Zollverein + SANAA

I took a day trip to Essen to visit the Zollverein today.  This former coal mine industrial complex is now a UNESCO world heritage site celebrating its industrial significance in European history.  Some of its great halls are now exhibition spaces.  This is my second visit to the Zollverein.  I came here the first time four years ago for the Loveparade in Dortmund nearby.  The monumentality of the Zollverein today is still stunning to me:

SANAA's 2006 minimalist Folkwang Universität der Künste building, which is also on the Zollverein site, make my day trip a double dose of fun:

Industrial minimal Posenenske

Charlotte Posenenske is another artist getting a lot of exposure in Germany this summer.  Her minimalist works from the 60s were shown like new again in both Berlin and Düsseldorf.

Posenenske at Daimler Contemporary, Berlin 2012:

Posenenske at K21, Düsseldorf 2012:

Quantum Kwade

Alicja Kwade is definitely one of my greatest discovery during this summer's German trip.  In addition to her appearances at Haus am Waldsee in Berlin and Kunstverein Hannover, I was very delighted to see her distinctive works again today at K21.  Her poetic play with optics and quantum mechanics is what makes her works unique.

Kwade at Haus am Waldsee, Berlin 2012:

Kwade at Kunstverein Hannover, 2012:

Kwade at K21, Düsseldorf 2012:

Fresh Widow

I went to K20 today to see a very interesting exhibition Fresh Widow: Fenster-Bilder seit Matisse und Duchamp (Window Paintings since Matisse and Duchamp).  Of course, I was drawn by its apparent architectural connection to the window.

Marcel Duchamp at K20, Düsseldorf 2012:

René Magritte at K20, Düsseldorf 2012:

Brice Marden at K20, Düsseldorf 2012:

Isa Genzken at K20, Düsseldorf 2012:

Olafur Eliasson's presence at the show alone is already worth the visit.  His installations Window Projection, Your Roundabout Movie and Seeing Yourself Seeing are the best of the show.

Video from Rabenvater77's youtube channel

Other outstanding works include those by Gerhard Richter, Ellsworth Kelly, Josef Albers and Sabine Hornig.  I want to share here the picture of a window I took a couple of years ago in Köln:

Made In Germany Zwei

Since there are no direct trains connecting Kassel and Düsseldorf, I decided to change trains at Hannover, where I would stop for a few hours to visit a couple of places.  Showing now at three locations in Hannover - Kunstverein Hannover, Kestnergesellschaft and Sprengel Museum - is the show Made In Germany Zwei focused on German artists currently making a breakthrough to the international scene.  The limited time I had allowed me only to visit the former two venues.  I wish I had more time to examine this exciting show more thoroughly.

Max Frisinger at Kunstverein Hannover, 2012:

Alicja Kwade at Kunstverein Hannover, 2012:

Kathrin Sonntag at Kunstverein Hannover, 2012:

Saâdane Afif at Kunstverein Hannover, 2012:

Mike Bouchet at Kunstverein Hannover, 2012:

Ricarda Roggan at Kunstverein Hannover, 2012:

Bouchet and Roggan at Kunstverein Hannover, 2012:

I also like Bernd Ribbeck, Alon Levin, Kitty Kraus, Julia Schmidt and Alexander Wolff but unfortunately I couldn't get pictures of their works at Kestnergesellschaft.

dOCUMENTA: Here & There

It's my second day at dOCUMENTA (13).  I was glad to see more thought-provoking/experimental stuff today.  Anna Maria Maiolino used 2000 kg of modelling clay, vegetation and sound to create her multimedia installation Here & There inside a country house at Karlsaue, where the lower level is infested with clay objects occupying all furniture:

And the upper level has all its openings, interior and exterior, saturated with vegetation:

The house also seems to be inhabited by birds.  The sound of birds chattering, which is loud and clear at the upper level of the house, can be heard even from a distance.

Mogamma @ dOCUMENTA

Since I am going to visit dOCUMENTA (13) venues both today and tomorrow, I got myself a 2-Tageskarte.  dOCUMENTA (13) is taking place at many different locations spread out over the city of Kassel.  I went only to the Fridericianum, documenta-Halle and Ottoneum today.  My impression about this year's exhibition so far is like Nuit Blanche in Toronto: I did not personally find much of the works inspiring at all, and the crowds were overwhelming at times.  I did find one artist's work fulfilling.  Julie Mehretu's four-part large scale drawing/painting Mogamma commissioned by dOCUMENTA (13) is showing at documenta-Halle.  Her layered architectural drawings superimposed by casual strokes in black and geometric elements in colour were my only highlight of the day.

Mehretu at documenta-Halle, Kassel 2012: