Richard Siegal – Focus on the choreographer, Episode 4 of the series “Behind the Arts”

The imminent premiere of XERROX Vol. 2, a ballet for the music of the same name by Alva Noto, choreographed by Richard Siegal and performed by his company BALLET OF DIFFERENCE, was also a premiere for me. The attendance of the rehearsal and the subsequent conversation with Richard Siegal challenged me to get involved in contemporary ballet. To give you a heads up: I was immediately bowled over ...

SOCIÉTÉ ANGELIQUE by Angelika Kammann – Avant-garde through social design

It is only Angelika Kammann's second collection since the founding of her label SOCIÉTÉ ANGELIQUE in 2020, but her garments already adorn covers such as ICON or FAZ Magazine and inspire customers at KaDeWe in Berlin or Gallery Gazette in Tokyo, the jury of the Berliner Salon ...  and me! Why exactly? What makes her designs so special? I have the pleasure of accompanying her on her tour to the opening in Berlin, look over her shoulder during the fitting in her studio and the shooting of the new collection, and getting an in-depth impression of the world of fashion, especially her world of fashion. It quickly becomes clear why the word UTOPIA features in the titles of both collections...

Stefan Heyne – The interaction of stage setting and photography

Cologne, 2 December 2020. What a privilege! Flanked by the stage director Tatjana Gürbaca and the production designer Stefan Heyne (while maintaining social distancing, of course), I am invited to take my seat and watch the performance of "Die tote Stadt" at the Cologne Opera. Apart from me, the experience of this event is granted to only a handful of guests, seated at intervals in the otherwise empty auditorium. The actors are visibly excited. It is, after all, the recording of the live stream of the new production of the work, which was premiered on the 4 December 1920 in Cologne, directed by Erich Wolfgang Korngold. Exactly one hundred years later it is transformed into the present. A present, which, for a long time, made it impossible for the actors to work in their field and which will continue to deprive opera goers of the live experience for an indefinite period. The production, modified for these conditions, attempts a new approach: Opera live, but at home in front of the screen ...

Franz van der Grinten – The diverse inspirational stimuli of Joseph Beuys

Cologne. As a board member of Stiftung Museum Schloss Moyland, which houses the worldwide largest collection of Beuys works within the van der Grinten Collection, Franz van der Grinten, who is part of that family, is often consulted in the long-standing, contentious matters of dealing with the copyright to the images of Beuys and his works. However, the fact that an idea for an exhibition for his gallery would develop in connection with the copyright clarification needed for a fashion shoot in the park of Moyland Castle, was precipitated by unexpected events coming together. In addition, this idea was influenced by confronting his memories of childhood encounters with the iconic artist.

Philipp Humm – Faust as Gesamtkunstwerk of the 21st century?

London, film premiere of The Last Faust. Both the trailer and even just a brief look at Philipp Humm's Gesamtkunstwerk*, his total work of art (graphics, photography, oil painting and sculpture) which now comprises one hundred and fifty works, astonished me beyond belief. Yet what I see today in the cinema hall and will see in his studio tomorrow is absolutely beyond my expectations. A fascinating mix of surreal, bizarre, comical yet also oppressively visionary images draws me directly into a cinematic future of the world. A world, where artificial intelligence has taken control over planet Earth ...
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Carol Beckwith & Angela Fisher – More than just pretty pictures – Photographs tracing the history of mankind

Today we're going to Antwerpen. I’m visiting the Belgian artist Anne-Mie van Kerckhoven in the Borgerhout district. Her retrospective that is currently displayed at the Museum Abteiberg Monchengladbach What would I do in orbit? provides a unique insight into her multimedia oeuvre, consisting of drawings, music, paintings, computer and video art. Impressed by the aesthetics of this show, during my visit today I would like to find what ideas and motivations lie behind her works.