The eleventh edition of “Blickachsen”, curated by Christian K. Scheffel and Dr. Maria Schneider, will present some 80 works by 37 artists. The list of participants reveals a diverse and exciting spectrum of sculptural positions of the recent past, right up to the present day.

The focus will be on artists from Austria, thanks to the fruitful co-operation with the Museum Liaunig in Carinthia, this year’s partner museum for “Blickachsen”.

In a variety of ways, different conceptions of three-dimensional space will be on display in the Rhine-Main region – for example, by looking back to a modern classic: Fritz Wotruba (1907-1975), one of the most important Austrian sculptors of the twentieth century, defines the world in an abstracted form, venerating the basic elements of the human body in his tranquil, monumental works. Wotruba’s “Large standing figure” (“Große stehende Figur”) (1962) and his “Large sculpture” (“Große Skulptur”) (1972) stand in the Bad Homburg Schlosspark, in a dialogue with works by younger artists.

With major artists such as Markus Lüpertz, a selection of whose portraits from 1987 to 2015 are on display in Eberbach Abbey (in addition to Bad Homburg), or late masters such as Joannis Avramidis (1922-2016), Bruno Gironcoli (1936-2010) or Karl Prantl (1923-2010), whose works are to be seen in Bad Homburg and Kronberg, “Blickachsen 11” presents multiple contrasts with the works of an earlier artistic generation, for example Peter Kogler, who creates ornamental objects in the landscape, and whose murals in the Fredericianum were a great success at Documenta in 1992. Noble simplicity, grand vegetable: Erwin Wurm’s pimply “Gherkin” (“Der Gurk”) (2016) forms a humorous counterpart to the formally more severe works and is at the same time a sculpture in the traditional manner.

Alongside the more classical conceptions of sculpture, “Blickachsen 11” surprises with works by, for example, the young German border-crossing artists Pitsch & Schau (Mario Pitsch, Oliver Schau), both born in the 1980’s. Their creations encourage participation and display an affinity to design. With their amusing use of materials, such as yellow drainage pipes or cable ties, they bring an unexpected lingering quality to the public space and in this way offer a new perspective on the artistic in the everyday. Raul Walch (b. 1980) hoists his sail- or flag-like works, sometimes referring to political events, in the Kurpark as well as at Eppstein Castle, Kronberg and Frankfurt. “Blickachsen” thus not only opens up exciting locations to new perspectives, but also presents the dimension of time and the broad spectrum of creative sculptural work in the recent history of art.

Blickachsen 11 will opened on 21 May 2017 at the Schmuckplatz in the Bad Homburg Kurpark.

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