:
:
:
|
Picture an idyllic landscape, a pristine Brandenburg lake district an hour north of the bustling metropolitan jungle of Berlin. Adjacent to the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve created just prior to Germany's reunification to protect this former East German area rich in natural beauty but poor in economic terms, a group of like-minded artists, art and nature lovers banded together to foster an exchange between town and country, art and nature. The non-profit association Freunde der Uckermark e.V., “Friends of the Uckermark”, created the biennial UM Uckermark Art Festival in 2008 to present contemporary art, literature and music on view in several villages and natural sites on the first weekend in September. Initially, participants came from Berlin and Brandenburg but this year the festival has drawn an international crowd. Along with artists from Switzerland and Japan, Saudi Arabia's artist duo Bricklab and Lina Gazzaz from Jeddah were among the selected twenty-two contributors. Following the first German participation at Jeddah's 21,39 in 2018, this Saudi Arabian contribution to UM18 is another milestone in the cultural exchange between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Federal Republic of Germany. Lina Gazzaz impressed viewers, adults and children alike, with a presentation around her grand installation “Throne” on the borders of the lake Oberuckersee. Draped inside and leading up to a magnificent old tree, Gazzaz chose a long red carpet to adorn the dramatic setting seemingly taken from a fairy tale. The tree remains not only alive after being split open by lightening but transformed itself into what appears to be a natural throne. Alluding to the iconic red drapery featured in medieval art and adorning this site of natural beauty that has its own dramatic story to tell, the artist brilliantly fulfilled this festival's Land Art objective in a most aesthetic way. Bricklab's installation “Temporal Growth” in the Uckermark, though much smaller in scope, recalls this artist/architect duo's acclaimed work at this year's Biennale di Architettura in Venice. For the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's first participation at the renowned architecture show, Bricklab designed and created the Saudi pavilion highlighting the rapid development their home country has witnessed over the last half century. Development has many sides to it and needs careful curating. Their Uckermark work—a three-sided structure made of cornstalks—invites the spectator to enter, sit and ponder the effects of modern agricultural practices and effects on society. |
: