We are pleased to present an exhibition with sculptures and photographs by Robert Grosvenor at Goethestraße 2/3.
Robert Grosvenor is known for his spacious sculptures which capture the viewer through their specific materiality and unconventional formal language. He himself considers his sculptural work as ‘ideas that operate between floor and ceiling’ and thus reveals an essential aspect of his practice: The preoccupation with the relation between an object and its surrounding as well as the effect that emerges from this connection.
In the 1960s, his work was perceived in the context of Minimal Art and later Land Art. Yet, although his works display a certain minimalistic aesthetic, Grosvenor never adopted the movement’s programmatic claims. His works are rather characterised by a playful dealing with the properties of materials and the complexity of disposals while never ascribing to a particular artistic style. Often his sculptures seem to overcome the principals of physics, especially gravity. They appear massive and yet floating, both static and dynamic. Thus, Grosvenor creates formations that not only unify contradictions but shift limits. Working with simple, already used objects, such as corrugated iron, pieces of wall, concrete blocks, metal brackets, plexiglass and plastic elements he combines and merges exceptional ensembles.
In his fourth solo exhibition at Galerie Max Hetzler, Grosvenor displays three sculptures as well as a series of photographs which form a less well-known part of his artistic practice.
The sculptures presented in this exhibition offer an insight into Grosvenor's distinctive sculptural work. Untitled, 2014, a so-called hydroplane, consists of a variety of materials such as wood, fiberglass, aluminium and steel and captivates through its futuristic appearance. Whereas Untitled, 2013-2014 and Untitled, 1991 embody indefinable forms which are accurately composed and involve the surrounding space.
The 32 small-sized photographs, created between 2000 and 2013, at first glance appear like snapshots. Sometimes blurry, sometimes overexposed or offset they convey a provisional impression. On some pictures one sees small penguin figures formed out of ice, another series accompanies a plastic rat, surfing in the water on a life buoy. It quickly becomes apparent that these scenes were arranged; that the artist interfered and positioned things on purpose. Other photographs get the spectator thinking: Have these settings been staged or do they reveal real insights in absurd yet mundane situations? More often than not, the world itself offers fascinatingly humorous arrangements where objects seem to pose for the camera.
Similar to his sculptures Grosvenor’s photographic work shows his interest in the unremarkable, the everyday. He is inspired by things that might go unnoticed if one does not pay enough attention. With an eye for the unexpected and coincidental, sometimes even comical, he creates works that develop a specific precision and complexity within their simplicity.
At the same time, Galerie Max Hetzler opens an exhibition with works on paper by Günther Förg at Bleibtreustraße 45.
Robert Grosvenor, born 1937 in New York, lives and works in East Patchogue. His works were exhibited in important institutions, such as Kunsthalle Bern (1992); MoMA, New York (1995, 2006); Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh (1999); The Arts Club, Chicago (2003); Fundação de Serralves, Porto (2005) and Whitney Museum of American Art, New York (2010). Grosvenor participated in documenta 6 and 8. His works are part of major collections, for instance Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York; Walker Art Center, Minneapolis or Whitney Museum of American Art, New York among others.
We would like to thank Paula Cooper Gallery for their support.
Further and upcoming exhibitions and art fair participations:
Jeff Elrod
57, rue du Temple, Paris
October 23 - November 22, 2014
Günther Förg
Bleibtreustraße 45, Berlin-Charlottenburg
November 8, 2014 - January 10, 2015
Opening: November 8, 6-8 pm
Toby Ziegler
57, rue du Temple, Paris
November 27, 2014 - January 17, 2015
Opening: November 27, 2014, 5 - 9 pm
Art Basel Miami Beach
December 4 - 7, 2014
Press contact: presse@maxhetzler.com or (+49) 30 346 497 85-0
