Patrick Rieve
In his works, Patrick Rieve (D, 1971) reveals, in the sense of a strategy of "poetic politics", the political and cultural reality beneath the beautiful surface. The artist takes up the formal language of American comics, since he values their ability to transfer everyday things and with just a few pictures create a world of their own.
The appropriation of spaces is also a pivotal aspect of his work. For example, in the gallery space of the Galerie für Landschaftskunst in Hamburg in 2004, the Hamburg-based artist built a lockable single cell in which he voluntarily remained alone for a week prior to the opening of his exhibition. Rieve thus reversed the theme of escaping from prison, which the drawings exemplarily dealt with. He used the exhibited object as an opportunity to withdraw for several days from everyday duties. He chose the prison cell for this self-imposed asceticism, lending the seemingly soft exercise of concentration an aggressive note and additionally alluding to the theme of control and surveillance. His catalogue contribution to this work is a publicistic expansion of the exhibition. By taking on the position of a sniper or marksman and selecting ideal locations from where he can aim, Rieve explores the surroundings of downtown Hamburg which he is familiar with in an unusual way. The artist's issue is to conquer space, concentrating on the important aspects for a sniper: an unobstructed view, distance, and the securing of evidence. The mostly black-and-white sheets possess the characteristics of true-to-detail architectural drawings. While constantly changing his perspective, Rieve maps out his environment and locates himself in it. These are precise ground plans and sketches of a building in which he lived with friends for a while. He additionally adds further, invented rooms.
The focus is on his own living environment which he depicts in constantly alternating top views, front views, and interior views. He thus develops his own universe of the controlling gaze, in which the viewer takes on different roles. Confronted with general survey maps, he is at times a neutral outsider. In other instances he himself becomes the perpetrator or planner spying out the terrain. And finally, he also becomes a victim again.
Patrick Rieve, o.T. (Haus), Tusche und Collage auf Papier, 42x59cm
Curriculum vitae
Patrick Rieve, o.T. (Bagua bunt), Tusche und Collage auf Papier, 21x29,7cm
Patrick Rieve, o.T. (Knotenpunkt), Tusche und Collage auf Papier, 21x29,7cm
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