Syracuse University in Berlin

A blog of the Spring 2017 Syracuse VPA Berlin Semester Residency students

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Studio Visit with  Joep Van Liefland

We were blessed to meet Joep Van Liefland at his studio in hauptrasse, Berlin! Thank you for meeting with us!

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Critiques with Kathrin Becker, another wonderful day (and night) in Berlin

A couple days ago we were super fortunate to get a critique with curator, art historian, and head of Video Forum at Neuer Berliner Kunstverein (N.B.K.), Kathrin Becker. Among many other things she spoke to us about Video Forum, which is the oldest collection of video art in Germany, and her curatorial practice, which touches on art & cultural institutions as an extension of foreign policy between the Middle East, Eastern Europe and the West. We were so interested in her talk that we didn’t even think to take any photos!

After that we all went to Prater in Prenzlauer Berg, which is the oldest and arguably the best loved biergarten in town, and enjoyed some more delicious food, drink and conversation. Following an edifying and inspiring day, the four Team Berliners headed out to the Kit Kat Klub to dance the night away. 

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Critiques and a successful exhibition at Kreuzberg Pavillon!

We recently had critiques with Dr. Jennifer Allen, a writer, critic and former editor of frieze magazine. She took a psychoanalytic approach to the critique, which sought to refine what we communicated through our work and how we talked about it. It was very illuminating, and it’s been so valuable to see these varying approaches to critique and get such diverse feedback.

Afterwards we had our first group exhibition at Kreuzberg Pavillon, an experimental project space in Kreuzberg. There were five exhibitions throughout the night, and we had one hour to install, exhibit, and de-install our work. We decided to deal with the theme of obstruction, and to think about how our work could work with (and against) each other and the audience as we installed it simultaneously throughout the space. It was the culmination of a lot of hard work and we had such a great experience! I love how this residency has given us the time and the space to grow and experiment. We can’t wait for our next show coming up at the end of April!

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@devkota_multimedia set his prints on fire as part of our "Axis" exhibition at @kreuzbergpavillon last night. It was awesome!! (at Berlin - Kreuzberg)

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Studio work on a beautiful Berlin day, getting ready for an exhibition coming up this Saturday at Kreuzberg Pavillon. We are so thankful to be able to participate in this great project space!

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Making an SU/UDel Connection

A few weeks ago we had the pleasure of making the acquaintance of the University of Delaware 2nd-year MFA grads, who were in Berlin on a whirlwind trip of gallery tours and studio visits, culminating with an exhibition at the Takt residency. It was so much fun hanging out with the grads and sharing our experiences, and it was a reminder that our community of peers is the greatest asset we have in graduate school. We had a chance to see their fantastic show at Takt, and we talked about collaborating and even doing an exhibition exchange between the two universities. It’s amazing that these two programs were brought together over a connection made thousands of miles from home. Best wishes to the Delaware crew, and good luck on your thesis! Bis bald!

(photos provided by Eddy Rhenals)

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Kann Ich Dein Foto Nehmen?

Can I take your photo?

This is just one of the many useful phrases I’ve learned during my time in Berlin (another useful phrase: “keine Zwiebeln, bitte”, or “no onions, please”, as I prefer my falafel without them).

Sometimes you step into a space and it immediately feels like a photograph. I know when this is happening because my heart starts to race and I have the urge to spring into action. But because of my natural shyness, this urge often competes with an opposite instinct, which is to crawl in a hole or run away. 

Dan, Aysha and I went out to a bar in Charlottenburg, and it felt like one of those places to me. I wanted to make an image of the bartender, Olga, in the space. We had a few pilsners and I asked Dan to coach me on asking someone to take their photograph. But because of the beer, the mouth-brain connection wasn’t happening with my elementary German as I tried to repeat the phrase back to him. Fortunately, Olga overheard us talking, and agreed to pose for me. She was incredibly gracious, as have been so many people we've met in Berlin.  

Afterwards, Olga told us that Wolfgang Tillmans had his birthday party in the bar, to our amazement and delight. Berlin is a city filled with such treasures. 

-Mike

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One of the wonderful things about studio visits is you get to peek behind the curtain and see how artists actually make their work, in addition to the less-often discussed (and often more mysterious) aspects of art making, which is how they balance the creative impulse with marketing and selling what they produce. 

Arturo Herrera was incredibly generous in sharing his experience of  transitioning away from pure collage into exploring the potential of collage within the realm of painting, and the challenge that posed in selling his work to those unsure of how his new experimental direction will shake out. Paolo Chiasera shared his thoughts on institutional critique and the potential impulse to make overtly political work in a political time: “You can’t control what people think or do - the important thing is the intellectual honesty you have towards your work.” 

Later in the week, gallerist and bookstore owner Barbara Wien spoke to us about the importance of forging real personal connections in starting your art career, and the relationship between the gallery and the artist. In Barbara’s words, “working with an artist is like a marriage”. We’re so fortunate to meet these people and absorb their insights - it’s the kind of stuff you just don’t learn in a classroom. 

We also had YET ANOTHER amazing group meal at W-Der Imbiss - pictured are fish tacos. 

