Andreas Schulenburg

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Andreas Schulenburg + Jonas Fromm:
"Body Tequila", 2003 (still)
animation film
app. 15 minutes

More images: www.artnews.org/andreasschulenburg

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German Swine!
by Julie Damgaard Nielsen, 2002

“I’m in the habit of saying muh to people, who haven’t got the faintest idea what I mean”. With these words the 27-year-old artist Andreas Schulenburg manages to indicate several of his basic points of departure: a pitch-black humour, a childlike mind, a contempt of authorities, a love for animals, an investigation into the banal instead of the traditional, a toying with misunderstanding, a testing of boundaries, a wrestling of confrontation, a specification of cultural differences and a challenge of the art scene. “I was born in Hamburg, Germany, and did not move to Denmark until I was 20 years old. I have, however, spend several summer holidays on Жrш* while growing up, and the differences between the city and the country, Germany and Denmark, have made a big impression”, Schulenburg tells openly. “I remember the other children throwing stones at my siblings and I, crying German swine. In Hamburg I was anonymous; on Жrш on the other hand, everybody knew who I was - and did not really accept me. I’m partly Danish but was soon made aware of not being truly Danish. At the same time I also began seeing Germany in a different light and discovered an incredibly guilty culture. All this resulted in me fighting an inward identity battle and even today the aspect of contrast or compound is an essential part of my work”. A classic example of Schulenburg’s absurd fusions is the story about the two cloned animals’ - Sogokken and Svinehanen (the Sowchick and the Pigcock) eventful journey to Australia.

The childhood experiences in Жrш didn’t knock out Schulenburg. Instead of being cowed by the other children’s actions and abusive language he chose to see the fun in it and take it with a pinch of humour. He has no doubts that even heavy subjects become easier to digest provided you add a touch of irony. In his comic strips, watercolours, animation films and videos Schulenburg makes use of politically charged statements and tabooed topics, and so humour is an indispensable ingredient. “Making fun is my way of breaking the ice”, he explains. The kindergarten-aesthetic touch that Schulenburg conveys to the artworks also helps to soften the now and then rather coarse statements. The innocent form and saturated colouring, which point to the artistic displays of childhood allows the artist even more freedom as far as the content goes. In the picture Entschuldigung (Sorry) Schulenburg has depicted himself as an orthodox Jew and underneath written the word Entschuldigung in nazi-inspired, sinuous, coloured letters. The work stresses the disturbing fact that even the younger, innocent generations of Germans is still being held responsible for past sins.

The comic strips, however, hold a special place in Schulenburg’s heart. “Everything is possible in comic strips and ‘splatter scenes` are considerably more accepted here than in any other media.” Conscious of the fact that it is much easier to deliver a cogent message through a neutral and innocent animal Schulenburg, in his strip cartoons, readily uses animals as mouthpieces for humans. Pornography, politics and other pithy topics are thus taken up for treatment without the slightest fear of contact or squinting at political correctness. “I am tugging at Danish nationality”, Schulenburg proclaims. “Denmark is a small country with only one history and common traditions and values. The only ‘cultural differences` that have so far been mentioned are the ones between the rural areas and the city and logically they are the result of rather hackneyed stereotyped prejudices. All along cosiness has been the uniting power and only recently new frightening scenarios have triggered off a public debate on issues such as incest, nationalism and nervousness towards foreigners. One of Schulenburg’s latest works Dannebrog with a swastika-like appearance hints at the new intonation in the debate on foreigners and his stuffed camel with the No Parking-sign and the sown on, bazooka-armed Bedouin selling pizza hits us smack in the face with its indication of the preconceived opinions and obdurate attitudes of Western society. Schulenburg shows no interest in art that solely refers to itself. For that reason the German artist Hans Haacke is a great source of inspiration to him. From Haacke he has learned to incorporate his political ideas into the artwork and the consistency and artistic intensity that the almost 70-year-old Haacke still displays inspire Schulenburg with great respect.

It is important to Andreas Schulenburg to keep furnishing the art scene with new elements. He emphasizes creativity and energy rather than consistent finish. Spelling- and compositional mistakes are not corrected as they only stress the immediacy of the works. It is part of the story, though, that several of the works are made in dynamic collaboration with other artists, and that there is no time for fiddling with particulars. “I have made several comic strips with Mads Steen and Jonas Fromm and sometimes we are working on 4 or 5 stories at a time. I do not fall under the category of artists that sit slaving away in some mysterious universe. Dialogue, compromises and acceptance of other peoples efforts belong to the order of the work.”

The narrative sequences of Schulenburgs works often take as the point of departure actual incidents but ultimately end in imaginative constructions. In this they bear resemblance to the writing of fairytales, which Schulenburg is in fact very fascinated by: “Grimms’ Fairytales is my Bible. The tales have been written down after having been passed on through generations. Here and there the content has become so satiated with symbols that it borders on incomprehensibility and yet you know that the story originates in realities. I have no objections to nonsense in a narrative as long as certain seriousness also shows through.”

