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23/5/2007

Martin Wohrl

Spruth Magers Projekte, Munich

Amore

Monika Sprüth Philomene Magers are pleased to present Martin Wöhrl's second solo exhibition at Sprüth Magers Projekte. He presents two new large-format sculptures -- "AMORE" and "SAFARI" -- as well as several smaller works.

In 1961, Richard Artschwager first introduced the idea of sculpture-as-furniture, creating a virtually three-dimensional picture of a piece of furniture. He also initiated the use of furniture construction materials for artistic purposes. Subsequent generations have developed this concept in a variety of ways.

Martin Wöhrl is a sculptor in the classic sense; his artistic approach varies considerably from piece to piece. A fleeting everyday observation is just as likely to form the background for one of his works as a complex idea which progresses through a series of preliminary designs, leading to the final sculpture. Some works are created by chance from the "waste products" of finished works. They are however further developed and modified, as the loosely-connected series of baroque "Gloriolen" (2006) shows: the materials for the layered pressboard coronas were originally the leftovers from working with a saw.

In the Munich exhibition, tall letters cut from door leaves (some of which were taken from institutions, others from private households) form the word "AMORE", imposing themselves onto the room. The individual letters stand closely-packed in the first room of the gallery, leaning against the wall, winding around the corner; they almost seem to be positioned at random. The bold, broad typography, the dreary patina of the door leaves and the promise contained in the meaning of that single word -- they all mutually reinforce one another, yet no single aspect of the work dominates over the others. Wöhrl is in a certain respect both passionate and yet laid back about sourcing his materials. His art is shaped by a generally positive attitude and an absence of ostensible irony.

The "SAFARI" sculpture dominates the main exhibition room. It is a billboard based on the South American advertising hoardings which Wöhrl observed while visiting Mexico City. Here it is composed of panels, equal in size but varying in colour. The result is a colourful pattern, interspersed with fragments of letters and pictures, which resembles a "find the hidden pictures" game. Little monkeys peep out from the picture fragments; the letters make up the title of the piece "SAFARI". The associations implied here -- whether childlike curiosity and enthusiastic play, or voyages of discovery and a thirst for adventure -- can also be applied to Wöhrl's confident idea of contemporary sculpture.

Martin Wöhrl was born in Munich in 1974. He studied with James Reinking at the Munich Academy of Fine Arts in the 1990s. He is the recipient of the Newcomer's Prize at the Munich Academy, the Bavarian Staatsförderpreis award, a DAAD stipend for Glasgow and a stipend from the state of Bavaria to visit the USA. He most recently exhibited at the 2006 Berlin Biennial (Young Bavarian Art at Gagosian Berlin) and in the VISTAZO exhibition in the Museo d'Arte Carillo Gil, Mexico City.

For further information please contact Julia Weiss, jw@spruethmagers.com.

Sprüth Magers Projekte
Ludwigstr. 7 80539 Munich Germany
Opening hours:
Tue - Fri: 11am - 2pm and 3pm - 6pm
Sat: 11am - 2pm and by appointment

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