Christian Rothmann

Untitled (from ROBOTNICS Series)

2019

Christian Rothmann ROBOTNICS Series C-Print 2019 Edition S (Edition of 10) 12 x 8.3 inches (30.5 x 21 cm) Signed, dated and numbered verso Other Edition Sizes available: - Edition ...

Christian Rothmann ROBOTNICS Series C-Print 2019 Edition S (Edition of 10) 12 x 8.3 inches (30.5 x 21 cm) Signed, dated and numbered verso Other Edition Sizes available: - Edition M (Edition of 6) 35.4 x 23.6 inches (90 x 60 cm) - Edition L (Edition of 6) 47.2 x 31.5 inches (120 x 80 cm) - Edition XL (Edition of 3) 88.8 x 58.8 inches (225 x 150 cm) PUR - Price Upon Request -------------- Since 1979 Christian Rothmann had more than 40 solo and 80 group exhibitions worldwide. Christian Rothmann had guest lectures, residencies, art fairs and biennials in Europe, Japan, USA, Australia and Korea. Christian Rothmann (born 1954 in Kędzierzyn, Poland ) is a painter, photographer, and graphic artist.⁠ ⁠ In 1976 he first studied at the “Hochschule für Gestaltung” in Offenbach, Germany and moved to Berlin in 1977, where he graduated in 1983 at the “Hochschule der Künste”. From 1983 to 1995 he taught at the university as a lecturer and as an artist with a focus on screenprinting and American art history. To date, a versatile body of work has been created, which includes not only paintings but also long-standing photo projects, videos, and public art.⁠ ⁠ Guest lectures, teaching assignments, scholarships and exhibitions regularly lead Rothmann to travel home and abroad.⁠ ------------------------ Rothmann's Robots These creatures date back to another era, and they connect the past and the future. They were found by Christian Rothmann, a Berlin artist, collector and traveler through time and the world: In shops in Germany and Japan, Israel and America, his keen eye picks out objects cast aside by previous generations, but which lend themselves to his own work. In a similar way, he came across a stash of historic toy robots of varied provenance collected by a Berlin gallery owner many years ago. Most of them were screwed and riveted together in the 1960s and 70s by Metal House, a Japanese company that still exists today. In systematically photographing these humanoids made of tin - and later plastic - Rothmann is paraphrasing the idea of appropriation art. Unknown names designed and made the toys, which some five decades on, Rothmann depicts and emblematizes in his extensive photo sequence. In their photographs of Selim Varol's vast toy collection, his German colleagues Daniel and Geo Fuchs captured both the stereotypical and individual in plastic figures that imitate superheroes which were and still are generally manufactured somewhere in Asia. Christian Rothmann looks his robots deep in their artificially stylized, painted or corrugated eyes - or more aptly, their eye slits - and although each has a certain degree of individuality, the little figures remain unknown to us; they project nothing and are not alter egos. Rothmann trains his lens on their faces and expressions, and thus, his portraits are born. Up extremely close, dust, dents, and rust become visible. In other words, what we see is time-traces of time that has passed since the figures were made, or during their period in a Berlin attic, and - considering that he robots date back to Rothmann's childhood - time lived by the photographer and recipients of his pictures. But unlike dolls, these mechanical robots bear no reference to the ideal of beauty at the time of their manufacture, and their features are in no way modeled on a concrete child's face. In this art project the robots appear as figures without a context, photographed face-on, cropped in front of a neutral background and reduced to their qualities of form. But beyond the reproduction and documentation a game with surfaces is going on; our view lingers on the outer skin of the object, or on the layer over it. The inside - which can be found beneath - is to an extent metaphysical, occurring inside the observer's mind. Only rarely is there anything to see behind the robot's helmet. When an occasional human face does peer out, it turns the figure into a robot-like protective casing for an astronaut of the future. If we really stop and think about modern toys, let's say those produced from the mid 20th century, when Disney and Marvel films were already stimulating a massive appetite for merchandising, the question must be: do such fantasy and hybrid creatures belong, does something like artificial intelligence already belong to the broader community of humans and animals? It is already a decade or two since the wave of Tamagotchis washed in from Japan, moved children to feed and entertain their newly born electronic chicks in the way they would a real pet, or to run the risk of seeing them die. It was a new form of artificial life, but the relationship between people and machines becomes problematic when the machines or humanoid robots have excellent fine motor skills and artificial intelligence and sensitivity on a par with, or even greater than that of humans. Luckily we have not reached that point yet, even if Hollywood adaptations would have us believe we are not far away. Rothmann's robots are initially sweet toys, and each toy is known to have a different effect on children and adults. They are conceived by (adult) designers as a means of translating or retelling history or reality through miniature animals, knights, and soldiers. In the case of monsters, mythical creatures, and robots, it is more about creating visions of the future and parallel worlds. Certainly, since the success of fantasy books and films such as Lord of the Rings or The Hobbit, we see the potential for vast enthusiasm for such parallel worlds. Successful computer and online games such as World of Warcraft...

