THE HOT WIRE

With the Westphalian city of Marl, Skulptur Projekte Münster are expanding the object of its study—with its tradition for art in the public space, the city in the Ruhr region offers an exciting counterpoint. Because both topographically and sociographically, Marl marks the interface between the Ruhr region and Westphalia/Münsterland. There, the relics of a visionary building culture can still be seen and experienced.

THE HOT WIRE comprises a variety of project components in the indoor and outdoor area: artists who work in both cities, exchange of sculptures, an exhibition of models from the Skulptur Projekte archive and Skulpturenmuseum Glaskasten Marl, a video exhibition in the school on Kampstraße, and a wealth of reciprocal visits, including by the authors of the writing project KUR UND KÜR in Münster.
 
Skulpturenmuseum Glaskasten Marl
The name “Skulpturenmuseum Glaskasten” describes, on the one hand, the location—the fully glass-enclosed space of the museum beneath the meeting wing of the Rathaus in Marl—and on the other hand, the substantive concept of openness and transparency for everyone. In Marl, the works of art are not hidden behind museum walls; instead, many of them are integrated into the everyday life of the city. More than 100 outdoor works, from Arp to Zadkine, are positioned in the public space that surrounds the town hall and the artificial city lake. The closer one comes to the actual Glaskasten, the denser the ring of sculptures becomes. The glass-encased interior spaces of the museum, which can be viewed at all times, house large sculptures that are not suitable for outdoor installation, as well as a series of small sculptures and objects.
 
Skulptur Projekte Münster
The international Skulptur Projekte have been held in Münster once every ten years since 1977. Artists from all over the world are invited to develop location-based works of art in the public space—including sculptural works as well as temporary installations or performances. The new sculpture projects, 35 in all, form part of the architectural, historical and social environment of the city. At the same time, they point beyond this: reflections about the concept of sculpture as well as current topics of our globalised present or questions about the relationship between the public and private space in times of increasing digitization. 
 

The building blocks of the collaboration:

Multiple projects realized as a kind of twin in both locations form an artistic bracket. The type of linkage is complex: Lara Favaretto positions two monoliths in both cities; after 30 years as a Melonensäule, Thomas Schütte’s Kirschensäule from Münster is getting a location-specific counterpart in Marl; and Sany´s (Samuel Nyholm) humorous Tings also offer interventions in both cities. A work designed and realized by Joëlle Tuerlinckx specifically for Marl initiates a transit on an extended level.

Sculptures are literally swapped between the temporary partner cities to create an opportunity to re-examine the works in another location and under completely different conditions, both social and in terms of urban development. Ludger Gerdes’ Angst and Olle Bærtling’s filigree spatial drawing from the Marl city centre are travelling to Münster for the duration of the exhibition—and in exchange, works from previous editions of Skulptur Projekte, dating back to 1977, will find a temporary new location in Marl. The implementation of Richard Artschwager’s bicycle-stand monument, as well as the re-enactment of Reiner Ruthenbeck’s 1997 performance with two horses in Münster, offer an excellent bridge between the two cities.
 
A total of more than 50 models of executed and planned works from the Skulptur Projekte archive and the Skulpturenmuseum Glaskasten Marl will be on display in the exhibition. This examines the linkage between idea and subsequent realization in the outdoor space. In the entrance area to the Skulpturenmuseum, visitors will also see some of the miniatures from the work Roman de Münster that Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster had presented in Münster in 2007. At this level, too, a substantive connection is created between the sculptures in the outdoor space and the model exhibition in the lower level of the museum.
 
In the former school on the Kampstraße, 12 video works are presented that, first of all, revolve about the themes of sculpture, city and architecture in general. On the other hand, the works by Manuel Graf, Charlotte Moth, Johanna Reich, Matthias Schamp, Corinna Schnitt direct the focus specifically at the city of Marl and the museum. With their special atmosphere and their dimensions, the classrooms of the clearly structured, single-storey school building, planned and executed by Günther Marschall in the concrete architecture typical of its day, offer a perfect venue in which to present video art. This presentation is intended to make the school more familiar to the population of Marl, while at the same time staging a trial run of its suitability as a potential new museum location.
 
The writing project, KUR UND KÜR, by poet Monika Rinck accompanies at a literary level the changes that the sculpture projects imply for the city of Münster. Ten authors in all are spending two weeks each in Münster—but they will also explore Marl entirely in the spirit of the sculpture exchange. More info here.

Free admission
Hours: Tuesday to Friday 11am–5pm; Saturday and Sunday 11am–6pm
Free guided tours: Sundays 11:30am and Thursdays 3:30pm

Catalogue THE HOT WIRE: about 60 pages, with introductory text by Georg Elben
Catalogue SKULPTUR PROJEKTE MÜNSTER 2017: approx. 430 pages, numerous illustrations