Gregor Schneider

Probably no artist has thematized the transformative nature of everyday spaces as the artist Gregor Schneider has done. He creates his rooms by exposing and emphasizing found architectonic elements, which he then places in a new context by obstructing, duplicating, or mirroring them. He was able to realize this artistic approach most impressively in his parents’ house in Rheydt, Haus u r, which has been undergoing a continuous overhaul since 1985. In 2001 a large number of rooms from the house were on show as Totes Haus u r at the 49th Biennale in the German Pavilion in Venice, for which Gregor Schneider was awarded the Golden Lion.
In addition to sculptures, photographs, and films, the exhibition in the historic Sculptor Studios of the Museum Künstlerkolonie Darmstadt (Artists’ Colony Museum) also shows four rooms completely designed by the artist. Instead of a traditional exhibition catalog, the present publication exemplarily sheds light for the first time on the photographic out put of Gregor Schneider. In his essay, Philipp Gutbrod provides an introduction to Schneider’s oeuvre and draws parallels between Schneider’s photographic work and his spatial art.