Kurt Fleckenstein

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Wiese² - an installation by Kurt Fleckenstein in downtown Mannheim
Last exit Kunstverein Neckar Odenwald - an installation by Kurt Fleckenstein
Checked in at the Brandenburg Gate

Kurt Fleckenstein (born December 5, 1949 in Heddesheim ) is a landscape architect and land art , object and installation artist .

Education

Fleckenstein studied landscape architecture at the Weihenstephan University of Applied Sciences , economics in Mannheim and regional science at the University of Karlsruhe (TH) . With his dissertation on Dr. rer. pole. at the University of Kaiserslautern , he spanned the technical arc between the different scientific disciplines.

Political activity

He was politically active in the 1980s as a co-founder of the Greens at district level and a member of the district council and the Rhine-Neckar regional planning association .

Research and planning

With the acquisition of research prizes from the Federal Labor Office and the University of Karlsruhe / Sparkasse Foundation in 1980/1981, intensive scientific work began with over 80 publications in books and specialist journals. The focus was on investigations into the spatial planning effects of large-scale infrastructure projects . His research results are still the basis for planning practice today for the landscape planning integration of infrastructure routes and mining projects.

At the beginning of the 1990s, with the opening of the border to the east, office locations were established in Dresden and in Breslau (Wrocław). This created the starting points for his cross-border planning and research between Germany and Poland .

Turning to the fine arts

Entrance gate Heddesheim
Falling frame Mannheim

At the age of 50 he made a supposed break in his biography for outsiders. He finished his scientific / planning activity, handed over his planning company with locations in Germany / Poland / Austria and devoted all his energy to artistic creation. However, if you take a closer look at his life, the new creative direction was not a break. The study of landscape planning with the subjects of art history and artistic design and his large installations at the time with styrofoam bodies in the style of minimalism already set the course. The permanent further examination of the subject of landscape and the struggle for "the contemporary landscape" was basically spurred on by the desire To “design” spaces and regions according to artistic ideals.

Land Art Objects

Given the qualification on the subject of landscape painting, it may come as no surprise that Land Art objects and installations make up an important part of Kurt Fleckenstein's current work. His objects deal with the surrounding landscape or urban space. In connection with nature, strong encounters arise between the monumental, often rust-colored objects and the contrasting green. The game with gravity is particularly pronounced with him when balls threaten to roll off a hill or dice tip over but not fall. In his art he refers to positions of minimalism and finds new ways. For him it's always about reduction, about the fact that the work of art is a thing in itself, that it is what it is, no more and no less: it does not symbolize anything, is simply present in the context of its surroundings. The city entrance gate for Breslau / Wrocław is an example of this. A square measuring 8 × 8 meters defines the outskirts of the city and at the same time creates a visual relationship with the approaching city. The location and the context to the environment determine the quality of the property. Other objects ( photomontages ) are in almost untouched landscapes. In these, the tension between geometry and pure nature in their spatial interaction is addressed.

Installations

It probably corresponds to his socio-critical philosophy of life that, in addition to the geometric objects in the landscape, installations with a thematic reference are added to his works. In these installations, which fill entire rooms and can be assigned to Pop Art or Object Art , he deals with critical and provocative topics of current affairs. In his installation (art) "Fitness" z. B. Barbells to moving male body parts. In the installation “Chess - Game of Kings”, the room-sized chess field consists of black and red fields that are filled with blood and oil. In the sense of readymade , he likes to place industrial products in an alienated context in his installations in order to irritate the viewer. In the work “Last Exit”, 100 m guard rails, as can be found on streets, are integrated into the exhibition space in a kind of endless loop. He is open to the materials and the rooms in which he works. On the occasion of the 400th anniversary of the city in Mannheim, he set up the installation -Wiesenblumen²- across the entire city center. 400 meadow squares that seem to grow out of the pavement and are everywhere "in the middle of the way" and irritate in a lovable way. His installation at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin is more in the sense of action art. Under the theme of “cleared”, 100 young people sat with bandaged hands in typical migrant bags in order to draw artistically to the situation of asylum seekers in Germany. The year 2009 was marked by post-communist social changes. In St. Petersburg, in the NONCONFORMIST ART museum, with the exhibition FREEDOM and in Odessa / Ukraine with the installation “Homage to Sergej Eisenstein”, the effects of the transformation process were discussed. In 2011 there was a major solo exhibition at the Museo d'Arte Contemporanea - Villa Croce, in Genoa. "Lost in View" is the title of the exhibition, in which the visitor should mistrust his own eyesight through spatial illusions. He responded to the demonstrations on the Majdan in Kiev with an intervention in the public space in front of the Museum Kulturspeicher in Würzburg. There he put a Ukrainian local bus to draw attention to the situation in Ukraine.

Socio-politically motivated installations and actions in public space are becoming increasingly important in his artistic work. In a video on the facade of the WRO Art Center in Wrocław 2012, the year of the European Football Championship, he dealt with the German past. The subject of the video was the crimes committed by Babyn Yar in Kiev. These were taken up and artistically processed at the level of a soccer game between naked people and players with German jerseys.

More recently, Fleckenstein caused a nationwide media coverage with an action against Pegida . On February 9, 2015, before the Monday demonstration that took place that evening, he laid out 175 Muslim prayer rugs and a rug on which "I believe in God - Kurt Fleckenstein" could be read. With this campaign he wanted to promote more tolerance and openness in dealing with people of Islamic faith. In the afternoon the action was forcibly stopped by the Dresden police. The city street cleaning service quickly collected the carpets. In the aftermath, Fleckenstein, according to his own statements, experienced hostility in Internet comments and through emails and phone calls directed to him.

