A Journey into Fantasy Land

4 JUNE – 2 JULY, 2021

CHRISTOPH KURZ
ILSE OELBERS
IRENE ZIEGLER-SELLE

Generally speaking, fantasy consists in constructing the impossible and the artists here construct the impossible. Tzvetan Todorov was the first scholar to draw fine distinctions between the fantastic (tr. as „fantastic“), the unknown (tr. as „disturbing“), and the marvelous (tr. as „wonderful“). For Todorov, the essence of the fantastic is the hesitation between psychological and supernatural interpretations of exotic phenomena, and the subsequent indecision of the character as to whether he or the world has suffered a breakdown.

This group of works resolves into a ‘fuzzy set’ of fantasy, conversing with viewers differently. Following Tzvetan Todorov, three artists share their passion for a journey into the fantasy land from reality. All of them, in one way or another, are inspired by the imaginary and the marvelous in the creation of their works.

Kurz Christoph (Austria) was born on May 8, 1984 in Salzburg and lives and works in Salzburg. After finishing his studies, he worked in the hotel and hospitality industry for 10 years and at the age of 30 he started again with a training as a stonecutter. For 2 years he has been running his own independent stonemasonry business, and is self-taught. Works of art with a wide variety of materials and techniques.

Ilse Oelbers (Netherlands) was trained to be a boat builder, but she became a self-taught sculptor. As a carpenter, she first sailed around the world on tall ships like Europa, Stad Amsterdam and Oosterschelde. In the following years Ilse worked as a woodcarver for decorations on traditional ships in Holland and abroad. About 10 years ago she started to make clay sculptures for bronze. Soon after, she became a full-time artist. In her work, integrity and intimacy are the key words. The central theme of Ilse’s work is therefore the human race in its pure form. Hope is the beauty of people, which gives her the best inspiration to develop her work. The frozen movement in her sculptures shows the vulnerability of people and may be an acknowledgement of what we miss in our daily lives. To look at the face of integrity is to look at the face of love.

Irene Ziegler-Selle (Germany) was born in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany in 1947 and passed away on the 3 Feb. 2021. After studying social pedagogy, she taught as an artistic assistant for almost 40 years and She painted for the last 20 years of her life. Renowned art academies led her on the path to independent work in her own studio. She focused on versatile, energetic, colorful and often expressive art. Ziegler-Selle was also a well-planned designer, mediating between the subject and the area being worked on. She viewed the frame not so much as a limitation, but rather as an integral, individually designed element of the total artwork. She organized numerous regional, national and international exhibitions. She worked with children, adults and especially the elderly. In sum, Irene Ziegler-Selle was tempered by an exuberant desire to design within the framework of her personality: „This is me, I can be different, but I don’t want to.“ Her last grand exhibition was in Hong Art Museum, Chongqing, China. This gallery exhibition is also a tribute to her work. May her soul rest in peace.

A Special exhibition on 18.06.2021 with digital artist Rocco Indovina as part of the current exhibition „A Journey into Fantasy Land“ (04.06.21 – 02.07.21) introduces a new topic to theviewers:

Topic: NFT, Is art just a dream of the future?

Rocco Indovina has turned his smartphone into an art tool and uses it to create digital art which contains messages and conveys new insights to change the view and meaning of life. Indovina also offers art lovers a completely new market object: NFT art with cryptocurrency. The Non-Fungible Tokens (NFT) are unique, irreplaceable cryptographic assets that prove ownership of an associated artwork. For the artist, crypto-art is not a thing of the future and he wants high-quality NFT art to be accessible to everyone. In an interview Indovina says: „You can buy almost anything in the world. That is why I have created paintings that, despite their commodity value, are still within everyone’s reach.“ According to Art4NFT gallery, the estimated value of some of Indovina’s digital artworks reaches at $96,000.