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A couple of us had the pleasure of making a quick stop to Switzerland, to visit family and friends, and to attend an opening reception situated in a 700 year old castle in Gruyeres.

The artist featured was Micheal Rampa, a Swiss artist known around the country, and who grew up in the region. It was an amazing space; there, we met some artists, Swiss gallery owners, and a journalist with whom we had the chance to dine with afterwards and discuss art in Switzerland.

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Hello Berlin! My turn to check in!  I’m a second year graduate student here at Syracuse University, I do site specific installations. I have a growing interest for neons, paints and different material means for linear results, and most recently, I’ve been craving lots of colors. 

I’m fascinated by situational dichotomies, like Berlin’s history in contrast to its current state, one of renaissance. Like in its architectural elements, from its newest apartment building to its deserted ones, from its soviet flavor to its historical absences and bruised landscape; visually alone, Berlin encompasses contradiction. Yet, its persistence to rise again and above is like no other city. It’s been so interesting to live in this city and observe the political situation in the states from afar, and especially, from Berlin, yet another dichotomy at large.

 Its gray after gray concrete landscape and its continuous gray sky creates this amazing monotony, and I’m ready to color some ! To be in a city like this at this time in my carrier is a pivotal experience !

That’s all for now,

Tschüss!!!!!!!

Aysha

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The amount of art and culture at Berlin is incredible, and we are so lucky to be a part of it all! We recently had a marathon gallery tour with visiting artist Victoria Roth, who was stopping in from NYC to show us around. We went from Prenzlauer Berg to Mitte to Charlottenberg to Kreuzberg, seeing every kind of medium and method of installation we possibly could. It was so useful for us to see how these different artists use the gallery context to present their work in compelling ways. 

Then we were fortunate enough to get a studio visit with Matthias Bitzer, an artist who uses painting, photography and sculpture. He was so welcoming and generous with us, giving an insight into his intuitive creative process. The studio visits are really invaluable for us to see how all of these different artists go about making their work, and we’re making new connections and learning new things every day. 

We were thoroughly exhausted at the end of a long day, but not too tired for a trip to Mr. Le for some curried crispy duck...seriously, the food in this town is amazing. 

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It was another incredible night of seeing art! The group went to Max and Moritz for some traditional food & beer. Mike tasted pig knuckle for the first time (it was delicious, Mike got scolded by Dan for not eating enough of the fat) and then we headed over to the Berlinische Galerie for a viewing of the John Bock installation, “In the Moloch of the Presence of Being”. It was an insane, colorful tableau that included musical performance, sculpture, video installation, and a bizarre Bonnie & Clyde-esque riff that included one character choking another with their own innards. The crowd was delighted! 

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I had the pleasure of catching this Adrian Lohmüller installation, which was part of an exhibition “Records from the Kellerloch” at the Haus am Lützowplatz. Adrian created this site-specific piece by reimagining objects into complex metaphors that fit his own narrative. The accompanying film, which was about one character ushering her partner into another dimension, was mesmerizing. 

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It was a great night for Team Berlin! Last night we went to the Künstlerhaus Bethanien to see a joint artist talk with Heba Amin and Anahita Razmi, and to catch the opening of their group exhibition in the gallery space. Afterwards we treated ourselves to some incredible rotisserie chicken at legendary local spot Henne, which has been a Berlin institution since 1908. It was another night of exploring, seeing art, and feeling inspired. 

Mike

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Hi, Hallo, Hey.

I’m a second-year Jewelry and Metalsmithing graduate student at Syracuse University.  I’ll be reporting back to y’all as frequently as I can. I’m certainly looking forward to meeting different artist communities and building a wider perspective on what it takes to be an active artist.  Also, food. Because, that currywurst is some serious business.

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My work reflects my own conflicted emotions regarding our ability to choose and our ever-expanding perceptions of reality.  Through humor and sorrow, I present multifaceted ideas that can be enjoyed as they are, but beg to be investigated.  In short, the idea of the sad-clown is fascinating to me.  Dark humor is my jam.

Tschüss

-Marilyn

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Hallo! Mike here!

 I’m a second-year grad in the Art Photo program at SU. I do a mixture of studio and location-based photography using actors, models, and occasionally random people I meet or props that I find on the street. A huge part of my work this semester will be just carrying my camera with me everywhere I go and seeing how I respond to the wonderful, vibrant city of Berlin. 

One of my favorite aspects of photography (and life!) is how serendipitous it can be - you never know what you’re going to see and who you’re going to meet when you leave the house. I met this really nice, affectionate young couple when they sat down next to us at a local bar, and we talked for a long time and they agreed to let me photograph them. They had a really nice energy and were fun to work with. It’s so invigorating to be in a city like Berlin and having room to explore, and so far everyone has been so nice and welcoming to us newcomers.

Well, that’s all for now. Bis bald!

Mike

(photo by Aysha Hamouda)

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Hallo, Berlin!

The selected Syracuse University graduate students from the College of Visual and Performing Arts will be documenting their work, experiences, and interactions during their stay in Berlin for the 2017 Spring Semester Residency. 

Adam Devkota

Aysha Hamouda

Michael Hicks

Marilyn Koch