GERWALD ROCKENSCHAUB
sentimental braindance / allure selec +
April 28 to June 05, 2021
° ° ° ° ° °
Photos © Patxi Bergé
Gerwald Rockenschaub
sentimental braindance / allure selec +
Expanding from a seemingly restrictive abstract-minimalist framework, the Austrian artist Gerwald Rockenschaub has been developing an utterly innovative and diverse range of works since the early 1980s. Their production method and degree of perfection have continuously mirrored the technical and artistic possibilities of the present day. Never allowing the rigid rules of classic Minimal Art to constrain his work, he sought a crossover of art, design, media, and everyday life from the very beginning. Before attending Herbert Tasquil's class at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna from 1978 to 1982, Rockenschaub studied history, philosophy, and psychology. During this period, he extensively explored perceptual psychology. The insights and conceptual approaches gained then have continued to define him as a person and his understanding of art until today.
Rockenschaub's mastery is most evident in his vast scope of artistic expression, his engagement with spatial circumstances, and his dramaturgically pointed use of colour. In his oeuvre, luminous colours regularly coincide with minimalist-geometric forms, occasionally bringing to mind pictograms. His art ranges from painting to wall objects, sculptures, site-specific installations, and filmic animations that playfully draw on his formal repertoire and set it in motion. His sources of inspiration include positions of modern art, abstract concepts, Pop Art, Minimal Art, popular culture, and notably the techno and electro scene—he repeatedly samples all these influences to form a new whole. In doing so, he soon discovered the virtually unlimited possibilities of computer-assisted composition. In his own words: "When my finances made it possible for me to buy a computer, I relocated my studio into a laptop. It was a terrific and efficient way to expand my artistic production."
At Galerie Mehdi Chouakri, visitors now have the rare opportunity to view works from Rockenschaub's early practice, presented alongside his current works. Their materiality and execution are particularly compelling and shed light on the progression of technical possibilities in the artist's oeuvre. Canvases and wooden objects that look charmingly handcrafted are shown alongside machine-produced synthetic elements with a high gloss aesthetic. The contrast could not be starker. And yet, these early works already indicate the direction of subsequent artistic developments. Music, among other things, was a characteristic element of Rockenschaub's style from an early stage. His square paintings and objects frequently call to mind the format and design of records and record covers. The titles of his monographic exhibitions tend to sound like song titles—hence the current exhibition title "sentimental braindance / allure selec +" fits this pattern.
Formally, his early painting in the 1980s associated him with the Neo-Geo movement. The artist was, however, never concerned with classical painting as such. He regards his painterly work as a reflection of the medium and considers the paintings primarily as objects for an installation or a stage production.
The range of materials Rockenschaub uses further demonstrates that he never distanced himself from popular culture. For quite some time, he has been working with acrylic glass, plastic film, and MDF boards that replace the canvas and allow his works to be produced by machine.
His extraordinarily wide-ranging oeuvre reveals a great deal about his understanding of art and his role as an artist. He maintains a pragmatic, invariably solution-oriented approach that allows him to expand and adapt the framework of his artistic practice to suit any given situation. When it comes to Rockenschaub, there is no clear distinction between creation and service. His installations and room designs at various international galleries and museums have impressively confirmed the fruitful symbiosis between these two spheres.
Rockenschaub considers his art to be a visual game, and he continues to astonish the viewer with new game variations to this day.
— Karsten Löckemann
Translation Katerine Niedinger
Oil on canvas, 1985
12 x 12,5 cm
4.7 x 4.9 in
The small painting shows how strongly Rockenschaub in the 1980s still played with painterly means. The brightly primed canvas is provided with smaller dots of deep red oil paint, which even go beyond the edge of the picture background. In the center, the artist places a large blob of color, whose surface, shape and color are reminiscent of a wax seal. In terms of design, the work appears much more organic than other paintings of this period and shows how different Rockenschaub's path to "Funky Minimal" was.
° °
Oil on canvas, 1986
50 x 50 cm
19.7 x 19.7 in
The square painting with white primed canvas is bordered by a painted signal green frame. Rockenschaub counteracts the accurate minimal composition with several blobs of red paint within the frame. The spots, some of which run, are reminiscent of the stylized representation of a face and show Rockenschaub's sense of humor with which he resolves the stringent minimal images.
