Walter Giers. Funkelnder Kubus
Wed, November 10, 2021 – Sun, January 30, 2022
- Location
- Cube
Stroboscopic lights suddenly flash on the glass facade of the building, transforming it into a sparkling light sculpture visible from far way. Already in the fall and winter of 2020/2021, Walter Giers' installation made the cube at the ZKM shine as part of the »Seasons of Media Arts«. Starting in October 2022, the ZKM will present an extensive retrospective that will provide an overview of the immensely versatile artist's oeuvre.
»During Christmastime, this sparkling cube seems like a sparkling Christmas tree at a high level of abstraction. Now we not only have stars in the sky, but we also experience sparkling stars made by humans, at a moment where the Covid-19 pandemic is falling upon us like the ‚Night of the World’ (G.W.F. Hegel).« – Peter Weibel
Walter Giers is one of the pioneers of media art from Baden-Württemberg. The artist, who died in Schwäbisch Gmünd in 2016, created complex light and sound art works using simple electronic components at the intersection of art, design, and technology. Through randomly controlled generators, his works appear as autonomous systems with an unpredictable life of their own. Since the 1970s, Giers worked on light installations for public spaces. He was not only interested in producing spectacular effects, but wanted to create pleasing atmospheres and impressions. The light installation at the ZKM Cube is a reconstruction of a work from the 1990s, which was presented on the tower of Stuttgart's central station. Stroboscopic lights suddenly flash on the glass facade of the building, transforming it into a sparkling light sculpture visible from far way. In 2021, the ZKM will present an extensive retrospective of this artist.
The work was shown for the first time during the media arts festival »Seasons of Media Arts 2020«. Please see more information here.
Walter Giers: Funkelnder Kubus (1998/ 2020)
Walter Giers
The artist, designer, and jazz musician Walter Giers (1937–2016) is one of the most important exponents of media art from Baden-Württemberg who produced electronic light-sound works in the tradition of kinetic art. By using randomly controlled generators and interactive systems, his works constantly produce ever new variations with unpredictable moments. From 1992–1993 he taught at the Karlsruhe University of Arts and Design (HfG). Numerous works, as well as the artist's papers, can be found at the ZKM, where an extensive retrospective will take place in 2022. Walter Giers lived and worked in Schwäbisch Gmünd.
