Page 55 - Studio International - September 1971

Multiples although there are a few tricks which I would Klaus Staeck
Direkte werbung 1 197o
prefer not to disclose. (Incidentally, even taxes Edition 30. Edition Tangente
in Germany on art are very complicated in Germany, as you 2 Stefan Wewerka
pay much more for a silk-screen print than for a Leckschuring Holl
woodcut, for instance.) Each chair size 6o x 4o x 4o cm. Galerie Mikro
3 Siegfried Neuenhausen
The extent of local art business seems to be Kleiner Deutscher Gruss II 1970
rather overestimated, even in Germany itself. 15 x 30 x 25 cm, edition 100. Galerie Poll
There are galleries and collectors who care for 4 Timm Ulrichs
The First Sitting-down Chair 197o
newspaper headlines like: 'American Pop- 90 x 45 x 45 cm, edition 25o. Kunstbetrieb
collection bought by Rhenish art patron', but in 3
The first exhibition of multiples in Germany fact such transactions are rare exceptions from
took place in 1967 in Cologne, with the title 'ars the rule. Most of the business is done with
multiplicata'. Neither the museum people nor graphic prints, on a small and cheap basis. It is
the artists, however, seem to have been sure what true, however, that there is an enormous public
a multiple was at that time. So they exhibited, interest—especially in prints. Many artists are
true to their classical headline, prints as well as able to live from printing production, a fact
industrially manufactured objets d'art, bronzes which would have been unimaginable even ten
as well as plastic sculptures. The effect was a years ago. I do not know how many print
common confusion; for almost a year the publishers there are—most of them identical
Magazin Kunst filled its pages with a discussion with local galleries—but there are certainly at
between alarmed artists and critics who least 200. Most of them also sell multiples, or
suspected the multiple was a symbol of the what they call multiples. Many of them are not
decline and fall of the western world, and others manufactured industrially but, made by hand in
who saw in the multiple the solution to all artistic the artist's studio, are more a work of handicraft
problems. Soon another show was assembled by than of engineering.
the museums of Wiesbaden, Ludwigshafen and The most important role in the German
Dortmund, in 1968, called 'Art and Plastics'. multiple market is played by the Xart
The discussion became more and more scientific. Collection of Zurich which publishes on an
If a demonstration of the uselessness of shows international scale (Bill, Allen Jones, Hamilton,
for clarifying new concepts in art was intended Phillips, Distel). Satirical objects are distributed
both efforts were clear successes. by Tangente, Heidelberg, and Cooperative,
Eventually information came through the Hamburg; Heiner Friedrich, Munich, recently
normal channels of art dealing. When, for offered a multiple by Dan Flavin; Michael S.
example, the Berlin art dealer Ben Wargin tried Cullens's best seller is one of those deformed
to import multiples of the Swiss Xart Collection chairs for which Stephan Wewerka became one
to Germany, the question arose whether he had of the most currently discussed German artists.
to pay customs on industrial goods or on art (i.e. Timm Ulrichs, who distributes his own Neo-
some twenty per cent or nothing); the fact that dada objects through his `Totalkunstbetrieb' in
art manufactured on an industrial basis was Hanover, completed the supply of absurd
possible aroused such interest that carefully furniture with his Sitting Chair. René Block of offer Fongis's funny boots in chinaware.
thought out theories were presented, both by art Berlin has produced Richard Hamilton's A critic This list certainly will not be complete. But
theorists and the customs people. In the laughs (a set of artificial teeth combined with an as almost all print galleries or publishers include
meantime, of course, everybody agreed what a electric tooth brush). Fluxus articles are distribu- multiples in their programmes, it could be that
multiple was, perhaps with the exception of the ted by the Edition Hundertmark, Berlin. Some once the print market is saturated collectors may
customs people. Art dealers still have a hard multiples exist in many editions, so that Kümmel turn to multiplied objects, whether they call
time getting foreign multiples into the country, of Cologne, and the Kunstverein Munich both them multiples or not. q
HEINZE OHFF
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