This illustrated catalog documents KONTROLLE, the first U.S. solo exhibition of German artist, Dominik Halmer.
Dominik Halmer’s practice centers on the question of how our individual image of “reality” is constructed. Coming from an analytical but sensual approach to painting, Halmer works with the collision of different realities. In his so called “semi-functional image-objects,” we find canvases combined with everyday objects. Based on formal analogies, Halmer creates a subtle coherence between painting and objects and transforms their specific function into a poetic state of being. Through experimental arrangements, Halmer explores the relationship between object and depiction, functionality and art. By confronting the traditional concept of painting with pragmatic values and suggesting a playful usage of the artwork, he also undermines ideas of the untouchable exclusivity of art.
Organized by Dexter Wimberly, KONTROLLE presents a series of works integrating equipment from sports. These items, which are already part of a complex set of imagery and values, address the observer in an immediate way by challenging a reflexive mental reaction. By opening an associative space, on a more abstract level, they play with predominant ideas of accomplishment and systems of evaluation within our society. The title of the exhibition, KONTROLLE, refers to human desire to actively design and control the conditions of an increasingly unstable world.
