Virtuell 3: Albrecht Wild: Ukiyo-e. From the country of the rising sun
1. - 31. May 2016

Blick in die Ausstellung
Haneda Kimono (1), 2014


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Blick in die Ausstellung

Blick in die Ausstellung

Virtuell 3: Albrecht Wild: Ukiyo-e. From the country of the rising sun

For more than a decade Albrecht Wild has been travelling sporadically to the Far East. His first trip was triggered by his first exhibition in Japan (Kaze Gallery, Osaka, curated by the Goethe Institute in Kansai). The pull of Japanese culture, that exhilarating mixture of tradition and hypermodern technology, has since then never ceased to have an effect on him. He enjoys submersing himself into the "deep waters" of foreign cultures - and it was only a question of time when these experiences would have influence upon his artwork.

Coincedence - besides collecting material (in Wild's case: coasters) and a clear concept - is a driving force for his art. Shortly before departing from Tokio-Haneda airport, he invests his last yen in souvenirs: coasters cut in the shape of kimonos and printed with traditional patterns. He buys many of them, knowing that he always needs three identical coasters to make one piece of art.

Back at his studio in Frankfurt he creates out of these special souvenirs his first "Haneda-Kimonos". These complement his ongoing and ever-increasing group of "beermats", the name of his series of work in which coasters replace pigment, so to speak. While looking for fresh material (this time born of necessity via on-line research), Wild - again coincidentally - discovers coasters from the 1970's and starts purchasing "Ukiyo-e" coasters by auction from all over the world (USA, Canada, Japan, Europe).

These coasters were designed and produced decades ago by (among others) airlines for marketing reasons and, in particular, for promoting the new flight routes to the then aspiring economic power Japan. Albrecht Wild buys all of the coasters he can get on-line - until the prices start going up. Thus the series "Ukiyo-e" came to be.The precious vintage "pigments" are made into unique "beermats". What started at the airport in Tokio, virtually continued in the airline industry - just like the way one usually reaches and leaves this wondrous yet curious group of islands: by air. One could conclude that this story has come full circle at this point, however, that is not the case.

At the same time that this virtual exhibition is on-line (May 2016), Albrecht Wild is wandering the narrow streets of the district of Gion in Kyoto, with the tune of "Alone in Kyoto" by Air (Jean-Benoit Dunckel, Nicolas Godin) in his head from the not less fantastic movie "Lost in Translation" by Sofia Coppola. But that is a different story ...