Identification with Poland

Cube Object Museum of Architecture

Although there are no historical / family roots, he devoted himself to the social situation in Poland in the early 1990s and established cross-border contacts. This country has now become his second home. Exhibitions and objects, especially in Breslau / Wrocław, bear witness to his identification with this city, its culture and Polish life. Due to his linguistic integration and his Polish studio location, it is possible for him to deal with critical issues relating to the situation in Poland. B. with the installations "Wolnosz" and "Polska droga". The year 2008 was dedicated to exhibitions in Poland. These took place in the cities of Posen, Stettin, Lublin and Landsberg. They were geared towards the topics of “border” and “new polish way of life”.

Kurt Fleckenstein lives and works in Mannheim and Breslau (Wrocław).

Publications (excerpt)

  • K. Fleckenstein, HP Kolb, H. Neugebauer, "Visualization of changes in the landscape in stone and earth mining" In: Zeitschrift Steinbruch und Sandgrube, Verlagsgesellschaft Grütter, Hanover, issue 10, Oct. 1998, 91st year
  • K. Fleckenstein, S. Reiss, B. Schwoerer-Böhning, “Methods for evaluating interventions in the landscape of overhead lines” in: Reprint from reports of ANL 20 (1996), the Bavarian Academy for Nature Conservation and Landscape Management in Laufen
  • K. Fleckenstein, H. Helm, R. Kramer, "Landscape assessment within the scope of the EIA for wet gravel" In: Journal UVP Report 5/95, December 1995
  • K. Fleckenstein, W. Rhiem, "Environmental and landscape planning for overhead lines" in: Reports of ANL Heft 18 (1994), the Bavarian Academy for Nature Conservation and Landscape Management in Laufen
  • K. Fleckenstein "The socio-political significance of nature conservation in spatial and landscape planning - a critical comment on the current understanding of nature conservation in Germany" In: Festschrift for Hans Kistenmacher, teaching and research area regional and state planning, University of Kaiserslautern 1994

Actions / installations / objects in public space (selection)

  • I believe in God, anti-Pegida campaign at the Frauenkirche in Dresden (2015)
  • Special trip, action at the museum in the Kulturspeicher Würzburg, Würzburg (2014)
  • Installation “Homage to Eisenstein”, Museum of Modern Art, Odessa (2009)
  • "Thanks harvest" campaign at Mainz Cathedral, Mainz (2008)
  • Campaign "Cleared", at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin (2007)
  • Installation "Wiese²" for the 400th anniversary of the city of Mannheim (2007)
  • Object "Wave", Heinrich Vetter Foundation, Ilvesheim (2007)
  • Object "City Gate", City of Breslau / Wrocław (2006)
  • Object "Tilting Cube", at the Museum of Architecture, Breslau / Wrocław (2006)

Participation in exhibitions (selection)

  • Landesgalerie im Traklhaus, "3.500.000", Salzburg (2015)
  • Künstlerhaus Dortmund, "NO EXIT", Dortmund (2015)
  • Artists' Association Maerz, cooperation exhibition, Linz (2015)
  • Art Museum Solothurn, "Oil Trail", Solothurn (2013)
  • International Art Festival "The Level of a Sea", Manege St.Petersburg (2009)
  • Humboldt Berlin (substation), "Icons of Victory - transFORM", Berlin (2009)
  • Action / art "Standing in the way", Kunstverein / Schwetzingen (1st prize 2008)
  • Performance Intermedia Festival, Stettin / Szczecin (2008)
  • BWA Gallery, Gallery for Contemporary Art of the City of Lublin, (2008)
  • Festival "WrocławNonStop" Breslau / Wrocław (2007)

Solo exhibitions (selection)

Fitness BWA Galeria Awangarda
  • Art Association in the MIK Museum Ludwigsburg, Ludwigsburg (2014)
  • Saarländisches Künstlerhaus, Saarbrücken (2013)
  • National Art Museum Ukraine, Kiev (2012)
  • WRO Art Center / Center for Media Art, Breslau / Wrocław (2012)
  • St. Annen Art Gallery, Lübeck (2012)
  • Museo d'Arte Contemporanea - Villa Croce, Genoa (2011)
  • GB KUNST - Society for Fine Arts eV, Trier (2011)
  • Lavra, Kiev City Gallery, Kiev (2011)
  • Art Hall Gallery Kunstihoone, Tallinn (2010)
  • New Art Association Regensburg, Regensburg (2010)
  • Museum NONCONFORMIST ART, St. Petersburg (2009)
  • BWA Gallery, Galeria Awangarda of the City of Breslau / Wrocław (2006)
  • Municipal Gallery Wzgórze Zamkowe, Lubin (2006)
  • KulturForum Europa gallery, Cologne / Vettweiß (2006)
  • Museum of Architecture, Breslau / Wrocław (Catalog 2006)

Web links

Commons : Kurt Fleckenstein  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ [1] Research Prize 1980 of the Federal Labor Office, published by IAB
  2. ^ [2] List of publications
  3. [3] Photo of the city gate in Wroclaw on the dolny-slask website (Lower Silesia)
  4. ^ [4] Internet site of the Kunstverein Neckar Odenwald
  5. - ( Memento of the original from February 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. News in Art Act Magazine @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / artactmagazine.ro
  6. [5] Facebook page Museum Kulturspeicher in Würzburg
  7. ^ [6] Internet site of the WRO Art Center in Wrocław / Breslau
  8. 175 prayer rugs as a protest against Pegida. In: The world online. February 9, 2015, accessed February 4, 2016 .
  9. [7] Proof of campaigns, participation in exhibitions and solo exhibitions