Galerie Sfeir-Semler

HANS HAACKE
Bundesgartenschau

May 8th - 11th July 2008

One year after the joint retrospective of Hans Haacke at the Hamburg Deichtorhallen and the Akademie der Künste in Berlin, the artist presents a new work titled Bundesgartenschau (Federal Horticulture Show). The work refers to the artist’s installation DER BEVÖLKERUNG (To the Population) of the year 2000 in the northern interior courtyard of the Reichstag building (seat of the German Parliament) in Berlin. From the center of a 7 x 21 m wooden trough white neon letters beam the words DER BEVÖLKERUNG to the sky. They are meant as an amendment to the dedication DEM DEUTSCHEN VOLKE (To the German People) of 1916 on the building’s façade. The Members of the Bundestag were invited to bring 100 pounds of soil from their electoral districts and to deposit them around the neon letters. This invitation is extended to newly elected Members as well. Naturally, the soil carries seeds. Additional seeds are imported by the wind and by birds. Spontaneous vegetation develops.
The artist’s proposal for the project led to a heated debate in the committees of the Bundestag and the German press. On the one hand, the criticism was directed at the title of the work, his dedication to the BEVÖLKERUNG (population) – a term not burdened by German history like that of the Volk (people). On the other hand, the use of soil was suspected of evoking associations with the national socialist ideology of Blood and Soil, even though the mixing of diverse soils and the artist’s dedication to all who happen to live within the country’ borders – irrespective of their ethnic and national origin -are incompatible with the national socialist idea of "purity." The controversy led to a debate of the Bundestag on April 5, 2000, at which the project was approved by the slim margin of 260 votes in favour and 258 against. By now, 275 Members of the Bundestag have participated by bringing soil from their district. Several brought soil from symbolically significant locations, as did Wolfgang Thierse (then the speaker of the Bundestag) from the Jewish cemetery in his Berlin district.
Since the inauguration of the project on September 12, 2000, the controversial "German soil" has been covered by dense vegetation, without any gardening. Small animals, snails, spiders and insects populate the site, as well.
During many visits, Hans Haacke took photographs of the plants and animals. These photographs, collected over seven years, are the material for his Bundesgartenschau. The work is constituted by a view from above of the entire installation, together with 224 close-up images of the plants and animals at various seasons of the year. It is complemented by a current list of all Members of the Bundestag who have participated in the project.
The work can be understood as an ironic commentary to the national debate about Haacke´s project, which has calmed down considerably by now. Also the title Bundesgartenschau can to be seen in this light. While the biennial Federal Horticulture Show is a competitive exhibition of gardeners and landscape architects, the ecosystem of DER BEVÖLKERUNG does without horticultural interventions. The card announcing the exhibition looks like an old-fashioned picture postcard with a serrated edge. It shows the German Romanticists’ Blaue Blume (blue flower), represented by a periwinkle (Vinca minor). It invites a host of associations from the history of ideas. On the upper floor of the gallery we will show works by Hans Haacke from the 1960s.

Flora and Fauna, Selection from a total of 224 photos of Bundesgartenschau, C-prints, each 27,9 x 35.6 cm

Early works

Condensation Cube, 1963/1965

Wave, 1964
Wave, 1964

Large Water Level, 1964

Large Water Level, 1964

I have partially filled Plexiglas containers of a simple stereometric form with water and have sealed them. The intrusion of light warms the inside of the boxes. Since the inside temperature is always higher than the surrounding temperature, the water enclosed condenses: a delicate veil of drops begins to develop on the inside walls. At first, they are so small that one can distinguish single drops from only a very close distance. The drops grow - hour-by-hour - small ones combine with larger ones. The speed of growth depends on the intensity and the angle of the intruding light. After a day, a dense cover of clearly defined drops has developed and they all reflect light. With continuing condensation, some drops reach such a size that their weight overcomes the forces of adhesion and they run down along the walls, leaving a trace. This trace starts to grow together again. Weeks after, manifold traces, running side by side, have developed. According to their respective age, they have drops of varying sizes. The process of condensation does not end. The box has a constantly but slowly changing appearance, which never repeats itself. The conditions are comparable to a living organism which reacts in a flexible manner to its surroundings. The image of condensation cannot be precisely predicted. It is changing freely, bound only by statistical limits. I like this freedom.
© Hans Haacke, New York, October 1965

Written in German. First publication in French translation “J’ai rempli en partie...” in: Robho 2, Paris, November/December 1967

We (all) are the people, 2003
We (all) are the people, 2003
We (all) are the people, 2003

