Gerold Miller
14 November – 21 December, 2024
Franz-Josefs-Kai 3/16, 3rd floor
1010 Vienna
Opening hours
Wed – Fri 12 am – 6 pm
Sat 12 am – 4 pm
Closed on public holidays
The work of German object artist Gerold Miller (*1961, Altshausen) is strongly influenced by minimalist forms, comes to life through radical monochromy and geometric abstraction in his wall objects. Miller explores the possibilities and boundaries of imagery at the intersection of sculpture, spatial objects, framed wall spaces, and sculpturally defined environments as carriers of images. His works are deeply grounded in reality, with certain material groups creating situations that Miller describes as physical and psychological confrontations. Forms and colours are treated as independent entities, aiming to systematize the fragmented nature of our visual culture and reintegrate it through individual elements.
Rooted in the tradition of the Italian avant-garde of the 1950s and 1960s, Miller engages with the relationship between thought and visibility, between geometric precision and visual ambiguity, and the expansion of pictorial space into reality. For Miller, the concept of an image extends beyond the mere visibility of minimalist structures, entering a conceptual domain that transcends physical grasp and exists solely in thought. His artistic process is also influenced by American art of the 1960s and the Neo-Geo movement of the 1980s, including artists like Gerwald Rockenschaub.
For Collectors Agenda, Miller has created an edition from his total objects series, consisting of 15 unique pieces. This series challenges the conventional definitions of painting and object, with works that function both as frameless entities and frames in themselves, reflecting contemporary image culture’s emphasis on flawless surfaces. The aubergine-coloured wall sculpture within this series can be interpreted in many ways, acting as both “zero” and pure aesthetic form. Thus, total object 360 aligns with the paradox typical of 1960s art, where reduction and excess, anti-illusionism and illusionism, met at the height of Minimal and Pop Art.
In addition to total object 360, Miller presents other works in his exhibition at Collectors Agenda, including the sculpture Amplifier 18. First discovered by the artist in 2016, this form has been reproduced in various colours and materials. The free-standing sculpture explores the essential conditions of sculpture—material, mass, and dimension—reduced in height, width, and depth. The reflective metal surface creates unexpected visual effects, where the floor, ceiling, and walls seem to merge in a disorienting, labyrinth-like reordering of space. By incorporating the viewer through its mirrored surface, the sculpture momentarily transforms them into an active participant.
The viewer has always played a critical role in Miller’s practice, not merely as a spectator but as an active participant. He never offers just a "painting" or "sculpture" in the traditional sense but envisions a sculptural space yet to be fully realized, a projection surface for images where the actual creation of the image is left to the viewer. In his exhibition at Collectors Agenda, this idea of art as both a place and a reality takes centre stage, challenging the viewer's perception of themselves in relation to the space. A new process emerges, where artwork and viewer merge, and space, time, stillness, and movement come together in a Gesamtkunstwerk—a total work of art.
Text: Livia Klein
Photos: Florian Langhammer
Portrait picture: Patrick Desbrosses
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