Nebulous Imaginations of Butter and Snowfall – explanations and background information on working with imaginary art: (a) possible interview

 

Some of your works are called „Sculpture of Thought“ – what do you mean by that?

To answer this question, we need to go a little further – in the dictionary, the term „sculpture“ is defined by the words „three-dimensional, man-made form or figure of solid matter“. These can be traditional sculptures made of stone, wood, metal or other basic materials – in modern art the choice of basic materials for sculptures has been expanded more and more. And many of these materials can not only be seen and touched, but also smelled, such as wood. The common denominator of most of these works is that they were originally based on an idea of how something should later look. Illustrative examples of such implementation processes, the materialization of ideas, can be found comparatively well in architecture – buildings often take shape in detail in the mind of an architect before they are actually realized through the plans of construction experts. In the concept of Thought Sculpture the way I think of it, a mental image of an object is created through words – shape, size, texture of material and surface are not subsequently realized materially, but exist only in the imagination of the viewer. If a particular imagination is an accumulation of several such mental objects, we can also speak of thought installations or sculptures of thoughts. The terms are basically interchangeable. The term ‚Thought Sculpture‘ refers to all works created within the framework of the aforementioned concept. As a side note, it should not be forgotten that the prerequisite for the realization of such mental works is, first and foremost, the willingness of a willing audience to engage in this kind of mind game. After all, people are asked to activate their own creativity, their own imagination, in order to make the experience of a thought sculpture possible in the first place. And to be involved in the creative process.

How exactly do you go about communicating an imagination that only exists in your head to others – do you also work with images or do you limit yourself to words?

Pictures yes, words yes. But as I said, not real images like drawings or photographs. Images are created by words, words define an imagination. And one of the special attractions of staying on the mental, non-material level is that you can use materials that do not exist as such. This gives you the opportunity to work with fog or clouds, to process them in every possible and, above all, impossible way – in your mind, clouds can be cast, shaped into any form. You can make them mentally solid. And then you can treat them like solid objects. You can install these imaginary objects on the ground or let them float in space. Anything is possible.

And what conditions are necessary for the optimal realization of such mental works?

One is not directly bound to certain specifications, but in closed spaces the „white cube“ framework, which has become almost classic for contemporary art, would be advantageous. I’m thinking of different spaces that are as simple as possible to give the mind the necessary rest to concentrate on the imagination that is to be created. The ideal spatial situation for this kind of work would be to have many empty, high rooms of different sizes. So there would be an empty room about four meters high, five meters long and four meters wide. The ceiling and walls would be painted white, the floor a light cement gray. In the room itself, there is usually nothing but a three-legged metal stand with a text panel attached to the top. The text, kept as brief as possible, defines an imaginary sculpture or installation that is then projected into the empty space. The imagination created in the mind is thus visualized, and if it is possible to fully engage and concentrate on the imagination, then quite unusual pieces of art can possibly arise before one’s mind’s eye.

So there is nothing more than a plate of text and an empty space in which there should be something that cannot be seen…

…if you get involved, if you give yourself over to your imagination, then something will be there. Even if nothing is really visible or tangible. And maybe only perceived for a split second. But for that one second you can experience something that is almost real. It might stay in your memory. Maybe more than the memory of a real picture. At best.

Can I buy imaginary objects?

That is quite possible. But it does not necessarily have to be an invisible sculpture – since 1991, in the process of dealing with mental sculptures, real existing objects have also been created. When I started working on this theme, I originally wanted to work only with texts. But then I felt that the step from zero to one hundred might be too big for the general public. For this reason, real objects were subsequently created, which function as a kind of aid to create a link between the materially visible and the purely mental levels. Among other things, three-dimensional type-face objects were created: Lines of text applied to transparent sheets of acrylic glass, slightly set back behind frosted glass, sometimes on several different levels, acrylic and glass sheets surrounded by a wooden frame. In the manner of display cases, to quote the words chosen by a journalist in a recent newspaper article to describe these objects. In some cases, there are real three-dimensional objects hanging on the wall in front of you, which are then expanded in your mind and go beyond the existing object. An example of this kind of work is the object „Fog“, which really exists in the room; but the extension of it, the idea of a blanket of fog covering the room up to knee height, after the fog has flowed mentally over the lower edge of the object onto the floor, must then arise in the imagination. A text taped to the wall next to the type-face object guides this. Objects in other forms have also been created to facilitate entry into the world of the imagination.

