"Do All Oceans Have Walls?" 17.05. 1998 - 26.07.1998

Bob & Roberta Smith

"Dick Skum's Sandcasting Center"Installation, various materials, variable dimensions Poster A1, three motifs, Location: Städtische Galerie

„I think sandcasting is great!“. With this and other statements, along with his face in three poster versions, British punk rocker Dick Sum, member of the band “Armitage Shanks”, promoted his sandcasting center in the “Städtische Galerie”. A huge sandpit was used as a casting manufactory, where all kinds of bizarre objects were made and finally exhibited in the rooms of the “gallery: A heavy seven-necked electric guitar in several variations, a overflowing cup of frothy cappuccino, Barbie dolls and toy guns. The objects were made of plaster cast or cement. The casting moulds were created by making an imprint in the sand. In the course of the exhibition, some courageous visitors spontaneously added other self-created objects. The artwork by Bob and Roberta Smith reminded of the early punk movement of the 70s and its “Do it yourself” mentality, in which art was created by using improvised means.

“Art is the rock of the nineties” is the slogan of the artist couple, whose artworks refer to the contradictory situation of art between its criticism of consumption and the political system as well as anarchistic protest on one side and its fashionable trendsetting on the other side and therewith holds up a mirror to the art scene.

(Translated from catalogue text)

20 local and international artists participated in the exhibition project „Do all Oceans Have Walls“ launched by GAK (association of modern art)

Along the Weser river, they produced art works, which are typical for the urban situation in Bremen and therewith created some kind of urban redefinition. Focus of interest was the direct face-off with the public to encourage new experiences with the environment.

Participants: Dennis Adams, Biefer / Zgraggen, Olafur Eliasson, Annika Eriksson, Malachi Farrell, Peter Friedl, Lucy Gunning, Fabrice Gygi, Alfredo Jaar, Henrik Plenge Jakobsen, Ange Leccia, Claude Lévêque, Ann Lislegaard, Aernout Mik, Marylène Negro, Hinrich Sachs, Eran Schaerf und Eva Meyer, Ross Sinclair, Bob & Roberta Smith, Stephen Willats

Curators of the project: Horst Griese, Eva Schmidt