How German is it?
30 Artists’ Notions of Home
Maziar Moradi, from the series What we are, 2009
Is there such a thing as a collective national identity? How do lifelong residents of the Federal Republic of Germany see themselves? What about those from other countries, now living in Berlin, Munich, or Frankfurt? Those with roots in West or East Germany? Of different religions? With heritage in Russia, Turkey, or elsewhere?
The coordinates of Germany’s ingrained self-image began to shift after the collapse of the Soviet Union and East Germany, but it took a long time before Germany grudgingly began to see itself as a country of immigration.
The exhibition presented artworks examining these questions. At its core was the work of thirty Germany-based artists with diverse background and experiences. In these pieces, they addressed central aspects of their perceptions, family and collective memories, national myths and their refutation, language, religion, and the migration experience. Video interviews with the artists and others revisit the topic on a documentary level.
This film shows the exhibition Heimatkunde. 30 Künstler blicken auf Deutschland (en: How German is it? 30 Artists’ Notions of Home) in the building phase and contains introductory statements by the Program Director Cilly Kugelmann and the curators Inka Bertz, Dennis Grünemeier, Margret Kampmeyer, and Martina Lüdicke (in German).
On display were installations, video and film works, photo series, paintings, and prints, including artworks commissioned for the exhibition by Via Lewandowsky, Julian Rosefeldt, Paul Brody, Arnold Dreyblatt, Misha Shenbrot, Anny and Sibel Öztürk, Raffael Rheinsberg, and Lilly Engel.
Artists
The exhibition website, which is still available online, introduces each artist who participated in the exhibition and their work:
- Azra Akšamija; More on Azra Akšamija and her 2005 work Dirndlmoschee (Dirndl Dress Mosque) on the exhibition website
- Nevin Aladaǧ; more on Nevin Aladaǧ and his 2006 film projection Voice Over on the exhibition website
- Maria Thereza Alves; more on Maria Thereza Alves and her work on the exhibition website
- Candice Breitz; more on Candice Breitz and her 2002 installation Alien (Ten Songs from Beyond) on the exhibition website
- Paul Brody; more on Paul Brody and his 2011 composition Five Easy Pieces on the exhibition website
- Andrea Büttner; more on Andrea Büttner and her work on the exhibition website
- Arnold Dreyblatt; more on Arnold Dreyblatt and his 2011 installation My Baggage on the exhibition website
- Ronen Eidelman; more on Ronen Eidelman and his 2008/2011 project Medinat Weimar on the exhibition website
- Lilli Engel und Raffael Rheinsberg; more on Lilli Engel and Raffael Rheinsberg and their 2011 installation Die Naturkunstzelle (The Natural Art Cell) on the exhibition website
- Eldar Farber; more on Eldar Farber and his paintings on the exhibition website
- Özlem Günyol; more on Özlem Günyol and her 2005 installation On the Grapevine on the exhibition website
- Emily Hass; more on Emily Hass and her 2008 series Altonaer Strasse (SIDES Berlin) on the exhibition website
- Victor Kégli; more on Victor Kégli and his 2011 pair of statues Herschel und Gretel im Jewish Museum Berlin (Herschel and Gretel in the Jewish Museum Berlin) on the exhibition website
- Yuri Leiderman; more on Yuri Leiderman and his 2010 artwork To "Kapiton" Group on the exhibition website
- Via Lewandowsky und Durs Grünbein; more on Via Lewandowsky and Durs Grünbein and their 2011 installation Windhauch, Windhauch (Vanity of Vanities) on the exhibition website
- Boris Mikhailov; more on Boris Mikhailov and his collages Look at me (1999) and I look at water (2000) on the exhibition website
- Maziar Moradi; more on Maziar Moradi and his 2008–2011 photo series Ich werde deutsch (What we are) on the exhibition website
- Anny und Sibel Öztürk; more on Anny and Sibel Öztürk and their 2011 installation Das Leben, das Universum und der ganze Rest (Life, the Universe and all the Rest) on the exhibition website
- Benyamin Reich; more on Benyamin Reich and his photo series Judaica on the exhibition website
- Julian Rosefeldt; more on Julian Rosefeldt and his 2011 film installation Meine Heimat ist ein düsteres wolkenverhangenes Land (My Home is a Dark and Cloud-Hung Land) on the exhibition website
- Miguel Rothschild; more on Miguel Rothschild and his work on the exhibition website
- Misha Shenbrot; more on Misha Shenbrot and his 2011 mixed-media installation √ on the exhibition website
- Alexej Tchernyi; more on Alexej Tchernyi and his 2011 animated film Dromlin on the exhibition website
- Micha Ullman; more on Micha Ullman and his 1990 sculpture Niemand (Nobody) on the exhibition website
- Clemens von Wedemeyer; more on Clemens von Wedemeyer and his 2005 film Otjesd on the exhibition website
- Maya Zack; more on Maya Zack and her 2009 installation Living Room on the exhibition website
Exhibition Information at a Glance
- When
16 Sep 2011 to 29 Jan 2012
- Where
Old Building, level 1
Lindenstraße 9-14, 10969 Berlin
See Location on Map
