Es gibt sie noch, die Dinge (2018)
It was for the first time that the three internationally renowned artists Jonathan Meese, Daniel Richter and Tal R have worked together on the occasion of a joint exhibition at Kunsthaus Stade. The exhibition tour, which led via Holstebro (DK) and Stade (GER) to Espoo (FIN), represents a rare cooperation that thrived on collegiality and friendship.
In the run-up to the stop-over in Holstebro, Meese, Richter and Tal R slipped into costumes to become octopus, shark and shrimp for a moment. Photographs show a cheerful and artistically productive togetherness as animalistic alter egos. The three marine animals were continued in many ways in the exhibition at the Kunsthaus. Shark, octopus and shrimp are now permanently united in a limited edition.
The artists have made a nearly 30 cm high sculpture from small plastic animals, which is crowned by a glass inkwell. The things, they still exist is the title of the edition, ironically referring to the trend in recent years among a very specific clientele to return to good old quality products for which Manufactum – “The Department Store of Good Things” - has become synonymous. A 3D scan was required to produce the unusual figure as an edition of 47 copies in the intended aesthetics of a rococo porcelain figure.
The actual production took place in a 3D printing process with two different finishes and a final varnishing in porcelain white. The total print run required 3,000 hours of production time. An individual application of acrylic spray paint by the artists makes the edition pieces unique and a work of art that reflects on the collaboration among these three exceptional artists.
