Peter Radelfinger
dal 22/6/2009 al 26/9/2009
Segnalato da
22/6/2009
Peter Radelfinger
Kunstmuseum Bern, Bern
Everbody has got a blue finger. The exhibition presents four work groups which he has been producing since the year 2000. By the simplest means Radelfinger succeeds in creating drawings and animations rich in allusions, which in an amusing and cryptic way interweave charged individual and political themes of relevance to society today. Curated by Claudine Metzger.
curated by Claudine Metzger
Peter Radelfinger (*1953, Berne) has focussed almost exclusively on the medium of drawing since the 1980s. He has taken up an independent position in contemporary art which he gained him numerous scholarships and awards. The exhibition at the Kunstmuseum Bern presents four work groups which he has been producing since the year 2000. In the series "Endlich komm ich in den Zwitscherraum" (since 2000, approx. 500 brush drawings), which shows different birds and their cages in different variations and metamorphoses, the artist explores ambiguous themes, such as safety and confinement, freedom and surveillance, communicating and networking, with humour and intelligence.
The swiftly implemented ballpoint-pen drawings in the series "Joke" (since 2003, approx. 1,200 sheets) address not only political questions related to communication and surveillance, but also the theme of communication "on a small scale", the encounter between man and woman. Thanks to the minimal animation of individual sheets in the digital work "Jokeanima" (since 2005), which is based on "Joke", the medium of the drawing is subtly updated.
The work group "Kissen" (since 2001, approx. 400 lead-pencil drawings) deals with a fundamental theme of the drawing, the fold, and revolves around a basic problem: How does the line form an object? The works also contain numerous references to historical images by artists from Dürer to Menzel.
By the simplest means Peter Radelfinger succeeds in creating drawings rich in allusions, which in an amusing and cryptic way interweave charged individual and political themes of relevance to society today. Present in all the works are the fundamental issues of the conditions of perception, and reflections on the essence of the drawing. Through his incisive use of both new digital technologies and traditional means, Radelfinger plays his part in the updating of the medium of drawing and thus makes an exciting contribution to contemporary art production.
Catalogue: An extensive catalogue with, among other things, texts by Matthias Frehner, Michael Glasmeier, Claudine Metzger and Ruth Schweikert, is being published by Kerber Verlag Leipzig on the occasion of the exhibition.
Image: Endlich komm ich in den Zwitscherraum, seit 2000. Ölfarbe auf Plotterpapier Ca. 500 Blätter, diverse Formate Im Besitz des Künstlers © Peter Radelfinger
Press Relations Officer:
Ruth Gilgen Hamisultane, T +41 31 328 09 19, ruth.gilgen@kunstmuseumbern.ch
Opening: Tuesday, June 23, 2009, 18h30
Kunstmuseum Bern
Hodlerstrasse 8-12 - Bern
Opening Hours
Tuesday10 - 21h
Wednesday to Sunday 10 - 17h
Mondays closed
August 1closed