From ”Hong Kong Waters”, 2010–2011
The Brno House of Arts Haus der Kunst der Stadt Brünn Malinovského nám. 2 2, 602 0 Brno République tchèque
Following his portrait of the Danube, a linear exploration of the river from source to mouth, Andreas Müller-Pohle turned his attention to the megacity of Hong Kong, tapping into it at selected points. His approach to the element of water in the series is very sensual - a real, physical plunge - and at the same time analytical, recognizing the source of all life in its changeable ecological system and as nature's unique recycling mechanism.
From ”Cyclograms”, 1994 © Andreas Müller-Pohle
Renewal, recirculation and obliteration - the artist consistently delivers vivid and precise images for this elementary cycle. Whether in his Cyclograms, in which he created photograms from shredded photo studio waste, or in his video Entropia, an equally succinct and stunning reply to every complaint about picture overload: the machine of blind destruction is a counterpart to the similarly blind, almighty information apparatus that we call computer, and the artist creates arrangements - subtle or absurd, but always poetic - that ask to what extent its language has taken control of the world.
Video still from ”Entropia”, 1996 © Andreas Müller-Pohle
Codes & Waters: The flow of water corresponds to the fluid nature of codes, particularly those of the digital age, as they are visualized first in Digital Scores, then in Face Codes, and lastly in the video Yumiko. Seen from this perspective they confront the fundamental criterion of analog photography: that which is rooted in fixation and definition. And it is exactly this fluidity - in addition to the qualities of simulation and lossless reproduction - that digital technology has to thank for its victory over the world of analog media. – Boris von Brauchitsch
Video stills from ”Araki at Work”, 1996/2011 © Andreas Müller-Pohle
“Codes & Waters” comprises Face Codes, Atomic Laughter, Digital Scores III (after Nicéphore Niépce), Cyclograms, The Danube River Project, Hong Kong Waters, and a selection of videos.
muellerpohle.net
Riverproject.net