Marc Bijl in groupexhibition @ Kunstmuseum St.Gallen

The Dark Side of the Moon
The Abysmal in Art from Albrecht Dürer to Martin Disler
July 9th - October 23nd 2015, Kunstmuseum St.Gallen
Curators: Konrad Bitterli and Matthias Wohlgemuth

“See you on the dark side of the moon …” is a lyric from the legendary concept album by the British rock band Pink Floyd, which has remained a best-seller since its appearance in 1973. Thematically, the work revolves around the abysses of being human, around the anonymous power structures to which individuals in today’s society are subjected. Beyond the social circumstances in the sense of Mark Twain’s quotation “Everyone is a moon, and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody,” the dark side of the moon also points to existential dark sides.

Both form the crux of this thematic exhibition centered around a unique series of sculptures and large-scale installations by the legendary Swiss artist Martin Disler (1949–1996). These are surrounded by groups of impressive and uncanny works by Damien Deroubaix, Jutta Koether, Mona Hatoum, and Josef Felix Müller, among others. The contemporary pieces are augmented with works by old masters: the important Apocalypse series of woodcuts by Albrecht Dürer (1471–1528) and Les Grandes Misères de la guerre by Jacques Callot (1592–1635), which reveal an impressive panorama of social rejection and human abysses in dialogue with contemporary works across centuries.

Artists:
Marc Bijl
Beni Bischof
Miriam Cahn
Jacques Callot
Damien Deroubaix
Martin Disler
Marlene Dumas
Albrecht Dürer
FAMED
Mona Hatoum
Jutta Koether
Sara Masüger
Josef Felix Müller
Steven Parrino
Raymond Pettibon
Marcel van Eeden

More information: Kunstmuseum St.Gallen

Image: Marc Bijl 'Mirage' 2016. Powdercoated aluminium, unique piece. Courtesy Upstream Gallery

Publication date: 6 Jul '16