Returning to the subject of mental sculptures, how many such imaginationa can be generated before the idea is exhausted and the excitement wanes?

That’s a legitimate question. But it is hard to answer conclusively at this point. Although there seems to be an infinite number of possibilities in terms of ideas or raw materials, it is important to me not to drift into arbitrariness. Not to repeat myself too much. That’s already a problem. It remains to be seen in which direction works like this can be developed. In the beginning it was just fun to explore the different aspects and possibilities of this subject. This applies to the way it is communicated as well as to the imaginations themselves. There are clearly defined imaginations, where size, color, material and location are exactly specified. An example of this is the mental realization of the braking sound of a steam locomotive in the form of a three-dimensional metal sculpture projected onto a flat wooden platform painted white and actually present in the room. I have my image of what this sculpture looks like. But everyone else will have a different image of it.

Another topic – why public exhibitions at all? Wouldn’t it be possible to transport the concept of this idea exclusively in printed form?

That would be conceivable, at least in principle. But by going to a specific place, to specially created spaces where you are cut off from everyday distractions, it will be easier to engage in these mind games. And you also have the necessary empty space around you. Hardly anyone has this kind of opportunity at home. And then there are the real, three-dimensional type-face objects. These can also be shown on photos. But that would not be the same. Also, in an exhibition, the imagination is made more accessible by discreet aids such as pencils or even floor markings. But the idea and the concept can certainly be conveyed to a certain extent in written form. A publication in this form is already planned. However, this should not be a substitute for experiencing such works on site, as can happen in real spaces. Rather, I see a written publication as accompanying documentation that makes exhibitions in museums or public spaces all the more possible.

Clouds, fog, the sound of brakes. What other, unusual „materials“ do you use for your mental works?

Another way of playing with the theme is the mental implementation of smells. The smell of freshly cut grass in the form of a floating semi-transparent cube. Things like that. And snow. Which falls from the ceiling of the room in question and then dissipates as soon as the flakes hit the ground. What remains in the room is the smell of snow. Which most people know. Part of this work is created by recalling memories of experiences that you may have had in some other context. Or maybe just seen somewhere and then stored in the mind. Another variation is to combine contradictory messages. Combining a metal leaf rake with the words „Tender Touch“. This creates a mental, emotional reaction. The more recent works go in this direction, wanting to trigger associations. What is important is not the actual object as such, but what it triggers in the mind. The resulting images, thoughts, feelings.

Going back to the „materials“ mentioned above, why clouds, fog, butter, etc.?

The material or materials that are mentally processed have symbolism in different cultures. Fog represents the indeterminate, the vague, even the fantastic. In the mythological representations of some cultures, fog represents the primordial material of the world. Associated with this are clouds, which are often seen as the dwelling place of the gods, of the supernatural. For me, they represent a kind of loose connection between the real earth and the intangible infinity of the sky. Butter is considered a carrier of cosmic energy, especially in India. And in my opinion, thoughts are closely related to energy. Shapes and colors are also chosen for their symbolic content and are usually not random. I often bring intangible substances into the form of a cube. The cube is a limited twill composed of squares. And squares represent the limited. So cubes are a symbol of solidity, but they can also stand for eternity. By bringing abstract, non-materially defined substances and imaginations into the form of a cube, I try to make them more physical.

What was the deciding factor for this kind of art?

