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N. Fuchs, WATER Scarcity or abundance? 2023.
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Exhibition “WATER: Scarcity or Abundance?
Water as an Artistic Concept and Medium” August 20–September 10, 2023
Under this title, the Art and Culture Association will open the exhibition on August 19, 2023, at 2:00 p.m., presenting a wide variety of visual and thematic approaches to this unique subject.
In the former gymnasium of the “Alte Schule,” 11 artistic works will be on display, each exploring the material and element of “water” through various artistic media: painting, photography, objects, sound installations, video, and documentaries. In the outdoor area, in the courtyard, and in the immediate vicinity of the “Alte Schule,” another 10 artistic installations on the theme of water will be created, forging a closer connection between the grounds of the “Alte Schule” and the town of Baruth and its residents.
Water, wood, and sand are the raw materials that, until recently it seemed, were available in almost unlimited quantities in Brandenburg. The statement made by Tesla CEO Elon Musk: “... Look around you. There is so much water in this region...” reflected a common perception of Brandenburg, even among the general public. But not least the establishment of the Tesla Gigafactory near Berlin, with its enormous consumption of fresh water, made people realize that our resources are finite. Environmentalists are speaking out against the unlimited extraction of groundwater. This shift in awareness—from carefree indifference to critical concern—goes hand in hand with a general change in the use and management of materials and raw materials that are needed in large quantities for economic and agricultural purposes. It is now widely accepted that not only fossil fuel reserves but also nearly all raw materials urgently needed by the economic cycle are available only in limited quantities. The droughts of recent years, with their steadily declining water levels, are taking their toll on water reserves. While there are regional differences in water resources and seasonal fluctuations, there is no doubt that, in the long term, less and less water will be available.
With the kind support of Mittelbrandenburgische Sparkasse, Stadtstiftung Baruth/Mark, EWE Foundation, and wolk AG
Additional Activities:
Prof. Dr. Maja Linke, from the Department of Artistic Practice at the University of Potsdam, who, at the invitation of the K&K Association, will organize a seminar and workshop—including an on-site exhibition with students—on the topic of water in the Baruth glacial valley, and a
series of lectures organized by the BRIK e.V. (Baruth Space for Innovation Culture) association, based at the Alte Schule Baruth, and the Coordinator for Municipal Development Policy/Sustainability of the City of Baruth.
List of artists:
Joschi Baudach and Dietmar Brandt, Frauke Berg, Jana Debrodt, Astrid Drechsler, Nora Fuchs, Oliver Gather, Katrin Günther, Gisela Kleinlein, Renate Löbbecke, Kevin Lüdicke, Christian Andreas Müller, Silke Panknin, Martin Pfahler, Sandro Porcu, Sandra Schindler, Dirk Skreber, Jan Trinkaus, Heinrich Weid, Andreas M. Wiese, Karsten Wittke, Jeongkyoung Woo, Francis Zeischegg
General Background on the Exhibition:
In recent years, the Alte Schule Baruth e.V. Art and Culture Association, in cooperation with the association “BRIK e.V.—Baruther Raum für Innovationskultur,” which is also based at the Alte Schule Baruth, has made it its mission to focus more closely on these increasingly pressing local issues.
With the trilogy WATER / WOOD / SAND, the Alte Schule Baruth Art and Culture Association has set itself the goal for 2023–2025 of taking a closer look at the town of Baruth, its location, its past, and, above all, its future. In preparation for this, three themes were identified for the location of Baruth: a trilogy—water, wood, and sand—which are the themes we intend to explore artistically, discursively, and in a site-specific manner through exhibitions and events from 2023 to 2025.
All three materials are resources specific to Brandenburg. Not least, Baruth’s economic prosperity is based on its deposits of water and wood—and, when we think of Glashütte, sand as well.
Keywords
Installation
Sculpture
Art
Artistic strategies
Sustainability
Resources
Scenography
Change processes