exhibition 27 august - 16 october 2011
at SEZ, Landsberger Allee 77, 10249 Berlin
"Before us stands yesterday - Ted Hughes: The CROW"
Referring to the English author Ted Hughes' dark poems about god, the world, man, woman and the crow Johannes Heisig created 17 large artworks in mixed media that will be presented in the new remarkbeable exhibition space of the SEZ.
In reading performances Ted Hughes' poems from the book CROW:from the life and the songs of the Crow will step into a dialogue with Heisigs's paintings, the words and action of Wolfgang Krause Zwieback and the Music and Videos of Henning Lohner.
First performances were shown as part of the LONG NIGHT OF THE MUSEUMS on Sat 27 August 2011 at 10 and 12 pm. others may follow.
The art of Johannes Heisig - an unconventional and independent expressive surrealist - transcends (either in portrait, still life or sceneries) continuously into the essential, which is above and beyond reality. Just recently he took up the theme of the crow, respectively of the raven, inspired by the English poet Ted Hughes' (1930-1998) poem CROW - in his own words "dark shimmering pieces on God, the world, the devil, man and woman". The bird's screeching may intone a non-decipherable world melody. For Heisig it becomes a cipher, a secret sign which "signifies" the totality of his works. This whispering, that inspired artists from throughout history to "guess", shivers "with the horror of creation". Horror at the coldness of creation is the basic trait of Heisig's art; it is characterized by the dark ambivalence from images of reality protruding into primeval images. Wholeness falls into pieces, but forms falling apart paradoxically achieve the shape of consistency - identity of the non-identical. Gloominess often becomes gaudy to the artist; vibrantly colorful stripes of illumination cross the night pieces. The darkness is thrice superseded: it is preserved, overcome and this way elevated to rays of hope (insights, foresights). "Crow realized there were two Gods".
by Hermann Glaser
translated by Verena Alves-Richter
