Skulptur Projekte Münster,
Germany’s just-opened, decennial show of public sculpture, makes no pretence at a theme. ArtReview sent associate editor Sam Korman to review it, but as he visited, Korman noticed
that, in many cases, visitors and locals alike merely took photos of the works,
and moved on. Korman
thought that a review wasn’t the most useful resource for people who want to
attend Skulptur Projekte or reflect on their experience. So instead, he wrote this unofficial ‘user’s guide’…
Day 1
Stop I: Sculpture
in Holy Land
Pierre Huyghe, After
ALive Ahead (2017)
“In Münster he
is making use of far-reaching deconstruction and alteration measures along with
bio- and media-technological interventions to transform the former ice-skating
rink into one of his environments.”
Bring a friend, or
find someone to enter the massive warehouse with together. After entering,
slowly walk from one end of the concrete platform to the other, remaining at each
other’s side. When you approach the earthen platform that leads into the
subterranean basin, a wrestling match between you will decide which one of you enters.
The winner will descend into the excavated pit by him/herself, and observe
closely the fish tank, computerised pneumatic machinery, beehives and skylights
arythmically opening and closing overhead. S/he will smell the musk emanating
from the damp earth, and imagine such a desolate future in which tiny colonies
of bees and algal plants populate post-industrial structures, the former organs
of commerce. Yes, a magnanimous, if all-too-clever system is at foot, one which
ultimately estranges the winner, who nonetheless remains dedicated with each
purposeful step. The winner will ascend the ramp to the point where s/he left
the loser. S/he will tell the loser nothing about the experience. In the end,
the loser will be the one who experienced the sculpture, and the winner will
have merely been the vessel for the experience – a human hive. After leaving,
eat lunch at the only restaurant available in the surrounding gray office park
– Burger King.
LUNCH
Stop II: Sculpture
is JK, but Not JK
John Knight, A
Work in situ (2017)
“…he has
installed a large water level at the northern tip of the new museum building.”
Lean with all your
weight against the wall, placing one foot comfortably against it. A passing
grade is achieved when you are told to leave. The highest marks result from an
accusation of menacing.
Stop III: The
Three B’s of Sculpture
Steal the lorry,
and its contents, in broad daylight. It’ll require steadiness and confidence.
Be patient. It may be tough to sell what’s in the massive black crate, but the
truck is worth well over a hundred thousand.
Stop IV: Sculpture
Helps
“The artist’s
three sculptures in Münster are based on thermoelectric devices that transform
fire…directly into electrical energy.”
Charge your phone.
Stop V: Sculpture
is Drippy
“She has erected
sculptures not yet fully assembled in the front and rear sections of the
Erbdrostenhof…”
The navy-blue
steel tubes are held in aloft by a series of chrome braces, which articulate
the snaking form throughout the courtyard. Though the sectionals are obviously
heavy, their appearance is almost liquid, a flow that appears to suspend the
effects of gravity. It also looks like the sculpture is moving at such a fast
rate that it is moving in slow motion, perceive it through our low frame-rate
sense of time. It’s covered in drippy protuberances, but unlike
one woman I saw, resist the urge to milk them.
Instead, walk
through the ornate Erbdrostenhof and approach a pile of white tubular
sections. It’s not clear how they fit together, or, in fact, what purpose they
might serve, but they preserve a precious tension through brown foam blocks
that protect each piece from the weight and friction of another. Walk to the
slightly ruined altar behind the installation, and rub the stump of the saint’s
missing hand for blessings.
Stop VI:
Sculpture, or Fear Eats the Soul
“…a message
that can be read in many different directions.”
Position yourself
so you are facing the sculpture. Get so high you have to sit down.
Day 2
Stop I: Sculpture
is Buoyed by People
Ayşe Erkmen, On Water (2017)
“In the inner harbour
she has installed a footbridge connecting the two shores – and two separate
urban spaces. Because it is slightly below the surface of the water, the
visitors look as if they are walking on water.”
Scatter across the
submerged platform, avoid eye contact, and move slowly. You will encounter lots
of dogs, and babies, but do not engage them. Instead, look at them while you
think of a speech by your favourite, or most feared supervillain. We recommend
the character Bane from The Dark Knight Rises (2012), who cements his
hostile takeover of Gotham with the words: “We give it back to you, the
people.” (Be sure not to get your shoes wet. Day 2 is walking-intensive.)
Stop II: Roses are
Red, Violets are Blau, Sometimes Sculpture Means Asking, “How?”
Jeremy Deller, Speak
to the Earth and It Will Tell You (2007-2017)
“For Skulptur
Projekte 2007, he asked some fifty garden associates to keep diaries on
everyday life and activities in their garden communities over the following ten
years. In 2017, approximately thirty-three of these books are on display in one
of the allotment gardens.”
Sit and read if
you’d like, we’ll connect at the end of this activity. The rest of us will
observe a different economy at work. A little metal post sticks up from the
ground, mounted to it is a plastic duck’s head obviously broken off from a
hunting decoy. In fact, observe many of the lawn and garden ornaments: they are
also weather beaten and faded, culled together from disparate pieces into
something pretty enough. Yes, we’ve learned that gardens, like time, are
managed by the good enough gardener. Everywhere there is evidence that
for ten years, the garden and its gardener managed.