* A tiny island in Denmark

Andreas Schulenburg

1975 born in Hamburg, Germany

Lives and works in Copenhagen, Denmark

Education

1999 - The Royal Academy Of Fine Arts, Copenhagen/Denmark
1997 - 99 The Academy Of Fine Arts, Arhus/Denmark
1995 - 97 Ranum Artschool

Solo Exhibitions

2006
MALM 2, Malmo Kunsthal
The Fall Exhibition, Charlottenborg Exhibition Hall
2006
Opening solo exhibition at MOGADISHNI Aarhus
2005
“Democracy is the cosmetic of capitalism”, MOGADISHNI, Copenhagen
2002
”There Must Be Something Wrong in This Country”, MOGADISHNI, Copenhagen
2000
”Det kan ligge i en lille ting”, MOGADISHNI, Copenhagen
Upcoming exhibitions 2006

Group Exhibitions

2006
Dunk! "3d Wonders", Copenhagen, Denmark
2005
EXIT, Gl. Strand, Copenhagen, Denmark
Diesel New Art 2005, Copenhagen, Denmark
The Armory Show, New York, US., (MOGADISHNI)
The Young Art Fair in Basel, LISTE, (MOGADISHNI)
Art Forum Berlin, (MOGADISHNI)
NADA, New Art Dealers Alliance, Miami, (MOGADISHNI)
Blindarte contemporanea, Napoli, Italy
Private Ise Art Foundation exhibition space, Broadway/NY.
Temporarycontemporary, Biennale: Artist, film and video. London.
Selsving, Den Frie, Copenhagen, Denmark
2004
Scope London
MOMENTUM, Biennal for Nordic Art, Moss/Norge
Group Show, the leisure club MOGADISHNI
“Significant Anomaly”The main curatorial project at Scope, NY – curated by Robert Knafo
ARCO 04, Madrid/Spain
Selsving, Naestved
Selsving, Kopenhagen shop+Basement, Copenhagen
Stjalne vaerker, Kunstcafe Riga - curated by Schulenburg and Stahn
Trickfilm Festival 04, Studtgart - in collaboration with Jonas Fromm
Opec, Copenhagen - in collaboration with Mads Steen
Artboks, Arhus - in collaboration with Jonas Fromm/Overste Kirurgiske
2003
Artissima, Turin
The leisure club MOGADISHNI presents -Body Tequila- in collaboration with Jonas Fromm, Daniel
Silverstein Gallery, New York
An Offer You Can`t Refuse, the leisure club MOGADISHNI
Art Miami, Miami Beach, USA (the leisure club MOGADISHNI)
Nykredit, Copenhagen
Selsving Koge Skitsesamling, Copenhagen
Selsving Roskilde Festival, Copenhagen
Selsving Loppen, Copenhagen
2002
Abschied, Tom Christoffersen, Copenhagen
Eventyret om Monarki og uretfaerdighed ), in collaboration with Christina Hamre, Katrine Malinovsky, Jon
Stahn, Majken Schultz and Christian Finne. + Helsemalerier”(in collaboration with Stefan Rotvit)(arranged
by Selvsving).
FAIR, an exhibition organised by the MA course Curating Contemporary Art, Royal College of Art, London
ARCO`02 (Madrid), The leisure club MOGADISHNI
The Public Space doesn`t excist (Copkop), Gallery Asbaek/The Main Labrary, Copenhagen (in
collaboration with Fie Norsker, Christian Finne)
Double stand for peace, The Royal Artacademy, Copenhagen - in collaboration with Christian Finne
2001
Schonheit in rechtlicher fragwurdigkeit, 12 bis 18, Hamburg
efterarsudstillingen, Charlottenborg, Copenhagen (in collaboration with Overste Kirurgiske)
Horse girls, BSA, Copenhagen
Spise grise, (poster project), Copenhagen (in collaboration with Jesper Aabille)
Polsespiserne(Kongens Nytorv), Copenhagen (in collaboration with Mie Morkeberg)
2000
Entschuldigung, Mobile Scene (in collaboration with Naja Scharff) - Copenhagen
Untitled, Alborg Artpavillion (in collaboration with Finn Thybo Andersen,
Kirsten Dufour and Soren Lyng) - Copenhagen/Denmark
Der ma vaere orden i tingene, (Njalsgyden), public space in Copenhagen
(in collaboration with Jonas Fromm)
To Tojdyr i Aktuel Konflikt, (Pa Hovedet), Main Labrary - Copenhagen
Window Exhibition, Baltersgade - Copenhagen (in collaboration with
Soren Lyng)
1999
On The Air, The Academy Of Fine Arts, Arhus/Denmark (in collaboration with
Soren Lyng) - curated by Maria Eichhorn
Noglen ligger under matten, Gallery Room 46, Arhus/Denmark (in collaboration with Soren Lyng)
Exhibition at Oslo Plads, Copenhagen in connection with Oslo Bar by FOS (collaboration with Soren
Lyng)
Decoration in Brumlecity, together with Kirsten Dofur, Finn Thybo Andersen and SorenLyng
Okay Layout, in collaboration with “Overste Kirurgiske”, Copenhagen
1998
HMD, everyday morning discotheque, The Academy Of Fine Arts,
Arhus/Denmark (in collaboration with Aslak Vibaek-AVPD)
26 in a box, Gallery Room 46, Arhus/Denmark (curated by Jerome Sans
1997
Locus Antis, (exhibition at AEro/Denmark)
Fast Art, Gallery Room 46, Arhus/Denmark
German with a hangover, The Academy Of Fine Arts, Arhus/Denmark(in collaboration with Naja Scharff)

Collections

Ny Carlsbergfondet, Denmark
The Penny McCall Foundation, USA
Nykredit, Denmark

Andreas Schulenburg

SPECTA
Peder Skrams Gade 13
1054 Copenhagen
Denmark

+45 33 130 123
specta@specta.dk
www.specta.dk