From space to form
Light and solid at the same time
At times it now seems as though the horizon were open in every direction, open and boundless. Everything enters the realm of the possible, everything takes on equal importance and seeks to be equally valid. Every boundary is called into question and even the last finite line, the finiteness of existence, is now up called into question. In this situation it is easy to lose one’s bearings and look for a firm foothold.
It is more true than ever, man is and remains what Nietzsche termed ‘the undefined animal’(Nietzsche). “Man has no definite place in nature, in the world, is not anchored and at home in it, but is incessantly forced to first create, design, discard, and then recreate his place, his world, without ever coming to rest, because for him the world does not exist at all.”[1]
It is precisely this which Jürgen Schön takes to heart, by time and again reassuring himself of the space in which he lives. He reassures himself through drawing, half consciously, half unconsciously. In booklets and books he addresses what he experiences and intends to capture in a sketch-like manner. Especially when travelling, when his body and soul are in movement and looking for a foothold, his notations are a means of self-assurance. Later on, in the studio, he selects what he believes to be successful and worthy of note and translates the sketched material into larger formats. In this way, he has for many years been creating paintings and objects that impress audiences through their lightness while pleasantly distracting from the general lack of stability and orientation. In contrast to architecture, which determines space and hardens it, his drawings remain open and fluid. And sometimes we are therefore no longer really sure whether a shape in them has not turned or shifted independently since we last looked. However, that’s exactly how it's supposed to be. Light and solid at the same time.
Andreas Bee
[1] Hannes Böhringer, Auf der Suche nach der Einfachheit, (Berlin, 2000), p. 37
