Press release
A.R. Penck once described the drawings of German artist Antonius Höckelmann (1937-2000) as when “engineered and erotic dreams stroll around faces.” Galerie Michael Werner is pleased to present a selection of Höckelmann’s “dreams” from 20 January to 21 March 2014 with an exhibition combining drawings in pastel, wax crayon and gouache made between 1966 and 1985 with two sculptures made in 1963/64 and 1981.
Among figurative graphics, the exhibition presents abstract works in which organic and sometimes chondroid forms intertwine. Profile views of young men are beset with ansiform color fields; the head of “Doris” (1976) almost disappears in the ambient composition. A series from 1970 depicts a blonde dressed with a blue summer coat, the sheet of paper cut suborbitally. Nose, teeth, flowing mane and décolletage impose on the observer. Protecting herself from the voyeuristic viewer, the figure holds out her left arm in front of her stomach. By contrast, the viewer is not able to escape or withdraw themselves from the monumental presence of an oversized nude (1981-1982), brightly drawn in red, yellow and blue. Corporeality and sexuality are over-articulated in Höckelmann’s nude figures as well as in a small series of pencil drawings, where cigarette butts and bottlenecks are signs of an illustrious circle having an enjoyable evening. Billows of smoke envelop their heads. Thighs, breasts and genitalia emerge in fragments; the air is pregnant with sexual imaginings. The viewer’s perception oscillates between attraction and repulsion. In the end, we are enchanted by Höckelmann’s imaginations: at once fascinated and disgusted by the aritst’s brainchildren, creations which reflect our own.
The exhibition opens at Galerie Michael Werner in Märkisch Wilmersdorf 20 January and remains on view through 21 March. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday, 10am to 6pm. Booking in advance is recommended by phone +49 (0)33731 32010 or email galeriewerner@michaelwerner.de.