MILES ALDRIDGE (*1964, Great Britain) Red Marks #1 2003 Chromogenic print Image 101,6 x 152,4 cm (40 x 60 in.) Sheet 113,6 x 164,4 cm (44 3/4 x 64 3/4 in.) Frame 117,8 x 169,3 x 5 c...

"Girl With A Gun" Actress and legendary downtown NY scenester Patti Astor, photographed on the set of "The Foreigner" by celebrated New York underground photographer Fernando Natalici - East Village, New York 1977. The Foreigner (director Amos Poe 1977) - a seminal cinematic work at the height of the 1970's American underground - a film which has been documented in virtually every publication pertaining to the history of the late 70's New York Downtown Art scene. Digital C Print on lustre paper. Dimensions: 16 x 20 inches including borders. Hand-signed numbered from an edition of 10 (+ 5 AP’s). Obtained directly from artist. Excellent overall condition. About The Artist: New York based photographer Fernando Natalici is best known for his iconographic documentation of the downtown Manhattan art scene of the mid/late 70's and early 80's. Natalici’s portfolio includes sought after images of a young Patti Smith, Blondie, Talking Heads, Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat, The Ramones and more. As an Art Director, Fernando has played a key role in creating memorable visuals for historic NY venues such as CBGB's, The Mudd Club, Area and Danceteria. Fernando’s photo archive and art design were recently featured in two highly regarded New York shows: “Area” at The Hole Gallery NYC (2014) & “Downtown New York Film” at The Museum of The Moving Image (2015). "The Foreigner" is a testament to the "punk" sensibility as manifested at CBGB during this time; the streets and lofts of SoHo and the Lower East Side art scene. Fernando Natalici is represented by Lot 180 Gallery New York “Patti Astor was a queen of the downtown scene. She arrived in NYC in 1975 with stardom on her mind. In a short time, she was in demand in underground No Wave films and was one of the creative sparks that put the East Village on the cultural map. But Patti Astor was also sick of the "established" uptown art gallery scene, filled with "white walls, white wine, and white people." She knew many graffiti and hip-hop artists, and understood that like the punk artists playing downtown, the uptown rappers and painters used the city as a backbeat and canvas for their work. When Astor and partner Bill Stalling launched FUN Gallery in 1981, they moved graffiti and hip-hop into a gallery space, bringing uptown sensibilities downtown. FUN Gallery's goal was to be a gallery for artists not buyers. It opened its doors to the people and kids who actually lived in the East Village. Patti Astor wanted art for everyone. FUN was the place artists could show without losing any of their street creds, and so the work of many of the cutting edge artists of the early 1980s--such as Jean Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, Dondi, Futura 2000, FAB 5 FREDDY, Lee Quinones, Kenny Sharif, and Lady Pink--could be seen there. It also was known for its terrific parties. FUN Gallery was only around for four years, but in that short time, it was instrumental in opening up the art world to creativity wherever it's found.” (Source: Josephine Reed) Related Categories: Film Noir. Girl gun. Patti Astor Fun Gallery...