The region around Basel has one of the most active art scenes worldwide. The Regionale presents artists who live here in 10 different locations in Switzerland, Germany and France. One of these art venues is the Kunstverein Freiburg. The Kunstverein Freiburg shows positions of contemporary art and is one of the oldest and most important art associations in Germany. Impressions from the opening reception and interview with director Felicity Lunn. December 2, 2005.
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CreativityTranscript
00:00 The regional is composed of two main elements.
00:05 For the art world, as well as for the city of Freiburg, it is important.
00:09 First, the regional is the democratic kind of exhibition.
00:16 Of course, the performance is very high.
00:21 Out of 560 artists, from Baden, the Elsass and the Region Baden,
00:30 the different juries selected a total of 150 artists for the themes of the three different houses.
00:39 The Region Halle this year has 17 artists,
00:43 which means 17 who all come under the theme "Becoming/Disappearing".
00:49 We chose this subject because it seems abstract enough to be of interest,
00:53 but it also applies to quite a lot of artists in the contemporary field at the moment.
00:58 It applies not only to the content and the form, but also to the in-between stages,
01:05 between something becoming and something disappearing.
01:09 The process of making the work is also very evident in this theme.
01:14 The artists come from Switzerland and Germany and France.
01:18 We've chosen to work in every medium and allowed a lot of space for each of the pieces.
01:28 I've been the director of the Kunstverein since the beginning of September.
01:32 This is my first exhibition here.
01:36 The Kunstverein is an important part of the Region Halle, which has been going since 1999.
01:44 We're the northernmost point of the whole process.
01:47 The Region Halle stretches from Basel up to Freiburg in the north,
01:51 and takes in Alsace in France and goes further east in Baden.
01:57 We're in the very lucky position of being able to choose any position that we like.
02:01 The other houses have to fight over the artists that they want to show.
02:05 In Freiburg, because we're a satellite, we can choose anyone here.
02:10 The Kunstverein Freiburg is one of the most important Kunstvereine in Germany.
02:14 We show contemporary positions, up-and-coming artists, usually one-person shows,
02:21 as well as group exhibitions.
02:23 We're the most important contemporary art venue in this part of southern Germany.
02:32 In a art scene where exhibitions and exhibits are often partied,
02:40 and where only the most famous names appear,
02:46 I'm very happy that we have this basic democratic platform,
02:53 which at the beginning of the year gives every artist the same chance
03:00 to present and sell their work to prominent artists.
03:06 Second, and this is a given,
03:11 the Region Halle gives us the opportunity to work with our neighbours,
03:16 the community and Switzerland.
03:21 The joint project with the other houses
03:26 and the art exchange with three countries is irreplaceable.
03:33 And the fight for a week in September
03:38 between the different juries for the ten houses and the desired positions
03:44 is proof of how much Western potential there is in this area.
03:51 Nowhere else, and at no other time in the world,
03:56 have visitors had the opportunity to see a very comprehensive picture
04:01 of the art scene in this region from the perspective of the art scene.
04:08 A third of the 150 exhibitions in the entire region
04:14 come from Germany, Switzerland and France.
04:17 And in every ten houses, artists from the three countries are shown.
04:24 I thank all the artists involved.
04:30 I hope that this intergenerational exchange is important for them
04:36 and that it brings them something.
04:40 This is also the goal of the project.
04:42 Like many of the people involved today,
04:45 they have the hat that the exhibition has brought with it.
04:49 And I was surprised by the fabric of a tent,
04:54 which we have processed from the material.
04:59 The title "Entstehen und Bestimmen"
05:02 meets an important relationship with the contemporary artist.
05:07 It not only infects with a monumental role,
05:12 but also that the subject is treated both directly
05:18 and as a metaphorical approach.
05:23 And the different media,
05:25 Wallride, Zeichnung, Fotografie, Dutzhausweg,
05:29 Kleinmaterial, Job-Institution, Produktion,
05:33 create a wide range that not only forms and content,
05:38 but also the accessories to the tendency to openness
05:43 flow into contemporary art.
05:47 An information sheet with short descriptions of the artists
05:54 is at the entrance for you.
05:57 We will do three public tours during the exhibition,
06:01 to which you are warmly invited.
06:05 It will be too small tonight,
06:07 and I was not really good enough
06:11 that I make an introduction to each of the 17 exhibitions.
06:18 I would like to say only at the opening of the exhibition
06:23 [BLANK_AUDIO]