FROM & T(W)O

With works by
Carla Cardinaletti, Silvia Levenson, Elisabeth Hölzl, Armin Linke, Hubert Kostner, Michael Sailstorfer, Max Rohr, Stephan Balkenhol

Curated by
Valerio Dehò

The exhibition “From & T(w)o” is about an artistic dialogue: two artists, one local and one from abroad, develop a place-specific project for the exhibition in Merano together. Thus, Merano arte becomes a meeting point, a center of cooperation, and a presentation platform. 

“From & T(w)o” is the second such edition. The exhibition concept already proved successful in 2007 and can be refined and adapted to the new situation in 2010. It is more than a group exhibition: it is a joint project; opinions and ideas are exchanged, the artists interact, talk to each other on the phone, and communicate by e-mail for months. 

Their aim is to analyze their own work as well as that of their partner, so as to recognize what they have in common, differences, and crossing points. In this project, it is more important to work together than to work side by side, so interplay and art interactions are part of the game. The participating artists build on their cooperation, appear in a new environment, and can thus gain new connections. Hence, on the one hand, the coming together of the artists and their forms of expression leads to interesting and unique projects and, on the other hand, it gives local artists an opportunity to build bridges to the outside world.

The project “Monument/o” by Elisabeth Hölzl (Merano) and Armin Linke (Milan) takes up an entry by Jacques le Goff in the encyclopedia Einaudi and deals with the meaning of historical monuments that are symbols of past events and gradually lose their meaning. 

Monuments are made to praise past conquests and victories, so they remind us of the rhetoric bound up with them. This architecture influences its surroundings; it is something between art and a construction residue, almost a metaphysical mystery. For her works, Hölzl starts from the Province of Bolzano and the aesthetics of the fascist regime, whereas Linke deals with the surviving monuments of the former GDR. 

What does this architecture mean today, what does it mean for those who have no direct connection to earlier events? Certainly, these monuments have become documents that testify to historical events. 

Hubert Kostner (Kastelruth) and Michael Sailstorfer (Berlin) have worked on the physical dimension of sound. The work “Hausglocke” [“House Bell”] by Kostner calls to mind the house bells that were once used in South Tyrol. The daily routine, on working days as well as holidays, was influenced by the ringing of these bells. They were used much like church bells, as a means of communication, to spread good or bad news. House bells connected people and families. Visitors to the exhibition may ring Kostner’s house bell, turning the high hall of the building into a church steeple.

Sailstorfer’s sound installation “Researchreaktor” [“Research Reactor”] 2008–2010 consists of a 1 meter large cylinder made of cement, microphones, and loudspeakers, and it reproduces the voices of earlier visitors and recorded sounds. It temporarily shifts the recordings and playbacks, connecting people to space. 

Carla Cardinaletti (Bolzano) starts from a passage in a text by the American writer Susan Jeffers, who writes: “Feel the fear and do it anyway.”* It is an invitation to revaluate fear and not to take it as negative. Only by accepting instead of suppressing this basic emotion, can we react to it. The sentence is reproduced in cobalt blue, italic neon letters. The artist deliberately chose the color blue, because it is commonly associated with fear. 

Her partner, Silvia Levenson (Buenos Aires and Lesa) works on the world of infancy, on the stresses of growing up and developing, on adult-child relations and the difficulty there is in communicating. The Flying Lesson installation explores the conflicting emotions of wanting to fly or leap into the blue in search of inner freedom, and paralyzing fear, obstacles thwarting that ambition and dwarfing our powers. Other works, such as She flew away – a swing with a child’s shoes made of glass standing nearby – and The right height conjure the moment when ‘flying’ passes from physical to psychological: the children stand on the swing seat, in search of another dimension.

Stephan Balkenhol (Karlsruhe and Lothringen) is one of the best-known contemporary German sculptors. His works are figurative. He often works with wood, a material that can adapt to the speed of Balkenhol’s artistic process. Balkenhol’s works are centered on the basic questions of humanity, animals, foreign creatures that are often given human attributes, and architecture. They are profound figures, engrossed in inner reflection. This expressiveness is exciting for the viewer. 

Max Rohr’s (Bolzano) paintings are also figurative, a classical way of representing contemporary issues. They harbour no active scenes, but are present reflections that take up the past. The figures are contemplative and introverted; the multiple perspectives and various vanishing points open up several viewpoints, and the use of symbols belongs to the way Rohr expresses himself. South Tyrol, its landscape, and his childhood are recurrent themes in his works. Max Rohr and Stephan Balkenhol first met through “From & T(w)o”. At Merano arte, painting will encounter sculpture. They will be juxtaposed, creating an exciting interaction and communication between their works. 

The artists worked on this project for one and a half years. Merano arte is looking forward to opening this special exhibition on September 24. Once again, the participation of important artists and the quality of their works makes Merano part of the contemporary international art scene.

From & To always includes a musical experience and this year Marcello Fera proposes Archincanto, an international project involving the Alto Adige group Conductus and the world-famous Corsican voice ensemble A Filetta. The outcome will be presented in concert form on 29^th October at Merano’s Puccini Theatre. The programme mingles Fera compositions with the Corsican company’s repertoire, the Conductus strings and outstanding items from traditional Corsican polyphony. A distinguished example of collaboration and exchange of culture and experience, true to the original spirit of “From & To”.

The catalogue will document the development and the making of the works. It will be presented together with the musical project on October 29^th.