We (all) are the people, 2003
We (all) are the people, 2003
We (all) are the people, 2003





One year after the joint retrospective of Hans Haacke at the Hamburg Deichtorhallen and the Akademie der Künste in Berlin, the artist presents a new work titled Bundesgartenschau (Federal Horticulture Show). The work refers to the artist’s installation DER BEVÖLKERUNG (To the Population) of the year 2000 in the northern interior courtyard of the Reichstag building (seat of the German Parliament) in Berlin. From the center of a 7 x 21 m wooden trough white neon letters beam the words DER BEVÖLKERUNG to the sky. They are meant as an amendment to the dedication DEM DEUTSCHEN VOLKE (To the German People) of 1916 on the building’s façade. The Members of the Bundestag were invited to bring 100 pounds of soil from their electoral districts and to deposit them around the neon letters. This invitation is extended to newly elected Members as well. Naturally, the soil carries seeds. Additional seeds are imported by the wind and by birds. Spontaneous vegetation develops. The artist’s proposal for the project led to a heated debate in the committees of the Bundestag and the German press. On the one hand, the criticism was directed at the title of the work, his dedication to the BEVÖLKERUNG (population) – a term not burdened by German history like that of the Volk (people). On the other hand, the use of soil was suspected of evoking associations with the national socialist ideology of Blood and Soil, even though the mixing of diverse soils and the artist’s dedication to all who happen to live within the country’ borders – irrespective of their ethnic and national origin -are incompatible with the national socialist idea of "purity." The controversy led to a debate of the Bundestag on April 5, 2000, at which the project was approved by the slim margin of 260 votes in favour and 258 against. By now, 275 Members of the Bundestag have participated by bringing soil from their district. Several brought soil from symbolically significant locations, as did Wolfgang Thierse (then the speaker of the Bundestag) from the Jewish cemetery in his Berlin district. Since the inauguration of the project on September 12, 2000, the controversial "German soil" has been covered by dense vegetation, without any gardening. Small animals, snails, spiders and insects populate the site, as well. During many visits, Hans Haacke took photographs of the plants and animals. These photographs, collected over seven years, are the material for his Bundesgartenschau. The work is constituted by a view from above of the entire installation, together with 224 close-up images of the plants and animals at various seasons of the year. It is complemented by a current list of all Members of the Bundestag who have participated in the project. The work can be understood as an ironic commentary to the national debate about Haacke´s project, which has calmed down considerably by now. Also the title Bundesgartenschau can to be seen in this light. While the biennial Federal Horticulture Show is a competitive exhibition of gardeners and landscape architects, the ecosystem of DER BEVÖLKERUNG does without horticultural interventions. The card announcing the exhibition looks like an old-fashioned picture postcard with a serrated edge. It shows the German Romanticists’ Blaue Blume (blue flower), represented by a periwinkle (Vinca minor). It invites a host of associations from the history of ideas. On the upper floor of the gallery we will show works by Hans Haacke from the 1960s.

Flora and Fauna, Selection from a total of 224 photos of Bundesgartenschau, C-prints, each 27,9 x 35.6 cm














Early works
Condensation Cube, 1963/1965	Wave, 1964	Wave, 1964
Large Water Level, 1964	Large Water Level, 1964

I have partially filled Plexiglas containers of a simple stereometric form with water and have sealed them. The intrusion of light warms the inside of the boxes. Since the inside temperature is always higher than the surrounding temperature, the water enclosed condenses: a delicate veil of drops begins to develop on the inside walls. At first, they are so small that one can distinguish single drops from only a very close distance. The drops grow - hour-by-hour - small ones combine with larger ones. The speed of growth depends on the intensity and the angle of the intruding light. After a day, a dense cover of clearly defined drops has developed and they all reflect light. With continuing condensation, some drops reach such a size that their weight overcomes the forces of adhesion and they run down along the walls, leaving a trace. This trace starts to grow together again. Weeks after, manifold traces, running side by side, have developed. According to their respective age, they have drops of varying sizes. The process of condensation does not end. The box has a constantly but slowly changing appearance, which never repeats itself. The conditions are comparable to a living organism which reacts in a flexible manner to its surroundings. The image of condensation cannot be precisely predicted. It is changing freely, bound only by statistical limits. I like this freedom. © Hans Haacke, New York, October 1965 Written in German. First publication in French translation “J’ai rempli en partie...” in: Robho 2, Paris, November/December 1967

We (all) are the people, 2003	We (all) are the people, 2003	We (all) are the people, 2003
We (all) are the people, 2003	We (all) are the people, 2003	We (all) are the people, 2003