We put our hands in the water

An exhibition featuring artists Ulla von Brandenburg and Olaf Holzapfel

Curated by Daniel Marzona
June 15 - September 8, 2024


Altes Kurhaus Bad Kösen

In memory of the late Daniel Marzona, dieDAS - Design Akademie Saaleck is honored to announce its inaugural dieDAS art exhibition, We put our hands in the water. Conceived and curated by Daniel Marzona, it was one of the last projects he worked on before he unexpectedly passed away on April 22, 2024. The exhibition takes place at the historic Altes Kurhaus Bad Kösen from June 15 until September 8, 2024 and will serve as a testament to his profound influence on the art world. 

We put our hands in the water features work by artists Ulla von Brandenburg and Olaf Holzapfel. Ulla von Brandenburg's large-format fabric panels will transform the rooms into vibrant, stage-like settings reminiscent of dreamlike worlds. The artist describes her works as "spatial stagings" that bring together folklore, songs, theater, dance, and architecture to explore both the individual as well as the dynamics and functioning of community and society between chaos and regularity. In this way, von Brandenburg's pieces formally examine aspects of the theatrical within the visual arts and conjure up delicate moments between utopia and reality, leaving the gap open for new perspectives and the previously unthought-of.

Olaf Holzapfel, meanwhile, has been investigating natural materials and traditional techniques for more than a decade through his multi-layered artworks. Using straw, reed, hay, and other organic materials, he explores the connection between rural and urban spaces in material paintings, sculptures, and installations. Always at the cutting edge of theoretical discourse, his work is both relevant and groundbreaking in terms of the social and ecological dimension of its issues.

Despite their differences, both artists develop new approaches to deciphering current social problems by drawing on older traditions of craftsmanship, theater, and humanistic knowledge. In each case, this takes place with special consideration of physicality, on the one hand through the viewer's perception of the body, but also through the use of the body as a benchmark and starting point for their own work. In this way, both works unfold their true power exclusively in the actual encounter with their counterpart in real space.

The currently unused Alte Kurhaus Bad Kösen is being revitalized as a spectacular location for the dieDAS art opening exhibition. Built in 1911 by Baurat Schmidt, the neoclassical building established Bad Kösen as a popular spa resort far beyond the Saale valley. This tradition is now to be continued.  

The exhibition is accompanied by an educational program for interested guests and schoolchildren from Bad Kösen, the Burgenland district and beyond.

The exhibition is supported by the Kunststiftung Sachsen-Anhalt, the Princess Kira A. Princess of Prussia Foundation, the City of Naumburg and the Marzona Foundation Neue Saalecker Werkstätten.
 

„Wir legten Hände in das Wasser“, Altes Kurhaus Bad Kösen, Naumburg, 2024. dieDAS Art
Photo: Stark Shakupa

Olaf Holzapfel, „Kabine“, 2024. Reeds, wood. 250 x 220 x 180 cm. Installation view „Wir legten Hände in das Wasser“, Altes Kurhaus Bad Kösen, Naumburg, 2024. Photo: Stark Shakupa

Ulla von Brandenburg, Zelt, 2024. Fabrics, rope, wooden benches, variable dimensions; Un bal sous l’eau, 2023. Super-16 mm film transferred to HD video, 26’25”. Installation view „Wir legten Hände in das Wasser“, Altes Kurhaus Bad Kösen, Naumburg, 2024. Photo: Stark Shakupa

Ulla von Brandenburg, Puppen, 2020. Fabrics, variable dimensions. Installation view „Wir legten Hände in das Wasser“, Altes Kurhaus Bad Kösen, Naumburg, 2024. Photo: Stark Shakupa

Ulla von Brandenburg, Maskiert und vor allem — verschwiegen, 2022. 16 mm film transferred to HD video, 9’21”. Installation view „Wir legten Hände in das Wasser“, Altes Kurhaus Bad Kösen, Naumburg, 2024. Photo: Stark Shakupa

Opening „Wir legten Hände in das Wasser“, Altes Kurhaus Bad Kösen, Naumburg, 2024. Photo: Stark Shakupa

Ulla von Brandenburg

Olaf Holzapfel

Lord Mayor Armin Müller, Chairman of the Marzona Foundation and theDAS Director Arne Cornelius Wasmuth, Board Member of the Marzona Foundation Andreas Silbersack

Vorstandsmitglied der Marzona Stiftung Andreas Silbersack, dieDAS Programm Direktorin Tatjana Sprick

Egidio Marzona „Wir legten Hände in das Wasser“, Altes Kurhaus Bad Kösen, Naumburg, 2024. Photo: Stark Shakupa

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