Fine Arts Undergraduate Show
11–20 July 2014
Opening: Friday 11 July, 7pm
Fine Arts Degree Show
18 July–31 August 2014
Opening: Friday 18 July, 7pm
Summer Festival
Saturday 19 July, from 6pm
Academy of Fine Arts Dresden (HfBK)
Varied venues
Germany
In the 250th year of its history, the Dresden Academy of Fine Arts will conclude the summer semester with a plethora of presentations. Three venues at the school will open their doors to all those interested in discovering young art. Undergraduates and graduates in the fine arts will show their work in the impressive rooms under the “Lemon Squeezer” and the adjoining studios on Brühl’s Terrace, while the sculptors will display their output on the spacious site at Pfotenhauerstrasse, and the stage and costume designers will exhibit at Güntzstrasse 34.
The cycle begins on 11 July when theUndergraduate Show opens at Pfotenhauerstrasse 81/83. In the course of the evening, the Academy will award a DAAD Prize for Outstanding Achievement to one of its foreign students. From Saturday 12 July Brühl’s Terrace will likewise welcome visitors curious to witness the work of students in the foundation and advanced phase of their degree in fine art.
After the prelude, the climax: the unveiling of the Degree Show in the Octagon on Friday 18 July, where39 graduates will exhibit their graduation projects, and on 19 July the grand Summer Festival thrown by the stagecraft students at Güntzstrasse 34. This year’s Festival promises all the fun of the circus with its theme “Tightrope Act.” The public will be delighted not only by artistes, a variety of musicians and the culinary fare, but above all by the costume show starting at 10:30pm. To celebrate the anniversary, this year’s parade will be especially lavish and will include creations by former graduates.
In the fine arts, the Summer 2014 Degree Show will be dominated by the classical medium of painting. The themes range from a contemporary take on landscapes by Eric Keller and Clemens Tremmel via a visualisation of astronomical phenomena from Marie Athenstaedt to a testing of the boundaries between painting and sculpture by Anton Schön and a translation from painting into interactive installationby Norman Pfitzner. Thereare figurative and narrative interpretations along a horizon from almost surreal dream settings to reflections on everyday life, contributed by Katharina Baumgärtner, Stefan Brock, Marta del Sasso, Ha Nuk Jung, Masahiko Kato, Melanie Kramer, Martin Müller and Marie-Christin Rothenbücher. The works by Carolin Israel, Valentina Campillo and Christian Thamm address abstraction, but in very different ways. Julius Georgi uncovers inner worlds, while Verena Kogler takes a conceptual look at the relationship between skin colour and flesh-coloured paint from a tube.
Alongside the diversity of approaches to painting, a frequent theme emerges in the reflection of current political events. Manaf Halbouni and Paul Melzer tackle the belligerent conflict in Syria and Ukraine. Özge Boya is intrigued by Turkey’s head of state.
The wall drawings by Adela Souckova evoke the visual universe of science and religion. Ella Becker, Markus Horn and Katja Klengel explore the opportunities for drawing offered by structure and comics.
The sculptural works include spatial ensembles, additive processes combining different media and materials, and stand-alone objects like the one by Roswitha Maul, who has made a stove with a broadband connection, while Katharina Kretzschmar chose a pack of dogs as her subject. Romin Walter demonstrates the forces of push and pull by applying tension topolycarbonate boards. Jenny Hofmann investigates a sculptural non-form: the hole. She has worked with Anne Schäfer on a spatial installation in several parts. Julia Boswank makes objects speak. Sindy Kohl is fascinated by the sculptural and olfactory charms of processed food from Latin America.
The video installations by Theo Huber, Anna May and Antje Liemann rework individual experience into a pictorial idiom. Paul Stephani focuses on the life of smugglers between the Czech Republic and Germany.
Patricia Huck designed a puppet theatre which will be used for a performance on the opening night. Ulrike Henkel devises unusual perspectives on floral structures, while for Pascal Spindler art is a surprise.
Fine Arts Undergraduate Show
11–20 July
Opening: Friday 11 July, 7pm
Pfotenhauerstrasse 81/83
01307 Dresden
Fine Arts Degree Show
18 July–31 August
Opening: Friday 18 July, 7pm
Academy of Fine Arts Dresden
Octagon, Senate Hall and studios
(entrance on Georg-Treu-Platz)
01067 Dresden
Hours: Tuesday–Sunday 11am–6pm
The exhibition is accompanied by a catalogue.
Summer Festival
Saturday 19 July, from 6pm
Güntzstrasse 34
01307 Dresden