At the beginning of the nineties I wanted to get away from the material after years of working with photography and later with painting and object art. Inspired by artists working with conceptual art, but also by the theories of the architect and philosopher Rudolf Steiner in his book „The Philosophy of Freedom“, I began to explore the possibilities of working with purely mental, invisible sculptures. Another goal at that time was to reduce my studio to the size of a writing pad. That didn’t quite work out in the end. But there were several reasons why I wanted to get away from the material: on the one hand, I wanted to break up the scheme of the active creator on the one hand and the passive viewer on the other, and to make visitors to exhibitions an active part of the works, to involve them in the creative process. At the same time, this idea of making the seemingly impossible possible had been in the back of my mind for a while. So at some point I sat down and started to tie together the individual loose threads of thought. And from then on, I wanted to create immaterial objects. I recognized Beuys‘ statement that a thought alone can be a sculpture, and then I implemented this statement in a very literal way. And soon a suitable container for this kind of work was developed – the „Museum in the Mind“, or MIM for short, whose intellectual foundation stone was laid in 1994 in the form of a thought sculpture in a half-page advertisement in the Swiss art magazine „ARTIS“. The text of the advertisement contained a thought sculpture – the idea of a symbolic, frosted glass brick floating at eye level above the text of the magazine page containing the advertisement. At the same time, the planned virtual museum itself was not intended to be a work of art, but rather to provide enough space for the various imaginations and to document them in an appropriate framework. The elaboration of this virtual museum was started at that time, but it is not finished yet. Perhaps in this millennium….

You mentioned several reasons…

…about the material, yes: the many materials that had accumulated over the years in my underground vault of more than two hundred square meters, which served me as a studio, exhibition space and storage room, at some point grew to be a huge stone on my leg, immobilizing me and becoming increasingly burdensome. In addition, it became more and more important for me to express positive things, to create good feelings, after I had mainly dealt with the negative aspects of the environment, society and politics in the eighties and created critical commentaries on them, which resulted in the series of time objects. But at some point, it just no longer made sense to express negative feelings. Or even to put them on a pedestal. I wanted to go in a different direction and start creating beautiful things.

So behind the idea of thought sculptures is the intention to make beautiful things…?

In this context, „things“ is probably the wrong expression, rather: ideas, feelings, experiences. And all that with a wink, not deadly serious. I don’t see this idea as a highly spiritual, intellectual thing at all – the poetic aspect is more important to me. And there’s also the hope of encouraging people to become active themselves. To somehow make people become an active, executing part in the creation of a work of art. Together. To open up possibilities for people. Let them explore their own imagination. Which is undoubtedly present in every human being. To open up possibilities, to explore one’s own imagination, which is undoubtedly present in every human being.

In the sense of Joseph Beuys, as if „…every human being is an artist…“

…but not everyone is able to make a living from it. This addition is often omitted and therefore misunderstood when quoting this statement.

Beuys also dealt with the aspect of imaginary sculpture – did that also serve as a model for your work?

Yes and no. Certainly the subject had touched me in some way in the past in connection with Beuys – I don’t have a clear, conscious memory of it. But my subconscious has definitely picked up on the idea that a thought alone can be a sculpture. That’s a fascinating idea. But what exactly that meant to Beuys, what that meant to him, I can’t reflect on. I haven’t explored that further. It was more the work of Yoko Ono from the sixties, her „Mind Games,“ that influenced me. But I didn’t get to know much of her work until after I had already started working with mental sculptures. In Orono, I picked up „Arias and Objects,“ a coffee table book of her work, while aimlessly browsing the bookstore on the University of Maine campus. At first it was frustrating to learn that someone had already done this, this playing with thoughts and ideas in the context of art. But my work is also different from Ono’s, especially in the way it’s done. But you can see that as an aspect of it, as a variation. No reason for me not to work in the same direction. A few years later, I also made an object as a kind of cross-reference to Ono’s work, the typeface image object „Tribute-to-piece (Yoko Ono)“. I don’t consider it plagiarism. More like a quote. I also like ready-mades. Elsa von Freytag-Loringhoven and Marcel Duchamp’s works were undoubtedly groundbreaking at the time, this extension of art to everyday objects that, when placed in a new context or environment, take on a different meaning. Von Freytag-Loringhoven and Duchamp were among the first to explore this subject, but these works can be rediscovered in a new way almost a hundred years later. Variations on the theme, different aspects, I think are allowed, especially when the theme is so exciting.

 

 

(The original text was written on the occasion of the exhibition „retRoSPEKTIV:jeltsch“, which took place in September 2001 at the Gundeldinger Kunsthalle Basel, Switzerland. The text currently available here has been revised and slightly shortened several times in the course of translation from German to English from January 2021 to 2023).

 

 

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)