New Viewings #44

Curated by Wolfgang Ullrich

#krisekannauchgeilsein

One of the best-known advertising slogans at the beginning of the 21st century was „Geiz ist geil“ („Stingy is horny“). The capitalist profit logic celebrated with it comes up in a different way in the title of the exhibition by Pia vom Ende and Christian Kölbl: „Krise kann auch geil sein“ („Crisis can also be horny“) – meaning that markets created by sudden changes offer the opportunity for wealth. The phrase comes from YouTuber and entrepreneur Fynn Kliemann, who thought it was horny to make a lot of money from the gigantic demand for masks created by Corona in April 2020. Just how reckless his supposedly social deals were was revealed two years later – whereupon the cynical confession of a crisis profiteer went viral and became a hashtag.

In the exhibition, the two artists present products that are themselves only made conceivable by current crises such as the war in Ukraine. At first glance, they thus seem to confirm another basic conviction of capitalism, which consists of interpreting entrepreneurs and artists as two varieties of the same type of person: Both, it is argued, are equally creative, risk-taking, and uncompromising.

But it quickly becomes clear that Pia vom Ende and Christian Kölbl undermine this popular analogy, which serves primarily to ennoble entrepreneurs as artists. The fact that they design and advertise particularly cynical offers also exposes the dark, even evil side of many quite sincerely intended products. With their exhibition, they sharpen the view of how often abysses open up just in times of crisis, when cohesion and altruism would be all the more important.

New Viewings \ New Viewings #44

Christian Kölbl

Design and marketing are the most important drivers in a developed affluent society.

They ensure ever new offerings and variants, give products more distinctive power and legitimize higher prices. Even the most everyday types of products have been charged with meaning in recent decades by being transformed into brands and aesthetically exaggerated. Often, the utility value even takes a back seat to the aesthetic value. So sneakers, perfume or surfboards are now collected rather than used by many.

New crises, above all the war in Ukraine and feared blackouts in the energy supply, are now preparing the ground for making products attractive to broader markets for which there was previously no major marketing. Emergency generators, radios with battery operation, but even weapons are now suddenly being subjected to the same aesthetic upgrade.

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Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings \ New Viewings #44
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings \ New Viewings #44
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings \ New Viewings #44
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings \ New Viewings #44
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings \ New Viewings #44

Works Christian Kölbl

Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings #44 \ New Viewings #44

Christian Kölbl

Christian Kölbl Gun 1 (2022)
PLA 3D-Print
14,7 x 27,1 x 4,3 cm
Edition of 4 + 1 AP
2.000 EUR incl. VAT
More works by this artist
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings #44 \ New Viewings #44

Christian Kölbl

Christian Kölbl Gun 2 (2022)
PLA 3D-Print
14,7 x 27,1 x 4,3 cm
Edition of 4 + 1 AP
2.000 EUR incl. VAT
More works by this artist
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings #44 \ New Viewings #44

Christian Kölbl

Christian Kölbl Gun 3 (2022)
PLA 3D-Print
14,7 x 27,1 x 4,3 cm
Edition of 4 + 1 AP
2.000 EUR incl. VAT
More works by this artist
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings #44 \ New Viewings #44

Christian Kölbl

Christian Kölbl Gun 4 (2022)
PLA 3D-Print
14,7 x 27,1 x 4,3 cm
Edition of 4 + 1 AP
2.000 EUR incl. VAT
More works by this artist
New Viewings \ New Viewings #44

Pia vom Ende

Since Corona, ’social distancing‘ has been the order of the day.

This has created numerous new markets; the manufacturers of plexiglass panes, the providers of online conferencing tools and many others are benefiting in a big way. But the energy crisis triggered by the war in Ukraine, which causes many to fear the most dramatic winter since the end of World War II, abruptly changes priorities. Now it’s a matter of generating heat by every conceivable means. And any kind of closeness seems more promising than distance.

In the exhibition, Pia vom Ende presents a business idea that takes the desire for closeness to the extreme. She offers human warmth dispensers that can be ordered online like a cleaning service or a call girl. Maybe someone just wants to warm their cold feet, or maybe they finally want to sweat properly. Then people with a fever are even particularly attractive warmth donors. In any case, the artist envisions a broadly diversified product range. The variety of bodies becomes a marketing advantage, as the offer under the name „How to survive without electricity“ can be presented as suitable for all kinds of needs.

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Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings \ New Viewings #44
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings \ New Viewings #44
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings \ New Viewings #44
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings \ New Viewings #44
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings \ New Viewings #44
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings \ New Viewings #44

Works Pia vom Ende

Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings #44 \ New Viewings #44

Pia vom Ende

special offer 01 (2022)
From the series: How to survive without electricity
Oil on MDF
80 x 40 x 1,6 cm
3.600 EUR incl. VAT
More works by this artist
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings #44 \ New Viewings #44

Pia vom Ende

special offer 02 (2022)
From the series: How to survive without electricity
Oil on MDF
80 x 40 x 1,6 cm
3.600 EUR incl. VAT
More works by this artist
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings #44 \ New Viewings #44

Pia vom Ende

special offer 04 (2022)
From the series: How to survive without electricity
Oil on MDF
80 x 40 x 1,6 cm
3.600 EUR incl. VAT
More works by this artist
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings #44 \ New Viewings #44

Pia vom Ende

special offer 03 (2022)
From the series: How to survive without electricity
Oil on MDF
80 x 40 x 1,6 cm
3.600 EUR incl. VAT
More works by this artist
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings #44 \ New Viewings #44

Pia vom Ende

special offer 05 (2022)
From the series: How to survive without electricity
Oil on MDF
80 x 40 x 1,6 cm
3.600 EUR incl. VAT
More works by this artist
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings #44 \ New Viewings #44

Pia vom Ende

special offer 07 (2022)
From the series: How to survive without electricity
Oil on MDF
80 x 40 x 1,6 cm
3.600 EUR incl. VAT
More works by this artist
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings #44 \ New Viewings #44

Pia vom Ende

special offer 06 (2022)
From the series: How to survive without electricity
Oil on MDF
80 x 40 x 1,6 cm
3.600 EUR incl. VAT
More works by this artist
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings #44 \ New Viewings #44

Pia vom Ende

special offer 09 (2022)
From the series: How to survive without electricity
Oil on MDF
80 x 40 x 1,6 cm
3.600 EUR incl. VAT
More works by this artist
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings #44 \ New Viewings #44

Pia vom Ende

special offer 08 (2022)
From the series: How to survive without electricity
Oil on MDF
80 x 40 x 1,6 cm
3.600 EUR incl. VAT
More works by this artist
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings #44 \ New Viewings #44

Pia vom Ende

special offer 10 (2022)
From the series: How to survive without electricity
Oil on MDF
80 x 40 x 1,6 cm
SOLD
More works by this artist
Galerie Barbara Thumm \ New Viewings #44 \ New Viewings #44

Pia vom Ende

special offer 11 (2022)
From the series: How to survive without electricity
Oil on MDF
80 x 40 x 1,6 cm
3.600 EUR incl. VAT
More works by this artist