Dellbrügge & de Moll:
guerre en forme
6 August – 26 September 2010
Marktplatz 1
91054 Erlangen
Germany
info [at] kunstpalais.de
The most brutal kind of altercation over space and resources is war. In the aftermath of the Thirty Years War, the concept of Cabinet Warfare, or “guerre en forme” took shape. In contrast to battles between enemies aimed at mutual destruction, “guerre en forme” is based on a contention between sovereign entities. This kind of warfare functions according to rules and clear forms, and is carried out in predefined territories. It is, to a certain extent, confined and rationalised. Fortresses constructed according to the laws of geometry and mathematics were approached with similar precision. Troops were positioned in such a way as to show the commander that he had been beaten according to the laws of Euclid allowing him to surrender without the loss of life and dignity. With this contextual background in mind, the artists not only examine paradigm shifts with regard to public space but also possibilities of participation and use of urban territories. The main, eponymous work refers to the layout of the baroque planned city of Erlangen (1686). This plan is used as the basis for choreographic formations within a field of potential conflicts.
The artists will also introduce current projects which are concerned with other cities, such as São Paulo and the Brazilian capital Brasília, the new harbour district Bjørvika in Oslo, and innerurban heterotopias in Berlin and Hamburg. In these contexts, Dellbrügge & de Moll developed experimental games in urban planning, scenarios of occupation of places, and strategies for the (re-) labelling and appropriation of space. A further aspect is the examination of the roles of both inhabitants and viewers as protagonists of the polis. The artists Christiane Dellbrügge (*1961 in Moline, Illinois, USA) and Ralf de Moll (*1961 in Saarlouis, Germany) studied at the Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste Karlsruhe (State Academy of Fine Arts Karlsruhe) where they started working with video, performance and public staging.
Since the beginning of their collaboration in 1984, creating discursive platforms has been part of their artistic approach. They see their function as artists as one of “exemplary communication”, thus exploring possibilities of initiating change by means of art.
www.workworkwork.de
Kunstpalais
Marktplatz 1
91054 Erlangen
Germany
Opening times Tue – Sun 10 a.m. – 6 p.m., Wed 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.
Curator Dr. Claudia Emmert, director of the Kunstpalais Erlangen & Städtische Sammlung Er-langen
www.kunstpalais.de
info@kunstpalais.de
Upcoming: Thomas Stimm: Terra (08 October – 28 November, 2010)
