Group MTM
MTM is a group of artists dedicated to the genre artist's book is dedicated. The group was founded in Berlin in 2006 by three artists from Moscow with the aim of further developing the traditions of Russian artist books, especially those of the Russian avant-garde around 1910-20. The name of the group was formed from the first letters of the first names of its members.
Members
Michael Bensman completed his studies at the Moscow Architecture Academy , which he successfully completed in 1985, with a one-year internship at the Bauhaus Weimar . He prefers to find his artistic expression in recycled art. In his object books, with which he has been working since around 1990, used, “discarded” objects are often integrated. An examination of historical and ethical questions is characteristic of many of his works . The artist is also not unfamiliar with the ironic questioning of everyday circumstances.
Tamara Ivanova studied and received her doctorate from the Moscow University of Printing. In her first artist books from the early 1990s, she combined various printing processes with drawings . Later she also used calligraphy , collages and various symbols that create the relationship between the words and what they denote. Lubok , a Russian folk picture sheet , and Tschastuschki , improvised four-line joke and ridicule songs, form another source of inspiration for the artist.
Michael Molochnikov graduated from the Moscow Higher School of Architecture. Since 2004 he has been a member of the Federal Association of Visual Artists (BBK) . His artist books are often designed as fan-folds with detailed drawings. In other works, strict geometric shapes and individual lines of poetry by Chlebnikow , Charms and Malevich make clear references to constructivism .
Self-image
MTM sees itself in the tradition of the Russian avant-garde , whose significant medium was the artist's book. The connection of the MTM members to the aesthetic positions of that era also arises in part from a certain similarity in their social and cultural starting conditions, which are shaped by emigration and artistic alliances between Germans and Russians. The futuristic thesis of "freedom from civilization", which means the standardization and harmonization of thinking under social pressure and the influence of censorship, which is devastating for culture, forms a further parallel to the current discourse: The MTM members oppose them specifications simplified and disseminated by the mass media, which produce unification and lead to the gradual leveling of the differences between the inner world of a subject and his environment. For the artists of the MTM group, the choice of the book as an artistic form of expression is a conscious decision against mass culture, which overwhelms the public with one-dimensional standards.
Exhibitions, reception, collections
The members of the group MTM exhibit their artist books together or in different constellations, u. a. at
- Frankfurt Book Fair annually since 2007
- Museum of Artists' Books, Erarta Museum and Galleries of Contemporary Art, St. Petersburg 2013
- Mainz mini press fair 2006, 2008 and 2012
- 7th editionale, Cologne 2012
- London Art Book Fair 2010 and 2011
- Artists' Books on Tour, European artist's book competition 2011, Vienna
- Rencontres de l'Édition de Création, Marseille 2007 and 2010
- Kniga chudoschnika 2009, Moscow
- Salon Page (s) 11 2008, Paris
- 4th International Biennale for the Artist's Book 2010, Alexandria
- TYPO Berlin 2008
The works presented often attract a lot of attention. For example, The Journal of Artists' Books wrote on the occasion of the London Art Book Fair 2010 that “the biggest surprise” would be the Russian artists, whose books were also among the most photographed objects in the exhibition. Michael Molochnikov's work received an honorable mention at the pan-European Artists' Books on Tour competition organized by the Museum MAK, Vienna . The European Association for Jewish Culture awarded MTM artists twice with a scholarship: Michail Molochnikov for his graphic series "22" with depictions of 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet, from which their mystical meaning also emerged, and Michael Bensman for his Series "Personnel File No. 3 on the Fisherman and the Fish", a graphic examination of the fish symbol in the Torah and in the New Testament. The works of the MTM artists have already found their way into the collections of well-known museums, libraries and private individuals. These include For example, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina and the Berlin State Library , which regularly purchases their work: “A central and unique focus of the collection is [...] on Russian-speaking artists such as Tamara Ivanova and Michael Bensman, who live in Berlin and with their artistic work on cultural Contribute to the life of the city. "
Individual evidence
- ^ Manifesto of the artist group MTM, published on the occasion of the exhibition "Az-Alpha-Alef" in the GAD gallery, Berlin
- ↑ Book Fairs – Paris & Beyond by Catarina Figueiredo Cardoso (PDF; 9.5 MB), in The Journal of Artists' Books 29, 2010
- ↑ Book Winners announced for the European artist's book competition Artists' Books on Tour
- ↑ Scholarships from the European Association for Jewish Culture 2006 ( Memento of the original from November 2, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Scholarships from the European Association for Jewish Culture 2008 ( Memento of the original from November 2, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Russian artists' books - Collection of artistic prints, Berlin State Library
gallery
Group MTM Berlin-Moscow, logo
Michael Bensman. Palindrome, 2009 . Cardboard slipcase with mirror inlay in the form of the oldest palindrome, three smaller cardboard boxes with leporellos with English, German and Russian palindromes, 24.4 x 24.4 x 8.4 cm. Unique.
Michael Bensman. Biography 1983-90 / File No. 1529, 2010 . Cardboard slipcase 60 х 38 х 12 cm, suitcase, assemblage, artifacts, documents, literature confiscated during a search, personal belongings of an exile, mixed technology. Unique.
Tamara Ivanova. Hans Arp. One man, 2008 . Hand drawing with ink and pencil, texts by Hans Arp (in Russian translation). Leporello, stapled together with white and red cord. Unique.
Tamara Ivanova. Pictures at an exhibition, 2007 . One of the seven prints, each 38 x 28 cm, edition 5. Screen print based on the original drawing, hand-colored, the portfolio decorated with appliqué and ribbons.
Mikhail Molochnikov. Cube of God, 2006 . Six cubes in a box, cardboard, colored ink. Unique.
Mikhail Molochnikov. Untitled, 2009 . Original drawing with colored ink, book in leporello format, unique.
