Lilly Lulay, Peter K. Koch, Matten Vogel, Michael Laube, Anja Nitz, Oliver van den Berg, Nikola Röthemeyer, Miguel Rothschild

The current group show „Rorschach – an Experiment“ started as even such, with the question what happens if a group of artists is asked to break with their usual way of approaching a new subject? And which approach could unite them in straying from their habits to create something new? Rorschach was the answer. Each artist was asked to create their own series of inkblots and consequently, from there, begin to isolate a fragment, transform a shape or override the known. Their original series of random inkblots gave them a chance to project onto rather than to consciously decide in which way to impel their creative process.

The shows title – Rorschach – stems from a psychological test in which a subjects´perceptions of inkblots are recorded and analyzed using different methods. The validity of the Rorschach-test as a diagnostic tool is controversially discussed but the mesmerizing quality of the inkblots is undeniable. Rorschach, the group show, goes many steps further than the test. The artists created their own inkblots, come to their own analysis and conclusively create from this experience. It is much more an exploration of projections and from there the decision to follow a certain path which finally should lead to a completely new work.

The artists were free to decide how far to stray from the actual inkblots. Some of them like Matten Vogel took several attempts and an almost lab-like situation, always going back and forth between techniques and ideas. Finally he created a piece which probably is the farthest away from the random inkblot but at closer consideration tight-linked to the idea of duality found in the blots.

Anja Nitz´ works get their fragile quality not only from the glass they are printed on but also from her decision to keep the shape and structure of her initial inkblots and to melt a second imagery into the blots. Seen from afar the pieces form a collection, created to allow us to find similarities and distinctions within the group. Up close the secondary images become more dominant occasionally even revealing their origin.

Reflecting back was Michael Laubes first thought when he started to work on his inkblots. His piece also follows the organic forms of the ink but when transferred into acrylic glass the shapes harden and the mirrors reflect back unwavering. Once the viewer starts to shift, the mirror surfaces are intermitted by reflections from underneath which pick up on the perforation of the mirror layers them self.

Peter K. Koch´s video animation takes a different path than many of the other pieces in this group show. His work is quick and often hard to follow. As soon as your eyes makes sense of one image it get snatch away and replaced by another. Text, geometrical shapes and color pour into a maelstrom of informations. Koch´s work carefully balances various Rorschach principles, such as duality, projection and interpretation.

Miguel Rothschild´s contribution introduces another principle to this group of works. Coming from the inkblot he manually transfers the ink traces on safety glass and subsequently creates fissures. These fissures are only to some extent controllable but Rothschild invites chance and does not feel the need to hold on to a perfect form but rather sees added value in slight disparity.

Oliver van den Berg´s sculpture is based on sheer fortuity in its first step. A casting compound gets poured into an somewhat confined area, replacing the ink and all it´s affiliations. In a second step he creates an identical counterpart to the random shape and thus creates a piece which deals with questions of originality, authenticity and duality.

With her new pieces Nikola Röthemeyer abandons her customary manner of drawing. Starting from the inkblot she initiates the drawing without a tangible idea in mind. The drawings grow freely on their paper and thereby form „Inner Landscapes“ as a result of the analysis of the inkblots. Despite choosing to let go of control she is always aware of the tension and the critical balance between logic and intuition, between right cerebral hemisphere and cerebral left hemisphere.

Lilly Lulay´s work also concerns itself with the concept original and duality. Without giving too much away she is exploring imprints and their consequences as part of her contribution to the group show.

„Rorschach – an Experiment“ is about breaking out of the invisible confinements of habit by taking a turn into the unknown and surrendering control for a moment and start fresh with an idea born from serendipity.