° ° °
Red acrylic glass, metal screws, washers, 2016
66 x 80 cm
26 x 31.5 in
Rockenschaub here combines two oval discs made of acrylic glass and attaches particular importance to the materials. Thus, the base plate is designed fully opaque and glows in deep red. The overlying ellipse of translucent acrylic glass is fixed with four screws and, in contrast to the base plate, is designed as an oval ring. The play "opaque-translucent" results in subtle color impressions that extend to the surrounding wall and thus also have an influence on the ambience.
° ° °
Dispersion paint on wood, 1981/82
26 x 26,5 x 3 cm
10.2 x 10.4 x 1.2 in
The earliest work in the exhibition shows a structure consisting of a horizontal crossbeam made of wood, on which three other beams are vertically applied. The three vertical elements are painted black and accented with silver dots, which clearly sets them apart from the transverse structure. The manual labor with which Rockenschaub still produced his wall objects and paintings in the 1980s becomes particularly clear here. But the reduction to the essentials is also already decisive for the composition.
° °
Grey acrylic glass, metal screws, washers, 2016
90 x 90 cm
35.4 x 35.4 in
Four rectangular strips of gray-blue acrylic glass are superimposed so that they overlap at four points, creating a square shape reminiscent of the hashtag symbol. The semi-transparent acrylic appears darker on the overlapping surfaces, giving the work a multicolor quality achieved through one and the same material. Rockenschaub knows how to play with familiar symbols and patterns, changing them subtly and ambiguously. The symbol becomes a minimal low relief that meanders between design object, advertising medium and concrete painting.
° °
MDF board, cut and lacquered, 2011
100 x 115 x 4 cm
39.4 x 45.3 x 1.6 in
The bright yellow work is characterized by an amorphous asymmetrical design. The depth of the wall work, several centimeters thick, makes it appear raised as a sculptural relief and emphasizes the precise workmanship of the edges. This effect is enhanced by the cast shadows and sets the work apart from the surrounding wall. Like a splash of color, Rockenschaub thus creates an irritation that makes the figure seem both familiar and unusual.
° ° ° °
GERWALD ROCKENSCHAUB
sentimental braindance / allure selec +
April 28 to June 05, 2021
° ° ° ° ° °
Gerwald Rockenschaub
sentimental braindance / allure selec +
Expanding from a seemingly restrictive abstract-minimalist framework, the Austrian artist Gerwald Rockenschaub has been developing an utterly innovative and diverse range of works since the early 1980s. Their production method and degree of perfection have continuously mirrored the technical and artistic possibilities of the present day. Never allowing the rigid rules of classic Minimal Art to constrain his work, he sought a crossover of art, design, media, and everyday life from the very beginning. Before attending Herbert Tasquil's class at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna from 1978 to 1982, Rockenschaub studied history, philosophy, and psychology. During this period, he extensively explored perceptual psychology. The insights and conceptual approaches gained then have continued to define him as a person and his understanding of art until today.
Rockenschaub's mastery is most evident in his vast scope of artistic expression, his engagement with spatial circumstances, and his dramaturgically pointed use of colour. In his oeuvre, luminous colours regularly coincide with minimalist-geometric forms, occasionally bringing to mind pictograms. His art ranges from painting to wall objects, sculptures, site-specific installations, and filmic animations that playfully draw on his formal repertoire and set it in motion. His sources of inspiration include positions of modern art, abstract concepts, Pop Art, Minimal Art, popular culture, and notably the techno and electro scene—he repeatedly samples all these influences to form a new whole. In doing so, he soon discovered the virtually unlimited possibilities of computer-assisted composition. In his own words: "When my finances made it possible for me to buy a computer, I relocated my studio into a laptop. It was a terrific and efficient way to expand my artistic production."
At Galerie Mehdi Chouakri, visitors now have the rare opportunity to view works from Rockenschaub's early practice, presented alongside his current works. Their materiality and execution are particularly compelling and shed light on the progression of technical possibilities in the artist's oeuvre. Canvases and wooden objects that look charmingly handcrafted are shown alongside machine-produced synthetic elements with a high gloss aesthetic. The contrast could not be starker. And yet, these early works already indicate the direction of subsequent artistic developments. Music, among other things, was a characteristic element of Rockenschaub's style from an early stage. His square paintings and objects frequently call to mind the format and design of records and record covers. The titles of his monographic exhibitions tend to sound like song titles—hence the current exhibition title "sentimental braindance / allure selec +" fits this pattern.
