INTERMEZZO – The Collection as an Interlude
30.05. – 15.11.2020
A playful and exciting new selection from the Siegfried and Jutta Weishaupt Collection presents popular highlights from the collection in dialogue with works that have not been exhibited, in a cheerful and yet also earnest intermezzo.
The works are clustered thematically, irrespective of any chronology or art-historical classification. Works by different artists and in different media are compared and contrasted in an interplay of forms of expression, materials and historical epochs.
One room is devoted to works by Mark Rothko and Gotthard Graubner, and the special atmosphere makes this a place of quiet and contemplation.
Colourful landscapes by Julian Schnabel, Markus Oehlen and Imi Knoebel explore the themes of nature, plants and water, complemented by well-known masterpieces from the collection such as Andy Warhol’s Flowers and the large wall reliefs by Tom Wesselmann.
A further focus is on works that are based on numbering and textual systems, such as Roman Opalka’s never-ending project of continuous series of numbers. The passing of time, a longing for the infinite – existential themes like these from the works of various German poets are the starting point for artworks by Robert Longo and László Lakner. A bridge to literature is created by the large letters of text from Nietzsche’s poetic philosophical work Thus Spoke Zarathustra on the gallery wall.
The highlight of this show from the collection is an arrangement of works that address the themes of transformation, change and networks, with exciting perspectives on contemporary and future global developments. Some of these works ask as to the status of objective documentation versus artificial enactment; they unite apparent contradictions like chaos and order, and they culminate in the appeal seen on the front façade of the museum building: USE THE FUTURE. This is the message in the text in neon tubes made by Maurizio Nannucci.
In contrast to prior exhibitions, with their constructivist approach, this show is based on big gestures, spontaneous creativity and dynamic movements – as a further exciting element of the collection.
Works on show are by Robert Barry, Piero Dorazio, Maurizio Nannucci, Imi Knoebel, Jannis Kounellis, Robert Longo, François Morellet, Markus Oehlen, Roman Opalka, Mark Rothko, Andy Warhol, Julian Schnabel, Tom Wesselmann, and others.