weekends are a nice opportunity to generate attention within a
local context. In some cities this cooperation extends from galleries to art museums and
art initiatives. As in Amsterdam the yearly gallery weekend is connected to the open
studios at the Rijksakademie, an international residency program for artists. Similar
initiatives exist in cities like Brussels, Antwerp and Gent. The benefits of these
collaborations are visible in many fields: they attract foreign professionals since there are
so many things to see simultaneously. In addition this public event is an occasion to visit
a gallery for the first time within the accessibility of gallery weekend.
The mutual collaborations initiated by galleries stand ultimately in the service of art and
artists. The majority of galleries are small, sometimes midsized undertakings, with one or
two owners and at most two to three staff members. This team organizes approximately
eight public exhibitions a year in the gallery. Next to this, the gallery takes part in four to
five international art fairs each year. The art fair is primarily a meeting place for those
engaged with art on a lesser or greater extent to meet and talk. This gives gallerists the
opportunity to introduce their artists to an international art public, from which further
international institutional presentations and purchases can derive.
To accomplish these presentations, to finance the production of art works, but also to
maintain participation in art fairs, gallerists join forces in the interest of a common artist.
Eins, zwei, Wechselschritt – ART COLOGNE, Seite 5
The shared burdens and benefits, along with a large network, allows for the expansion of
collaborative possibilities for the gallerist, as well as the artist.
As co-producers, exhibitions makers and intermediaries, gallerists provide an important
contribution in transferring culture to the next generation, comparable with the role of
the publisher in the field of literature.
Ellen de Bruijne and Stella Lohaus
Notes
(1) Claes Nordenhake in ‘The New Role of the Gallerist in the Art Market’ at the
symposium ‘Talking Galleries’ Barcelona, 2011
(2) Noor Mertens, 'Dorothé Orczyk in Positioning the gallery of tomorrow', 2014
(3) Uta Grosenick in International Art Galleries: 'Post-War to Post-Millenium' (Thames &
Hudson, 2005)
Pressemitteilung
Nr. 6 / age / März 2016, Köln
Jubiläumspublikation und Sonderschauen:
50. ART COLOGNE ermöglicht Rückblick fünf
Dekaden Kunstmarkt
ART COLOGNE
Die ART COLOGNE (14. bis 17. April 2016) feiert in diesem Jahr die 50. Ausgabe
seit ihrer Gründung als ‚Kunstmarkt Köln‘ 1967. Neben dem erstklassigen
Teilnehmerfeld mit 218 internationalen Galerien und Kunsthändlern können sich
Sammler und Kunstliebhaber auf spannende Rückblicke auf ein halbes
Jahrhundert Kunst(markt) freuen. Eine umfangreiche Jubiläumspublikation, die
Sonderschau FILM COLOGNE und eine gemeinsam von Mondriaan Fonds, Flanders
Arts Institute und der Koelnmesse organisierte Ausstellung im Eingang Süd
präsentieren Highlights der letzten fünf Kunstdekaden.
Sonderschau und Jubiläumspublikation ‚Art Cologne 1967-2016. Die Erste aller
Kunstmessen‘
Das Zentralarchiv des Internationalen Kunsthandels (ZADIK e.V.) präsentiert zur
Messe eine Sonderschau im Eingangsbereich und eigens angefertigte über 400 Seiten
umfassende Jubiläumspublikation, die die abwechslungs- und facettenreiche
Geschichte des ‚Internationalen Kunstmarkts‘ Jahr für Jahr Revue passieren lässt. Mit
umfangreichen Texten, opulenter Bebilderung und zahlreichen Abbildungen von
Dokumenten und Presseberichten wird die Historie der weltweit ersten Messe für
Moderne und Zeitgenössische Kunst detailliert aufgearbeitet. Zitate und Beiträge
prägender Persönlichkeiten und Weggefährten lassen 50 Jahre Kölner Kunstmarkt
wieder lebendig werden. Die Publikation wird vom Verlag Walther König (Köln)
herausgegeben und zur Messe im ART COLOGNE-Shop sowie im Buchhandel zum Preis
von 38,00 Euro erhältlich sein. Walther König ist seit 1967 ohne Unterbrechung auf der
ART COLOGNE vertreten. Die Publikation wird von Prof. Günter Herzog (ZADIK),
Walther König (Buchhandlung und Verlag Walther König) und Daniel Hug
(Direktor der ART COLOGNE) am Samstag, 16. April um 13:00 Uhr in der Talks
Lounge der ART COLOGNE in Halle 11.3 vorgestellt.
