The National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA), New Delhi, Ministry of Culture, Government of India in collaboration with “Germany and India 2011-2012: Infinite Opportunities” jointly with the Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen (Institute for Foreign Cultural Relations, ifa) have organised an exhibition of art installations titled “Passage through Light” by one of Germany’s most versatile and creative artists, Rebecca Horn. It is on for public viewing till 20th May 2012 at the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi. This is the third exhibition that has been organized by the NGMA as part of the Permanent Cultural Committee of the Republic of India and the Federal Republic of Germany including Günter Uecker, Fluxus and now Rebecca Horn. The exhibition was inaugurated on 7th April, 2012 by Minister of Culture and Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation Kumari Selja, in the presence of Secretary, Ministry of Culture Ms. Sangita Gairola, and Acting Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to India Mr. Cord Meier-Klodt. The artist Rebecca Horn was the Guest of Honour on the occasion.
The celebrated German artist presents her work that has been known to challenge perceptions on contemporary art. The exhibition is an interlacing of sculpture and film which have been the chief constituents of Rebecca Horn’s work. Emotionally charged text sequences that are verbalized on film, accompany the objects of the exhibition as a poetic text. The objects of her invention reflect and interpret the story as it runs in the film scenes.
To reflect her understanding and engagement with India, Rebecca Horn has created a special installation that derives from Indian traditions. Materials such as sarees, clay, bamboo, mirrors and lights have been embedded into the work with precision. The opening was accompanied by a musical performance by Hayden Chisholm in response to the special installation that has been prepared for India.
Drawings, sculptures, installation, kinetics, photography, performance, action, video, film, and text have found their way in the works of the German artist Rebecca Horn. As early as immediately after her studies in Hamburg, she began with performances which took her own body and the sensorial as their theme. Film and video, serving at first only to document the performance, are developed by the artist into independent carriers of communication, which integrate action and object in a new unit of artworks.
What is unique and continuously new about the work of this artist is that each single installation is a step towards breaking down completely the boundaries of space and time, opening up crevices to a universe, the existence of which we can only sense.
About Rebecca Horn
Rebecca Horn is regarded as one of the most versatile and creative artists that Germany has at present. From 1989 to 2009, she has been a professor at the Hochschule der Künste (Academy of Fine Arts) in Berlin. A regular participant in the Kassel art exhibition ‘documenta’ – her first showing of works took place in 1972 – she has long since gained international recognition and acclaim. The high point of her career up to now is marked by the 1994 retrospective at the Guggenheim Museum of New York, which was then shown at the New National Gallery in Berlin, The TATE Gallery, London and the Kunsthalle, of Vienna.
About “Germany and India 2011-2012: Infinite Opportunities”
On the occasion of completing 60 years of Indo-German diplomatic relations, a collaborative celebration titled “Germany and India 2011-2012: Infinite Opportunities” is being held in India. The programme started in September 2011 and is scheduled to continue until early 2013.
With a thematic focus on “StadtRäume – CitySpaces”, this programme series across India broaches the implications of rapid urbanisation and challenges posed by the pace of change in German and Indian cities today. Issues like mobility, energy, sustainable urban development, architecture, cultural space, education and urban art are prominently featured, touching genres such as the performing and visual arts, science, education, technology and business.
The centrepiece of the year of Germany in India is the Indo-German Urban Mela, a set of modern multi-purpose pavilions, designed by renowned German artist Markus Heinsdorff. The pavilions combine state of the art steel and textile technologies from both countries. The Indo-German Urban Mela will tour Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi and Pune and will be set up for ten days in the heart of each city and will host interactive presentations by various German corporations and organisations on topics and solutions related to “StadtRäume – CitySpaces”. A wide-ranging programme, which includes cultural performances and conferences, will also be held at the venue. Visitors will also have the opportunity to savour some delicious German cuisine in the Beergarden.
The project is being initiated by the following partners: The German Federal Foreign Office, the Asia-Pacific Committee of German Business (APA), the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research and the Goethe-Institut. The project is managed by the Goethe-Institut / Max Mueller Bhavan New Delhi. The corporate partners of the project include companies such as Bajaj Allianz, BASF, Bosch, Deutsche Bank and Siemens.
About Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen (ifa)
The Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen (Institute for Foreign Cultural Relations, ifa) is an organization operating worldwide to promote artistic exchange and dialogue between civil societies and to provide information about foreign cultural policy. ifa is the oldest German institution for international cultural exchange and education policy and it is funded by the German Foreign Office, the State of Baden-Württemberg and the City of Stuttgart. ifa organises some 50 touring exhibitions worldwide, making it Germany’s leading institution in the field of international artistic exchange.
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