HELEN MIRRAGEHEND(FIELD RECORDINGS 1-3)
curated by Gabriele Horn
KW Institute for Contemporary Art
Auguststraße 69 - Berlin
27 November 2011 - 29 January 2012
In the realm of artistic positions that deal with principles of nature and classification, Helen Mirra’s works hold a particular position. Rather than idealizing nature, they hover between processes of scientific experimentation on the one hand and calligraphic meditation on the other—a combination that produces a great sense of both melancholy and measure. Helen Mirra made her new groups of work—prints and rubbings—during hikes in and around Bonn, Berlin and Zurich. Due to their poetic minimalism these works open up a range of associations that animate the “small things” in nature and mobilize our ethical conscience towards the environment and its diversity.
The 4-channel sound installation Swiss Mountain Transport Systems: multi-channel version in the upper floor, made in collaboration with Ernst Karel, ends the tour through the exhibition transforming the visitor from the vagrant movement through the lower floors to lingering listening.
The exhibition project Helen Mirra: gehend (Field Recordings 1–3) is a cooperation between three exhibition institutions: the Bonner Kunstverein, the Museum Haus Konstruktiv in Zurich and KW Institute for Contemporary Art in Berlin.
