lights (on/off) presents light-works by key artists from the Haubrok collection. following Work no. 270: The lights off, a work by Martin Creed that we showed in our former space in Xantener Straße, Berlin, and which allowed for a very special exhibition experience “in the dark,” this new exhibition is about the transition between light and darkness, as well as about the various appearances of light and its treatment in art. A theme that, in a way, also reflects the winterly time of year.
Interactive neon cube by Jeppe Hein is visible from the street, but the neon cube turns itself off upon being approached. Entering the space, the first work to be encountered is a video by Matt Calderwood. A bright white surface transitions into darkness through the destruction of neon tubes, which only then make the light sources discernable (Stripes (Vertical)). Calderwood demonstrates yet another method to move from light to dark in his video Tape. Nearby, a television screen flashes: with On off on off on off…, Markus Sixay simulates the turning on and off of television sets. Ólafur Elíasson’s Highlighter scans the entire exhibition space, thus directing the otherwise subjective perception of the visitor.
There are also three works by Cerith Wyn Evans. A lamp by Artemide flashes texts by Theodor Adorno in morse code, while the neon text Slow fade to black… transforms the Haus Berlin across the street into the closing credits of a feature film. the use of mathematic terms to represent the speed of light is a further tautological reflection on the exhibition theme. Jonathan Monk addresses the material value of his neon work through the work itself; Martin Boyce discovers parallels to Rietveld “by accident.” the work Case arse (neon) by conceptual artist David Lieske includes a neon light text that has been doused in black paint. In the work Bulb light exchange, Danish artist Jens Haaning addresses the exchange between New Zealand and Australia. Meanwhile, a luminescent tree branch by Isa Genzken, Lighted branch, challenges the otherwise cool aesthetics of the exhibition space. Last, but not least, Maurizio Nannucci’s Out of the blue is also featured in the exhibition.
Axel Haubrok
List of works
Martin Boyce
untitled (After Rietveld), 1999
Matt Calderwood
Stripes (Vertical), 2005
Matt Calderwood
Tape, 2004
Ólafur Elíasson
Highlighter, 1999
Cerith Wyn Evans
299,792,458 m/s, 2004
Cerith Wyn Evans
Slow fade to black (reversed), 2004
Cerith Wyn Evans
Adorno Centenary “The stars down to earth” (publ. 1974), 2003
Isa Genzken
Lighted branch, 2004
Jens Haaning
Light bulb exchange, 2001
Jeppe Hein
Interactive neon cube, 2006
David Lieske
Case arse (neon), 2004
Jonathan Monk
II/X, 2005
Maurizio Nannucci
Out of the blue, 1993
Markus Sixay
On off on off on off…, 2003