Jeff Wall
The first major special exhibition in the new Kunsthalle Mannheim is dedicated to the international photo artist Jeff Wall (born in 1946). He is best known for his large-format back-lit cibachrome photographs, which appear as extravagantly composed film stills. With his works, the trained art historian makes references to the history of art and, thanks to his complex orchestrations, is frequently compared to modern masters, such as Eugène Delacroix and Edouard Manet. The Kunsthalle Mannheim focuses on his Constellations, which present the medium of photography in the form of a search for traces. The third central group of works to be exhibited alongside his back-lit photographs and his black-and-white photographs are his color C-prints. The exhibition, which includes numerous works on loan from international institutions, offers a new perspective on works which have rarely been presented in exhibitions.
Jeff Wall
Jeff Wall
“We focus on works from his more recent creative period. Alongside his lightboxes and black-and-white photographs, we will be the first to showcase a unique work group of color photographs,” explains curator Dr. Sebastian Baden. He conceived the exhibition together with Christophe Gallois and Clement Minighetti of the Mudam Luxembourg (Musée d’Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean).
The exhibition plumbs the multiple meanings of the exhibition title, “appearance,” which the artist chose himself. Wall investigates the technical and metaphorical qualities assigned to a photographic image. Furthermore, the title plays on the question of reality in a photograph and how this reality might be staged. Over 30 works from different creative periods were selected from the artist’s studio and from international lenders. More recent pieces and early key works are grouped by theme, allowing a fresh take on the photographer’s oeuvre at the age of 71. The majority of the exhibited works date from the past twenty years.
Jeff Wall
Jeff Wall
Jeff Wall
Jeff Wall is one of the most important figures in contemporary fine art photography: the Canadian-born artist received the Hasselblad Award for Photography in 2002 and has influenced art history and the meaning of artistic photography significantly from his very first exhibition in 1978. His radiant, atmospherically dense images are a constant source of wonder, rendering narrative aspects mundane and mysterious at once. In his works, Wall is able to depict the perception of the self and its surroundings in an artistically impressive manner.
Jeff Wall
Jeff Wall
Jeff Wall
On the occasion of the exhibition, a symposium entitled “Photography as Art: Jeff Wall’s Significance Today” will be held on July 25 and 26 at the Kunsthalle Mannheim, with the aim of stimulating discussion about current art historical research on the subject of photography in the context of Jeff Wall’s work. Contributions for the symposium are being accepted, and the jury will make their selection in May.
The exhibition is co-produced by the Kunsthalle Mannheim and Mudam Luxembourg – Musée d’Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean. Curated by Dr. Sebastian Baden.
Jeff Wall / Appearance
June 2 – September 9, 2018 / Kunsthalle Mannheim
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