transartlantico

Hamburg - Buenos Aires  2011 - 2012

Movement, space and time on the Ocean

A project connecting artistic work and art-history research to travelling from country to country and across a vast expanse of water.

The Concept.

To sail across the Atlantic Ocean from Hamburg to Buenos Aires in order to
broaden our horizon is our common goal connecting us, the artist and the art
historian.
The artistic analysis of the topics Movement, Space and Time, as well as the
exploration of static and kinetic art in Europe and in South America form the
background of the project. It comes into its own in this manner of voyaging.
Artistic dialogues and interesting encounters alternate with the loneliness of the
ocean on long sailing trips.
Even today it is still a challenge and a demanding task to sail a small yacht
across the great expanse of water of the Atlantic Ocean for a distance of about
8000 nautical miles or 15000 km with just two persons on board.
The passage days, the days at sea, are filled with navigation, weather
observation and maintenance of ship and crew. These days also bring
opportunities to contemplate and reflect.
Harbor- and anchor days in the various and diverse countries and cities offer
opportunities for artistic and art-historic work. We look for places of art,
socialise and collect impressions, images and inspiration for our project trans art
lantico.
Our journey leads from Hamburg to the North Sea, passing Holland, Belgium
and France on our way to England, then stepping over the Bay of Biscay to
Spain and Portugal, the Canary Isles and Cape Verde. From here, we cross the
Atlantic Ocean to reach Brazil, Uruguay and finally to end in Buenos Aires in
Argentina.
The journey begins in mid-July 2011 in Hamburg. The voyage is planned to take
about nine months followed by a study period in Buenos Aires of two to three
months. We plan to create a documentary about trans art lantico in words and
images.

Artistic intention

The experience of relative calmness in motion is a phenomenon of travelling to
which an inspirational quality is attributed in Taoism. The slow and soundless
gliding with the wind permits a unique experience of nature and time. The daily
rising and setting of sun and moon, delineating the passages of the days as a
controlling structure rather than clocks. Our “Normal” perception slowly
changes with the experience of the oceanic expanse as it gives way to a more
“Natural” perception. It will remain to be seen how the effects of time, empty
horizons, endless deep water and wind will have on us human beings and our
art.

Sequences

The variation of times on land and times at sea, will create sequences of
perception as video recordings. The artistic focus hereby lies on the topics of
time and space in alternation of calmness and movement, of structure and chaos.
The main idea: Artistic research on human perception in very different
surroundings. Quiet bays alternate with storms, and sleepy fishing villages with
urban big city atmosphere, e.g. Rio de Janeiro.
I plan to produce in selected areas site specific installations of cloth and rope
including video projections. I think in terms of accessible walk in projection
rooms. Once they enter, the audience will feel immersed in the imagery and
expose oneself to the interplay of speed and slowness, of force of nature and
urbaneness.

Sequences at sea,

During “sea times”, the boat is a location in transit, an area in movement, a
mobile studio. The motion of the ship remains visible and sensible while time
appears to have stopped. A “time capsule” of one’s own, independent from the
rest of the world, envelops the ship and creates a RETREATING ROOM of
BEING IN TRANSIT. Inspirations emerge out of the calmness in movement.
The video camera records the movement and calmness, the “Secuencias de
mare” are formed.

Sequences on land,

During the “land times”, the ship is either in port or at anchor, connected with a
tangible reality, the hustle and bustle of the particular place. The ship is
stationary and the location becomes a TEMPORARY STUDIO. Encounters link
the project with the location. Discovery and communication with local people
start dialogues about art. Unusual finds, our memory stores them, the video
camera records them. The “Secuencias de tierra” are formed.
History
Site specific installations as well as light, mobile sculptures of cloth and rope
have formed the core of my art work in the past 20 years. My artworks have
originated less and less often in the studio, and more and more outdoors, in
landscapes, in nature or in architectural surroundings. These environments
create possibilities for dialogue with the site, time and the local people. Mobility
and lightness turned into a methodical concept.
In the past two years I have begun to experiment with projections of photos and
video recordings. I want to pick up, intensify and refine this medium in the
framework of “trans art lantico”. In this connection, I do not necessarily regard
the video as autonomous artistic work, but as an extension and a complement to
my site specific installations.
The accompanying art-historical research is also a search for clues about the
roots of my own artistic ideas and works in Europe and South America. I
discovered the meaning of these roots at the time of my Buenos Aires
expositions in the Centro Cultural Recoleta and the Museo Larreta in 2006.
It was amazing and very interesting to meet so many like-minded artists, such as
Edgardo Madanes or Carola Zech, and to communicate and cooperate with
them.

Art-historical intention

Journeys have always served the purpose of inspiration and communication to
artists. Cities, landscapes and cultures from the Mediterranean area to the South
Seas offered stimulation to numerous artists.
Abstract art is coming into existence since the beginning of the 20th century in
Europe. Starting with Dutch artists like Piet Mondrian and Theo van Doesburg,
artists in the 20s developed concepts for new universal stylistic elements that
were based on elementary shapes and colours and were representing nothing but
itself. In European countries, artists like the Swiss Max Bill, the Hungarian
Victor Vasarely, the German Josef Albers as well as Russian artists like
Kandinsky and Rodchenko worked on abstract, on art-immanent design based
forms of expression. Since the '40s, South American artists, such as
Cruz-Diez, Demarco, Soto, Lygia Clark, from Argentina, Brazil and Venezuela
also have a clear abstract presence in South American art.
The work of Jens J. Meyer is in the tradition of abstract art. His works visualize
qualities and dimensions of space. Constructions of geometric surfaces,
elementary lines connect to complex compositions that are strongly influenced
by lightness, translucency and movement. With the project Trans-Art-Atlantico,
we embark upon a search for artists who also focus on space and movement.
The main goal here is to get to know the art scene in the Atlantic area a little
further, especially in Brazil and Argentina. From the art-historical perspective, I
am especially interested in exploring more details about the background of
abstract art in South America.

