Am Limit

At the Limit

Sebastian Bieniek, Nezaket Ekici, Azusa Kuno, Jérémie Pujau, Simone Zaugg

Exhibition duration: June 28 to July 27, 2014
Opening: Friday, June 27, 2014, 7:30 PM Closing: Sunday, July 27, 2014, 7:30 PM

This exhibition at Kunstverein Neukölln features five artists who engage their entire being in their work, willingly pushing against physical or psychological boundaries. Through performances and artistic actions, which take place during the 48 Stunden Neukölln festival or are documented as standalone works, they create almost mythical images, whose strong visual impact arises from extreme physical actions and experiences. With a play of association and irritation, they comment on political, social, cultural, religious, or personal situations and conditions.

In his performance "Hand without a Body," Sebastian Bieniek confronts the vulnerability of the human body: for the duration of the exhibition, he stands inside a closed white column, with only a bloodily etched arm visible through a precise opening. Each day, new cuts are added. The isolated body part is slowly recognized as alive by the audience, and the pain is acknowledged.

Nezaket Ekici references the martyrdom of Saint Cecilia, who was to be suffocated and burned in a heat chamber but broke through the walls through the strength of her faith. In her performance "Blind," she encases her head and body in a thick plaster coat—only her arms remain free. With hammer and chisel, she struggles to break free from her self-imposed martyrdom, akin to a desperate struggle for herself, her space, and her own truth.

Azusa Kuno has been exploring human hair as a medium of life force for several years. In the artistic processing of her own hair, she expresses her complete dedication. In the performance "Einkapuzen, Entkapuzen," she shaves her head in an act of self-rasuring, only to then work her hair protectively in front of her face.

Jérémie Pujau engages with the energies that drive people to commit violence against the defenseless—or to show civil courage—in his action "De la poule ou de l'oeuf." Unprotected and motionless, he stands in a public space, with a table of raw eggs a few meters in front of him. Regardless of the European city, the reactions to this experiment are similar…

Simone Zaugg's performance "Einfach einmal..." draws on the fairy tale of Snow White, as she presents herself to the audience, appearing dead and asleep in a coffin. The planned and sensually charged suspension of time serves as an inner state description, with the self-imposed standstill acting doubly: internally for the artist as a consciously perceived break, and externally in the unfulfillable yet visually implied wish to awaken the dead.

Curated by Susann Kramer and Dr. Martin Steffens

Program for 48 Stunden Neukölln Saturday, June 28, 10:00 PM:
Projections "ANAL_OmG," curated by Nora Molitor

Sunday, June 29, 5:00 PM:
Artist talk on the performance "De la poule ou de l'oeuf" by Jérémie Pujau

Special opening hours for 48 Stunden Neukölln Friday, June 27 from 7:30 PM to midnight Saturday, June 28 from 2:00 PM to midnight Sunday, June 29 from 2:00 PM to 7:00 PM