Stop III: Sculpture
or Die
Oscar Tuazon, Burn
the Formwork (2017)
“On an abandoned
industrial site on the canal he has set up a cylindrical concrete object that
serves as a public fireplace, barbeque grill, outdoor heater and lookout tower.”
Ask the
skateboarders at the self-built skate-park across the field what they think of
the sculpture.
Stop IV: Herds of
Sculpture
Ei Arakawa, Harsh
Citation, Harsh Pastoral, Harsh Münster (2017)
“Arakawa has
chosen the meadow as a stage for a group of seven coarsely screened handmade
LED panels referencing paintings by various artists.”
Listen to the
songs that each sculpture plays. Pick one which shares themes from a recent
personal regret. Stand next to that sculpture until you can regurgitate the
song from memory or get visibly sunburned, whichever comes first. Try to stay
still, with some allowance for movements to bat the flies away.
LUNCH
Stop V:
Slumber-party Sculptures
“With the aid of
a group of performers she is staging medially transmitted events…”
During this
performance, we observed an old lady in the audience, who had brought a folding
stool to the performance. She watched the actors pile on top of one another,
then begin to seep slowly and individually across the floor. Separating and
rejoining is a theme that will repeat throughout the performance in this
magnificent room, which appears to have remained unchanged since it hosted the treaty
of the Peace of Münster in 1648, which established modern conceptions of
sovereignty and an international balance of power. A performer moved
ineluctably toward the old woman, who, physically unable to skirt impact,
remained in place as the performer expertly adjusted her movements. Don’t
imitate this woman, necessarily, but assume something of her manner. If you sit
still long enough, the action will come to you.
The second half of
the act involves a live Google function, in which the performers group themselves into a collective ‘search engine’. Call out a
search term, and they will analyse your appearance and reactions to their
answers, re-calibrating their interpretations of your query. Smile, or don’t.
Move, or be still. In a different way, let yourself be the object. We assume
that the audience stars as the sculpture.
Activity VI: A
Naked Display of Sculpture
Nicole Eisenman, Sketch
for a Fountain (2017)
Sit on the stool
amidst this cast of drunkards and vape until the sun goes down.
(Alternately: reenact
your favourite Chris Farley sketch from Saturday Night Live)
Day 3
Stop I: Sculpture
is Turning a Five into Five Singles
Mika Rottenburg, Cosmic
Generator (2017)
“…her film
installation in a former Asian import store…”
Don’t touch
anything! Especially the dozens of empty ring boxes.
Stop II: Sculpture
is WTF
“As a basis for
his multi-channel video installation, he invited eight Münster citizens of
different origins to take part in workshops revolving around the question ‘how to live together’ over a ten-day period.”
Dogs typically
assume position as soon as they recognize another dog. It is one of the cutest
moments to watch a puppy meet and greet, nearly impossible not to assume joy in
their curious sniffing and excited tails’ stiff wagging. Of course, these
encounters can quickly evolve into expressions of dominance, even if they
appear like playful representations expressed by awkward, compulsive humping.
My roommate’s dog, after weeks of walks, has only recently begun to poop in
front of me. And some dogs take on a vicious, defensive snarl as soon as they
observe a competitor, though urine trails likely sounded the battle preparations
minutes earlier. It’s remarkable how little the dogs take notice of their pet
owners or any other animal in any of these scenarios.
Sitting at the
table or on the couch, admit that something is wrong and believe it. Then make
eye contact with somebody.
LUNCH
Stop III:
Sculpture Evolution Seminar
Hito Seyerl, HellYeahWeFuckDie (2017)
“Her
installation on the grounds of the former zoo…”
Fuck, then die. Or
watch insects fuck, then die. Or run a computer simulation of fucking, then
dying. Your choice.
Stop IV: Every
Sculpture is Song We Sing at People
Emeka Ogboh, Passage
through Moondog / Quiet Storm (2017)
“Ogboh has
designed an open sound installation for the tunnel in which the sounds of
pedestrians and street musicians are ‘inscribed’. His project is further
enhanced by ‘Quiet Storm’, a home-brewed beer fermented to the sounds of the
city of Lagos.”
Kids are too young
to know what ‘everyday’ means, but since a child’s world is smaller, ‘everyday’
is a minor migration. It’s certainly difficult for adults to understand this
fact of the everyday: for them it means the commute. And most people spend
their lives trying to reduce it, shorten it, or simply ignore it. The Münster
train station is undergoing some major renovations. Maybe that will improve it.
We will listen to
the music that Ogboh composed, which plays on speakers throughout a pedestrian
tunnel at the train station. Workers and students, tourists and the homeless – when
a train comes in, the tunnel floods with people. People retrieve their bikes
from the hundreds heaped around. Notice that you’ve been doing this all day
when you sip from Quiet Storm, the beer Ogboh brewed ‘to the sounds of
the city of Lagos’.
ALTERNATIVE TOUR:
Stop Z: Sculpture
is Ouch Until You Can’t Wait to Do It Again
Michael Smith, Not
Quite Under_Ground (2017)
“…a tattoo
offering discounts to senior citizens…”
For those aged 65+:
Skip all of the other sculptures, spend €1,500, get the biggest
tattoo in the book (or multiple). Fuck retirement. Your body’s already your
tombstone.
For under 65s:
Outlive everyone on the planet.
Published online 23 June 2017
