Preis der Nationalgalerie für junge Kunst
02 Sep - 16 Oct 2005
This September, the Preis der Nationalgalerie für junge Kunst (Nationalgalerie Prize for Young Art), one of the most generous prizes for contemporary art in the world, is to be awarded for the third time. Four artists have been nominated for the 2005 prize, all of whom are based in Berlin: John Bock, Monica Bonvicini, Angela Bulloch and Anri Sala. Far from being unknown entities, all four candidates are established, much sought-after artists who have each shown a strong presence at the various international biennales, and whose works have been presented in solo exhibitions in Oxford, London, Warsaw, Zurich and many other cities. As of 2 September they will be competing against one another at the Hamburger Bahnhof - in an exhibition which invites the ultimate comparison: Which work, which concept, which aesthetics will prove the most convincing? Each of the artists must also present a new work as part of the exhibition, naturally in the medium of his or her choice, with media ranging from sculpture to video and film through to monumental installation. The deciding factor will be the impact and quality of the respective presentation. In the end the best work wins. The decision will be reached by a jury on 27 September whereupon the prize winner for 2005 will be announced.
The four positions represented by this exhibition could hardly be more different. John Bock became famous for his mischievously grotesque performance pieces which conflate science and art and take up the aesthetics of the Absurd. Monica Bonvicini is more reduced in her approach, albeit no less radical: She takes socio-political conditions as her point of departure and produces sculptures and installations which actively contest and explore the interrelationship between body and space. Angela Bulloch unsettles us with her cool aesthetics: Her clear, stringent works derive from social norms and images, which in her installations and sculptures are transformed into perplexing, abstract codes and ciphers. Anri Sala has established a strong international presence thus far with his films in which he creates highly poetic universes out of seemingly unspectacular events. His works are intense and emotional, which is especially surprising considering the quotidian nature of his subjects.
The Nationalgalerie Prize for Young Art 2005 is supported by the Verein der Freunde der Nationalgalerie and Museum & Location Veranstaltungsgesellschaft der Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin mbH.
www.hamburgerbahnhof.de
© John Bock, PestKOP im black rebel motorcycle club, 2005
www.artnews.info/johnbock
The four positions represented by this exhibition could hardly be more different. John Bock became famous for his mischievously grotesque performance pieces which conflate science and art and take up the aesthetics of the Absurd. Monica Bonvicini is more reduced in her approach, albeit no less radical: She takes socio-political conditions as her point of departure and produces sculptures and installations which actively contest and explore the interrelationship between body and space. Angela Bulloch unsettles us with her cool aesthetics: Her clear, stringent works derive from social norms and images, which in her installations and sculptures are transformed into perplexing, abstract codes and ciphers. Anri Sala has established a strong international presence thus far with his films in which he creates highly poetic universes out of seemingly unspectacular events. His works are intense and emotional, which is especially surprising considering the quotidian nature of his subjects.
The Nationalgalerie Prize for Young Art 2005 is supported by the Verein der Freunde der Nationalgalerie and Museum & Location Veranstaltungsgesellschaft der Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin mbH.
www.hamburgerbahnhof.de
© John Bock, PestKOP im black rebel motorcycle club, 2005
www.artnews.info/johnbock