 Martin Kippenberger at S. O. 36, Berlin 1978 Image Courtesy Estate Martin Kippenberger Galerie Gisela Capitain, Cologne Not Quite 10 Years Without Martin Kippenberger A project by Chris Hammond Featuring poster designs by Martin Kippenberger and for Martin Kippenberger by Günther Brus, William Copley, Mike Kelley, Jeff Koons, Louise Lawler, Nichole Neufert, AR Penck, Ulrich Strothjohann, Lawrence Weiner, Christopher Wool... Featuring "Bar MOT for Kippenberger", Kippenberger's Greatest Hits, Drums, Occasional Dancing and Furniture "The exhibition as such is a running gag for the artist. No more." (Martin Kippenberger) Imagine, you stumble into a bar and it's early morning. There's a small crowd of regulars and everyone is extremely drunk, but one figure, through all this sea of drunkenness, seems to be in a state of intoxication beyond the usual limits. He stands upon a table encouraging his audience to look at him and gyrates with such grace that it is hard not to believe that this individual was not a dancer in some former life. Were it not for the fact that his trousers are round his ankles, you may have been forced to take him seriously. Martin Kippenberger died just over nine years ago on 7th March 1997 and since that time his work has received the recognition that his huge contribution as an artist justly deserves. This was not always the case, with many dismissing his work as a joke, but what they did not realise is that the joke was on them, the joke is the art. From a very early point Kippenberger realised that art was more than making things to go in galleries, it was the exhibition, the invitations and the posters. Naming an exhibition was as important as naming the works, the exhibition was the work. "Not Quite 10 Years Without Martin Kippenberger" will take place at MOT in London and will coincide with the Kippenberger retrospective at Tate Modern. This exhibition will be no retrospective, instead it will look at those behind his work; his friends and assistants, who at some point contributed to his prolific exhibition making process and I have invited some of these artists to design a poster for the exhibition taking place at MOT or to provide me with the original that they designed for Martin back in the 1990's. These will then be shown alongside some of Kippenberger's own poster designs, yet this is not intended to be a poster show. MOT will become "Bar MOT for Kippenberger", for the duration of the exhibition, complete with fully functional bar and entertainment courtesy of "Kippenberger's Greatest Hits". So why not take some time out from the gallery circuit, let down your hair, relax on the comfortable furniture provided, have a few drinks and maybe pick up a specially commissioned poster for your bedroom. Maybe you'll end up dancing on the tables? MOT would like to thank all the Artists for their participation, Ulrich Strothjohann, the Estate of Martin Kippenberger, Galerie Capitain, Cologne and Galerie Bleich-Rossi, Vienna for the loan of the works and Pictures & Light, London for the loan of the furniture. Entrance to the exhibition is free, but to drink at "Bar MOT for Kippenberger" you must become a member, which involves a small fee and is only open to those over 18 years of age. Members receive a specially commissioned poster by Louise Lawler and a free drink. Exhibition: 1 April - 6 May 2006 Gallery hours: Fri-Sun 12 - 5 pm or by appointment MOT Unit 54/5th floor Regents Studios 8 Andrews Road GB-London E8 4QN Telephone/Fax +44 (0)20 7923 9561 Email info@motinternational.org www.motinternational.org |
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