Perception meets Disruption: A brief conversation about life
By Misal Adnan Yıldız
Malte Zenses presents nine new paintings and three sculptures at Sperling’s new location at Enhuberstr. 6 in Munich-Maxvorstadt. One of them carries a warning: “- Life is brief” The titles of these paintings contain many references, from Aschenputtel (the folk tale known as Cinderella) to the Berlin living legend and pioneer of queer cinema and activist Rosa von Praunheim, or from Robin Hood, associated with “taking from the rich and giving to the poor“, to hedonism, the philosophy that proposes pleasure instead of pain. They evoke unexpected meanings, inviting the viewer to engage their imagination and connect on an individual and personal level. These works seem to speak directly to their audience through the words and expressions embodied in the square film frame, much like watching TV with subtitles.
Unlike many artists who focus on surface-level aesthetics, Zenses’ paintings demand from their potential viewers to engage with the underlying forms, narratives and themes. The three sculptures, titled “Bad”, “Garten”, and “Küche” (in English: bathroom, garden and kitchen) whisper about our relationships with domestic spaces, zoning, and the new idea of home.
As someone who had been following his work and admiring his perspective, I was excited to dive deeper into his artistic logic. When we met for the first time, he was wearing a basecap with a clear message on it: “civilist”. Meanwhile, in Istanbul, the street protests had just been sparked by the imprisonment of the most powerful opponent and the people’s choice presidential candidate – and this “civilist” was in preparation for three shows in a row between continents. Our second meeting in his studio felt like a genuine connection that transcended the superficial realm of social media, first world problems, and peer pressure etc. His artistic imagination, sense of humor, and narrative politics resonated with me on a profound level, especially during a transformative period in my life. As written on his canvas: “- but I thought it only fair to give you a sporting chance”
Zenses’ presence felt like a breath of fresh air in an era marked by uncertainty. For many reasons, he was the right ‘German’ among a few left around me especially in this politically polarized climate and dark times. In one of his paintings, it says: “- Sit up and look at the TV.” Silence is not on our side these days if you are not a bio-deutsch citizen in this country, whether you are a migrant, in exile or a refugee. In the USA, trans and LGBTQ+ individuals are added to the target groups by the alt-right, and the Gulf of Mexico is renamed. “- And that is what you will always be.”
During our conversation, he referred to a small book with a green cover and the accompanying exhibition at Kunstverein Nürnberg as a defining moment in his artistic development: “in tyrannis”. With Zenses, I share an interest in the same term, which I would like to explore further: Anonymity. One of our similarities is that we both think, relate and engage by looking at streets, parks, the waste economy, hunger, poverty and possible forms of upcycling, sharing and connecting. His sculptural forms made from fabric and found materials reflect the uncanny positioning of figures in the gallery space. These forms, similar in size to human bodies, remind me of the silenced, muted and unseen crowds, the underdogs, the people on the street. One can identify with them when walking alone on windy nights in Berlin. In another of his paintings we read: “- Because that is what you are.”
Zenses’s studio is a treasure trove of creativity and inspiration reflecting his artistic vision. His archive of materials documents the patterns of our zeitgeist and serves as a rich pool for his artistic thinking including film stills and screenshots ranging from 1960s Hollywood to obscure Indie productions; Berlin newspapers from the 1970s to the present day; subcultural references to music and literature such as stickers, napkins, found notes; second-hand clothes and photographs (found, bought, or taken by the artist), moreover his archive includes the journals of his ongoing drawing practice.
What you will see in this exhibition is a careful rendering from a long process of living and working for a better perception: “- you shall get what is coming to you.”
[This text was commissioned on the occasion of the solo exhibition Durchhalten galore! Pinturas para perros. by Malte Zenses at Sperling in Munich in collaboration with Pequod Co. in Mexico City]