I wish ... Sophie von Hellermann Timo Kube Dietmar Lutz John Murphy Tim Stoner Opening: 08/09/05, 7 p.m. Duration of exhibition: 09/09/05 – 29/10/05 Press release Saying “I wish...” is more than getting roped into dreams and longings, it also means being conscious of the numerous possible implications the phrase might have. The three dots of the title invite us to give our fancy full scope and continue the sentence according to our own imagination. The thoughts arousing might be close to reality or stray far off – freedom is up to the individual constructing its own (dream) world. However, can this constructivist approach be appropriate for a discourse about painting? The exhibition “I wish...” includes five different positions each of which develops its own way of processing the various readings of painting. Of great relevance are illusion, narration, and poetics. Sophie von Hellermann like Dietmar Lutz already joined the exhibition of the hobbypopMUSEUM at the Engholm Engelhorn Galerie in 2004. Her pictures tell us fragmented stories, lightly and consciously romantic she paints the imaginary sceneries on canvas. The picture shown in this exhibition is a portrait of Hugo von Hofmannsthal’s grandson living in London but longing for Vienna. Like in a film script the artist develops his wish and makes the young man return to his grandfather’s home town which in fact turns out to be a deserted ghost town. Timo Kube is engaged with the tensed relation between reality and fiction. His works explore objects existing in real terms and the way they are subjectively perceived. Doors, windows, curtains and hallways are recurrent motifs playing with the mysterious “behind-doors” and illusionist effects. The reception of his works is of great importance to Timo Kube, because “pictures are what they are, and they are what you see”. John Murphy takes a special position within British painting tradition blending in his work a strongly conceptual approach with intellect and poetic elements. Restricted to only few figurative elements he creates a potential space where the contemplator has to generate the content himself. Thereby the relation between word and image is essential. Titles in the work of John Murphy are not mere convention, but an active part of his working process, involving the help of different authors and poets. Murphy finds a way of merging the arts and helps to experience the beauty of the image by a theoretical approach. At first sight the works of Tim Stoner captivate idyllic scenes. However, on a closer look his choreographed images elaborate and reveal also a dark side of his subjects. This ambivalence is created partly by a dramatic back light – the intense luminance that surrounds the figures implies divine exaltation as well as mysterious clouding of the individual features. Moreover, his paintings suggest the association with a post-modern society that adores materialism and consuming, but at the same time tries to escape it. This theme is followed also by Dietmar Lutz who shows perfectly beautiful people at the beach. His light and fresh art features a highly emotional tune and does not shy at the cliché. Already the large sized canvas seems to found the fascination of his works. In gigantic dimensions those pictures of holidays, sun and beach remind us of our family photo album and arouse a mood we can easily relate to. Wealthy and secular societies might search for the sense of life in recreation instead of religion. Like religion, recreation promises salvation, promises to gratify – but does it ever? The search for the universal wish still goes on… Sophie von Hellerman (1975/D), lives and works in London. Timo Kube (1977/D), lives and works in Münster, Germany, and London. Dietmar Lutz (1968 /D), lives and works in Düsseldorf. John Murphy (1945/GB), lives and works in London. Tim Stoner (1970/GB), lives and works in London. For further information please contact Kerstin Engholm or Luise Reitstätter at +43 1 585 73 37 11.