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 To
Be There - Zvi Goldstein |
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Kunsthalle Nürnberg in co-operation with the Krefelder Kunstmuseen
February 12 - April 12, 1998
Patronage: The exhibition is held under
the patronage of the Embassy of the State of Israel.
Curators: Julian Heynen (Krefelder
Kunstmuseen), Eva Meyer-Hermann (Kunsthalle Nürnberg) |
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Zvi Goldstein,
born 1947 in Cluj (Romania)
Between February 12 and April 12, Kunsthalle Nürnberg will be presenting an exhibition featuring works by
the artist Zvi Goldstein who was born in Romania in 1947 and is now resident in Jerusalem. |
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| The artist has been living in Israel since 1958. He studied at the Bezalel Academy
for Art and Design from 1966 to 1969 and spent the years 1969-1978 in Italy (graduating from the Accademia di Brera,
Milan, in 1972). He returned to Jerusalem in 1978. |
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Background
Zvi Goldstein is a loner. His work does not follow any current trend in art. It developed parallel to the discussion
of the "model" as an artists working tool in the early eighties: models as visual constructions (e.g.
Thomas Schütte, Ludger Gerdes). Goldstein's works point back to roots in minimalist and conceptual art of
the sixties and seventies, as well as to Russian constructivism. What is special about Zvi Goldstein's artistic
position, is his place "between the cultures": as someone who studied in Italy, who created uncompromisingly
radical conceptual text works - quite in keeping with the times - and who then made a conscious choice of the place
where he wanted to work, far removed from all current centres of art and from current artistic discourse.
Cultural contexts and ways of seeing
Zvi Goldstein has created a large body of sculptural work since
the early eighties - dealing with the complex questions of
cultural contexts and ways of seeing. In his large-format reliefs and sculptures the artist developed his very
own visual language, rich in metaphors. This language, however, uses a very different conceptual grammar than the
one familiar to central Europeans with an interest in the visual arts. Zvi Goldstein expresses his artistic view
from his marginal geographic situation - between the cultures, from the periphery, as it were. Aspects of art history,
such as constructivism, as well as seductively exotic elements are incorporated and mirrored in manifold ways in
his highly original objects.
Utopias of art and society
With great consistency and inner coherence, his work presents utopian models
for art and society, in a discourse of various meanings, of possible "translations" and points of view.
The models designed by Goldstein are not definitive, but experimental. They try to come to terms with the reality
of the many facets and the interweaving of various cultures and concepts of life, the richness of the world which
may never be encompassed in any one system. |
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Works in the
exhibition
The presentation of 14 large format works from the nineties is the largest one-man exhibition of the artist's work
so far. |
Among the pieces presented in Kunsthalle Nürnberg are reliefs whose vivid three-dimensional
aspect grows out from the two dimensions of the panel, as well as free-standing installations.
The objects display their own seductive beauty, but they were not created with just superficial aesthetic considerations
in mind. Their sensuousness and overflowing language so rich in metaphors challenge the viewer to read and decipher.
But analytical deciphering of the works' constructive structure must only be an instrument of reflection and will
not lead to definitive pronouncements on their meaning. In our time, when the mention of utopias is almost viewed
with disfavour, Goldstein's work assumes the role of an outsider, artistically radical and political at the same
time.
The work African Plant, 1991, for example, reflects a eurocentric view of the exotic aspects of a strange world
seen from a great distance: the screen print of a plant illustration from a botanics textbook stands out clearly
from the aluminium plate's minimalist backdrop. Three three-dimensional objects on the wall accompany this plate,
alluding to the metaphorical character of this work, to the image of the "Dark Continent" and to the
intoxicating powers of unknown plants - thus linking up with the concept of original growth and constructive reality |
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One-man shows
Zvi Goldstein's works have been presented in various one-man shows since 1975: Israel Museum, Jerusalem (1975,
1982, 1995), Tel Aviv Museum of Art (1983), Museum Haus Esters, Krefeld (on the occasion of the Mies van der Rohe
Prize, 1986), Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris (1987), DAAD Galerie, Berlin (on the occasion of the 1990 Berlin DAAD
programme), Stichting De Appel Amsterdam (1992), Art Gallery of York University, Toronto (1993), Moderna Galeria,
Ljubljana (1995).
Group shows
The artist has taken part in numerous international group shows, amongst
others: documenta VIII, Kassel 1987, Biennale Venice, 1988 and Istanbul Biennale, 1996.
Catalogue
The Ocatagon Verlag will publish a German/English catalogue containing 31
colour and 108 black and white illustrations, as well as texts by Adam Berg, Julian Heynen and Eva Meyer-Hermann.
144 pages. Price during exhibition: DM 34.-.
Venues
Kunsthalle Nürnberg: February 12 - April 12, 1998
Kaiser Wilhelm Museum Krefeld: May 10 - August 9, 1998.
Guided tours every wednesday at 6 p.m. and
on sunday March 15 and March 29 at 11 a.m. |
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Opening Hours
Tuesday - Sunday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Wednesday 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Guided Tours/Gallery Talks
Every Wednesday at 6 p.m.
Every Sunday at 11 a.m.
Admission
Regular admission: 5,-- DM
Reduced fee: 2,50 DM
Additional fee for guided tours: 4,-- DM
Further information/visual materials
Eva Meyer-Hermann, curator
Angela Lohrey, public relations
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