Future prospects

The last phase of Trans-Art-Atlantico is going to resume the dialogue with the
artists in Buenos Aires for a two- to three-month work period, focussed on trans
art lantico. There, we will move into a small studio facility, and develop a group
show in cooperation with Argentinean artists and art historians.
trans art lantico with guests in Buenos Aires.
The final sequence will be a release of documentary about trans art lantico in
Hamburg, which will complete the circle.
Artists Involved

Jens J. Meyer has been working on the topic of space and movement as a
freelance artist with the medium of painting and sculpting for over 20 years. His
works have been seen at numerous international expositions especially at Nature
Art projects with sitespecific installations.
Ariane Hackstein has been working since about 20 years as a freelance art
historian for modern and contemporary art. She curates expositions with young
artists and organized numerous study trips about modern art and architecture
within Europe and to Africa and the Americas.
Jens J. Meyer,
1958 born in Hamburg,
1980 – 88 Studies of Industrial Engineering TH Darmstadt,
1986 – 88 Studies of Painting and Sculpture Akadem. Werkstätten
Maximiliansau
since 1989 Freelance artist in Darmstadt, since 1991 in Essen and Hamburg
2001 1. Preis für Landmarkenkunst auf der Halde Sachsen in Hamm.
2007 Award of Excellence, cat. architect. structures, IFAI EXPO, Las
Vegas, USA
Individual shows (Selection)
2001 Städtisches Museum Gelsenkirchen
2006 Centro Cultural Recoleta, Buenos Aires, Argentinien.
2009 Galerie Dorothea van der Koelen, Mainz
Collective shows (Selection)
1996 Museum Herne (Tuchfühlung),
1997 World Gas Conference Kopenhagen (Ruhrgas AG)
1998 Taman Purna Budaya, Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesien
1999 Ludwig-Galerie Schloß Oberhausen (IBA)
2000 International expositions in Berlin, Moskau, Stavanger (Ruhrgas
AG)
2003 8. Bienale Havanna, Kuba.
2006 Museo de Arte Espanol Larreta, Buenos Aires, Argentinien
2007 Galerie Dorothea van der Koelen, Mainz und Art Karlsruhe
Urban Discovery, Pécs, Ungarn
2009 Museo Palazzo di Mocenigo, Miniartextil Venezia, Venedig, Italien
Chiesa di San Francesco, Miniartextil Cosmo, Como, Italien
2010 Musej Suvremene Umjetnosti, MSU Zagreb, Kroatien
Art Karlsruhe, one artist show, Galerie Dorothea van der Koelen
Art in the public spaces(Selection)
1994 Intern. Bauausstellg. Emscherpark (IBA), Kunstverein
Gelsenkirchen
1996 Landesgartenschau NRW Lünen, Landesvertretung NRW, Bonn
2002 Landmarke Halde Sachsen, Hamm,
Neuer Kunstverein Aschaffenburg
2004 Kathedrale des Lichts, 2. Internationaler Waldkunstpfad Darmstadt
2006 Schwebende Archive, Hafencity Hamburg (Kathrin Bethge, Rolf
Kellner),
2007 Bug, Flusslicht, Hamburg
Forest Art Wisconsin, Minocqua, Wisconsin, USA
CAFKA 07, Haptic, biennial exhibition contemporary art,
Kitchener, Kanada
2008 Remote Bay Project, Global Connect, Insel Mljet, Kroatien
2009 Zisterne des Lichts, Darmstadtium, Darmstadt (Ankauf)
2010 Forest Art China, Mt Lushan, Gu Ling, China
Ariane Hackstein
1958 born in Hagen
1977 Studies of Art History (German language and literature studies,
Philosophy) in Gießen, Bonn, Bochum. MA thesis on the subject of
„Die Karl Ernst Osthaus Rezeption“(published at Verlag VDG,
Weimar 1996)
1983 Crew member on the „Thor Heyerdahl“ (three-masted squaretopsail
schooner) and
Transition cruise from Kiel to Martinique
1983/84 Individual journey through Venezuela, Kolumbien and Ecuador
since 1989 Freelance journalist, art-historical courses, lectures
since 1992 Excursions on the art and architecture of the 20th century
since 1995 Study trips in Europe, America and Africa (New York, Chicago,
Namibia, Morocco and numerous European major cities such as
Budapest, Paris, Prague, Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao, Vienna,
Istanbul amongst others)
1995-99 Exhibition management and competitions for Blesel Fine Art
since 1999 Director of studies in Arts/Culture at the Volkshochschule der
Stadt Essen
since 2005 Direction Neue Galerie der VHS Essen, curator for over 40
individual and group expositions
2009 Conceptual design and execution of a training for “Kulturscouts”
2010 Guidance and visitor tours Ruhr-Atoll, Essen 2010