Formally, his early painting in the 1980s associated him with the Neo-Geo movement. The artist was, however, never concerned with classical painting as such. He regards his painterly work as a reflection of the medium and considers the paintings primarily as objects for an installation or a stage production.
The range of materials Rockenschaub uses further demonstrates that he never distanced himself from popular culture. For quite some time, he has been working with acrylic glass, plastic film, and MDF boards that replace the canvas and allow his works to be produced by machine.
His extraordinarily wide-ranging oeuvre reveals a great deal about his understanding of art and his role as an artist. He maintains a pragmatic, invariably solution-oriented approach that allows him to expand and adapt the framework of his artistic practice to suit any given situation. When it comes to Rockenschaub, there is no clear distinction between creation and service. His installations and room designs at various international galleries and museums have impressively confirmed the fruitful symbiosis between these two spheres.
Rockenschaub considers his art to be a visual game, and he continues to astonish the viewer with new game variations to this day.
— Karsten Löckemann
Translation Katerine Niedinger
Photos © Patxi Bergé
° ° °
Oil on canvas, 1985
12 x 12,5 cm
4.7 x 4.9 in
The small painting shows how strongly Rockenschaub in the 1980s still played with painterly means. The brightly primed canvas is provided with smaller dots of deep red oil paint, which even go beyond the edge of the picture background. In the center, the artist places a large blob of color, whose surface, shape and color are reminiscent of a wax seal. In terms of design, the work appears much more organic than other paintings of this period and shows how different Rockenschaub's path to "Funky Minimal" was.
° ° °
Oil on canvas, 1986
50 x 50 cm
19.7 x 19.7 in
The square painting with white primed canvas is bordered by a painted signal green frame. Rockenschaub counteracts the accurate minimal composition with several blobs of red paint within the frame. The spots, some of which run, are reminiscent of the stylized representation of a face and show Rockenschaub's sense of humor with which he resolves the stringent minimal images.
° ° °
Red acrylic glass, metal screws, washers, 2016
66 x 80 cm
26 x 31.5 in
Rockenschaub here combines two oval discs made of acrylic glass and attaches particular importance to the materials. Thus, the base plate is designed fully opaque and glows in deep red. The overlying ellipse of translucent acrylic glass is fixed with four screws and, in contrast to the base plate, is designed as an oval ring. The play "opaque-translucent" results in subtle color impressions that extend to the surrounding wall and thus also have an influence on the ambience.
° ° °
Dispersion paint on wood, 1981/82
26 x 26,5 x 3 cm
10.2 x 10.4 x 1.2 in
The earliest work in the exhibition shows a structure consisting of a horizontal crossbeam made of wood, on which three other beams are vertically applied. The three vertical elements are painted black and accented with silver dots, which clearly sets them apart from the transverse structure. The manual labor with which Rockenschaub still produced his wall objects and paintings in the 1980s becomes particularly clear here. But the reduction to the essentials is also already decisive for the composition.
° °
Grey acrylic glass, metal screws, washers, 2016
90 x 90 cm
35.4 x 35.4 in
Four rectangular strips of gray-blue acrylic glass are superimposed so that they overlap at four points, creating a square shape reminiscent of the hashtag symbol. The semi-transparent acrylic appears darker on the overlapping surfaces, giving the work a multicolor quality achieved through one and the same material. Rockenschaub knows how to play with familiar symbols and patterns, changing them subtly and ambiguously. The symbol becomes a minimal low relief that meanders between design object, advertising medium and concrete painting.
° ° ° °
MDF board, cut and lacquered, 2011
100 x 115 x 4 cm
39.4 x 45.3 x 1.6 in
The bright yellow work is characterized by an amorphous asymmetrical design. The depth of the wall work, several centimeters thick, makes it appear raised as a sculptural relief and emphasizes the precise workmanship of the edges. This effect is enhanced by the cast shadows and sets the work apart from the surrounding wall. Like a splash of color, Rockenschaub thus creates an irritation that makes the figure seem both familiar and unusual.