Congratulations to Pascalina Krummenauer and Niels Walter!
Pascalina Krummenauer and Niels Walter are awarded the sponsorship prize at the opening of EXAMEN 2023
On Wednesday evening (13.12.), the cdw Foundation and the Kunsthochschule Kassel presented the sponsorship award as part of EXAMEN 2023. Pascalina Krummenauer and Niels Walter, both graduates of the Kunsthochschule Kassel (Visual Communication), are this year's winners and will each receive prize money of 4,000 euros.
The jury viewed a total of 65 works by graduates and master students of the art academy, which will be exhibited in the documenta hall from December 13 to 17. The jury consisted of: Dr. Brigitte Franzen (Director of the Senckenberg Museum Frankfurt), Anna-Lisa Scherfose (Research Assistant, Coordinator TRACES, Kunsthochschule Kassel), Moritz Micalef (Art and Public Relations Officer at the cdw Foundation).
About the jury statements:
The video installation "In Vivo Neona" by Pascalina Krummenauer impressively combines digital elements and painting. With a special narrative structure - associative, dreamlike and dystopian - Krummenauer's work casts a spell over us. We accompany the main character, Kalysto, as he "brews this season's neon pack" and "feeds the hungry maw of the insertion apparatus with Liquoform". As the work progresses, we too seem to understand the neon language. The continuation and staging of the cinematic elements in space in conjunction with the excellent realization make us very curious about their future works.
Niels Walter's computer game "Superlandscapes" is characterized by the very successful combination of animation, illustration, drawing and digitality. The "reward" for the players - especially for their patience and concentration during the course of the game - is unusual and convincing. The game's interactivity lies in its focus on the objects. Together with the protagonists, the players embark on a path of curiosity with many humorous elements. A special quality of the game lies in the drawings and illustrations. The absence of color and the effects of the ballpoint pen drawings make up its special aesthetic. Just as the players concentrate on the essentials, Niels Walters' "Superlandscapes" focuses on the sparse yet convincingly dense illustrations. The seemingly simply "thrown down" drawings interest the players precisely because of their degree of abstraction, their "scribbled" aesthetic and their humorous simplicity. You lose yourself - in a positive sense - in this game with great ease.
Ten years of EXAMEN in the documenta-Halle
The cdw Foundation supports EXAMEN and, together with the art academy, sponsors the sponsorship prize, which is awarded to two exhibitors each year as part of the exhibition. EXAMEN as an exhibition format is unique in Germany. It enables graduates of the Kunsthochschule to professionally realize an exhibition in an internationally renowned exhibition venue. "This edition of EXAMEN in particular impressively demonstrates what characterizes this special format and what significance it has for the graduates and master students of the Kassel School of Art: Conceiving and realizing a final exhibition of this size and quality in the documenta-Halle is a great challenge that enables the participants to gain important experience in the transition from studies to career. As a foundation that aims to strengthen Kassel as a cultural location through its work, EXAMEN is therefore one of our most important commitments and we look forward to continuing to support the format," says Moritz Micalef from the cdw Foundation.
Mateo Chacón Pino curated the 2023 final exhibition at the Kunsthochschule Kassel.