FILM COLOGNE: ‚RHINE SCOPE‘
Die vor zwei Jahren eingeführte Sektion FILM COLOGNE, die sich ausschließlich dem
Medium der Bewegtbildkunst widmet, bietet im Jubiläumsjahr einen Rückblick über
fünf Dekaden Filmkunst bis zur Gegenwart. Die von Philipp Fürnkäs kuratierte
14.04.–17.04.2016
www.artcologne.de
Ihr Kontakt bei Rückfragen:
Benjamin Agert
Telefon
+49 221 821-2076
Telefax
+49 221 821-3544
E-Mail
[email protected]
Koelnmesse GmbH
Messeplatz 1
50679 Köln
Postfach 21 07 60
50532 Köln
Deutschland
Telefon +49 221 821-0
Telefax +49 221 821-2574
[email protected]
www.koelnmesse.de
Geschäftsführung:
Gerald Böse (Vorsitzender)
Katharina C. Hamma
Herbert Marner
Vorsitzende des Aufsichtsrats
Oberbürgermeisterin
Henriette Reker
Sitz der Gesellschaft und
Gerichtsstand: Köln
Amtsgericht Köln, HRB 952
Ausstellung mit dem Titel ‚RHINE SCOPE‘ zeigt pro Jahrzehnt jeweils zwei signifikante
Arbeiten, die im Kontext des Einflusses der rheinländischen Kunstproduktion entstanden
sind. Über den retrospektiven Charakter eines selektiven Rückblicks hinaus, sollen mit
Fokus auf die letzten 20 Jahre gegenwärtige Tendenzen aufgezeigt werden, die das weite
Spektrum des Mediums aufzeigt und einen Zeitraum genauer beleuchtet, in dem die
Bedeutung des Bewegtbildes nicht nur auf dem Ausstellungs- sondern auch auf dem
Kunstmarkt kontinuierlich gestiegen ist.
Sonderschau ‚Eins, zwei, Wechselschritt’ – 50 years of ART COLOGNE and the
avant-garde in Contemporary Art in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands
Eine Sonderschau im Eingang Süd der Messe wirft einen Blick auf 50 Jahre Austausch
und gegenseitige Beeinflussung von Künstlern aus Belgien, Deutschland und den
Niederlanden. Unter dem Titel ‚Eins, zwei Wechselschritt – 50 years of ART COLOGNE
and the avant-garde in Contemporary Art in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands‘,
wird in fünf Bereichen jeweils ein Künstler aus Belgien, Deutschland und den
Niederlanden vorgestellt, der für das jeweilige Jahrzehnt prägend war. Unter anderem
werden Werke von Joseph Beuys, Marcel Broodthaers, Panamarenko, Georg Baselitz,
Rosemarie Trockel, Marlene Dumas und Peter Buggenhout präsentiert. Der sechste
Bereich bezieht sich auf das Jahr 2016 und präsentiert die drei zeitgenössischen
Künstler Sine Van Menxel, Melanie Bonajo und Nora Schultz. Die Sonderschau wird
kuratiert von Ellen de Bruijne und Stella Lohaus und wird unterstützt vom Mondriaan
Fonds, dem Flanders Arts Institute, dem Königreich der Niederlande, der
Generaldelegation der Regierung Flanderns in Deutschland und der Koelnmesse.
Anmerkung für die Redaktion:
Fotomaterial der ART COLOGNE finden Sie in unserer Bilddatenbank im Internet unter
www.artcologne.de im Bereich „Presse“.
Presseinformationen finden Sie unter www.artcologne.de/presseinformation
Bei Abdruck Belegexemplar erbeten.
ART COLOGNE bei Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/artcologne
Ihr Kontakt bei Rückfragen:
Benjamin Agert
Kommunikationsmanager
Koelnmesse GmbH
Messeplatz 1
50679 Köln
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Telefon: +49 221 821 2076
Telefax: +49 221 821 2181
E-Mail: [email protected]
www.koelnmesse.de
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