Stroom Bibliotheeksessies: Robin de Goede

Dinsdag 2 oktober 2012
Locatie: bibliotheek Stroom Den Haag, Hogewal 1-9, Den Haag


De hoofdgast van de bibliotheeksessie op dinsdag 2 oktober 2012 was Robin de Goede, naar aanleiding van zijn publicatie No Man's Land uitgegeven in 2011 door Kunstverein Gera in Duitsland. Als bijdrage aan het Otto Dix jaar organiseerde Kunstverein Gera in 2011 een tentoonstelling van Robin de Goede met foto's, videowerk en schilderijen op fotopapier.

Robin de Goede: No Man's Land / Konzept Thomas Bender, Robin de Goede ; texte Andreas Krase, Sabrina Barleben. - Gera : Kunstverein Gera, 2011. - 80 p. : ills. ; 27 cm. - Deutsch / English
Mit der Ausstellung No Man's Land mit Fotografien, Malereien und Videoinstallationen des niederländischen Künstlers Robin de Goede leistet der Kunstverein Gera e.V. einen Beitrag zum Otto-Dix-Jahr 2011. Der Künstler de Goede führt den Betrachter, ähnlich wie Dix, an Schauplätze des Verbrechens, Krieges und Umweltkatastrophen. Die Kompositionen richten den Blick durch Nischen oder zerborstene Fenster hinaus auf Verwüstung, menschenleere Landschaftsräume und markante Symbole. In seinen Fotografien begegnen dem Betrachter häufiger Rückenfiguren - vor felsiger Landschaft, aufs Meer blickend oder auch in Verbindung mit einem Fensterausblick. Diese arrangierten Orte und Begegnungen zwischen Mensch und Natur finden sich auch in dem Video Ruin Value, das den Zuschauer zu Bunkeranlagen am Meer bringt, um ihm auch die Vergänglichkeit des Seins vor Augen zu führen.

Het werk van Robin de Goede verkent de nachtzijde van het leven. Zijn tekeningen en schilderijen van verlaten landschappen bezitten een filmische, duistere atmosfeer die doet denken aan de Zone uit Tarkovky's film Stalker. Foto's maakt de Goede op zijn reizen door de (onder)wereld, zij registreren heel direct de mensen die hij daar ontmoet. De donkere kant van het leven fascineert hem al jaren. Hij is betrokken bij het uitgraven van bunkers niet alleen in Scheveningen, maar langs de de hele kust van Europa, en hij is een groot kenner van Japanse tatoeages en tradities.
Voor deze sessie in de bibliotheek nam hij een tas vol publicaties mee die hij de afgelopen jaren verzameld heeft. We spraken met elkaar over zijn eigen boek met schilderijen en foto's, zijn inspiratiebronnen en de manier waarop hij in de kunstwereld staat.

DE BOEKENTAS VAN ROBIN DE GOEDE
Voor deze bibliotheeksessie nam Robin de Goede een tas mee met favoriete boeken uit zijn collectie.

Tattoo in Japan: Traditional and Modern Styles
by Manami Okazaki
Hardcover: 320 pages
Publisher: Editions Reuss; 1st edition (May 14, 2008)
ISBN-13: 978-3934020641
Giant deluxe hardcover book of pictures featuring the best work (mostly bodysuits and back pieces) by Japan's best and most prestigious master tattoo artists. It ranges from very traditional to modern and contemporary Japanese styles.
The art of creating long-lasting body decorations has an age-old tradition in Japan. Many parallels can be drawn between this traditional genre and classical ink paintings and woodcuts by Japanese masters. Included are rare and beautifully documented works by traditional masters with their delicate and impressive full body suit tattoos, the style of which has changed very little since the Edo Period, when this art form first became popular.

Kenichi Kato, who works under the name of Horimyo, works close to tradition. He's one of the rare tattoo artists to work only with Tebori style, where all tattoos from start to finish use a traditional needle on a bamboo pole as opposed to tattoo gun. It's a difficult technique, the needles are all handmade, as are the inks made from charcoal, the process is quite painful, but the results are stunning. The roots of tattooing in Japan did not start with organized crime, like  many people assume, but come from an art form that was believed to bestow powers onto those who bore tattoos.

A History of Japanese Body Suit Tattooing 
by Mark Poysden and Marco Bratt
Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: KIT Publishers (December 2006)
ISBN-13: 978-9074822756
Tattooing has had a long and sometimes dark life, particularly in Japan. Tattooing was repeatedly abolished, without effect. Even today, it is illegal to display tattoos publicly in Japan.
A History of Japanese Body Suit Tattooing traces the origins and development of the Japanese yakuza, ranging over their pre-WWII history, samurai and Bushido influences, the darker side of Tokugawa rule, and gambling connections and describing what happens when a highly regulated society disintegrates.
The book  discusses the artistic influences on the Japanese tattoo designs. While acknowledging the impact of Kuniyoshi's famous print series on the art of tattoo, this book concentrates on other print artists who depicted tattooed heroes and kabuki actors. For instance, it profiles the tattoo artist Horikazu of the Asakusa district and includes numerous examples of his sketches and work, with explanations of Japanese motifs and techniques. It also comprehensively covers the history of the Asakusa temple complex and the Sanja Matsuri, the Shinto festival held in Asakusa which is a showcase for full body-suit tattoos adorning members of the various yakuza gangs who reside in the district.

Paul Virilio, Bunker Archaeology
Paul Virilio's Bunker Archaeology (French edition) was was published on the occasion of the exhibition organized by the Center for Industrial Creation and presented at the Museum of Decorative Arts in Paris from December 1975 through February 1976. The pictures were taken by Paul Virilio from 1958 to 1965.
Paul Virilio analyzes the German WWII fortress bunkers along the French coast in both philosophical and architectural terms. The amazing photographs, taken by Virilio between 1958 and 1965, "capture the lonely and frightening beauty of the bunkers". The beauty of destruction leads Virilio to the architect and minister of war Albert Speer, who he describes as a destructor rather than a constructor.
Important historical issues like the forced employment of prisoners and deported civilians on the construction sites by the "Organisation Todt" are mentioned in few words. In the recent past, though, historical research about national socialist bunker projects mainly focus on the dependence between war industry and the exploitation and extermination of concentration camp prisoners.
The combination of poetic pictures, philosophical essays and the historic background makes Bunker Archeology a compelling book. It gives answers how to face the beauty of those rotten concrete buildings without any addiction to myth or careless admiration. A great and timeless piece of work.

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