Heinz Gappmayr Ontologische Bildtexte
15 July 2021Basic material of the work of Heinz Gappmayr, with which the gallerist Dr. Dorothea van der Koelen has been working closely together for many years, is language. However, he does not use language in syntactic contexts. Rather, the artist presents individual words (one-word texts) and terms that designate categories, properties or dispositions and are therefore non-representational and therefore also non-illustrative, in a visually determined context.
One focus of Gappmayr’s oeuvre is the representation of the categorical terms time and space, which are not themselves concrete, but are the basis of every cognition. The visual poet is no less famous for his so-called number texts.
Gappmayr is especially famous among the representatives of visual poetry – such as Eugen Gomringer – for his numbers and time texts. The use of language as a pictorial medium enables Heinz Gappmayr to bring the viewer to visualize concepts that cannot actually be represented graphically. For example, looking at the concept of time, which cannot be represented by graphic means, evokes an inner conception in the viewer.
The words used by Gappmayr are easily accessible to the viewer. They do not have to be looked up in the dictionary or encyclopedia. Their complexity lies in their meaning. Often the terms come from the ontological area, so they deal with the basic structures of reality and the division of beings into categories. Our film today focuses on existence (sind = are), becoming (wird = becomes) and the categories of self and the other (du ich= you me). That these abstract concepts elude visual representation may apply to other artists. But Gappmayr captures them on the canvas.
You want find out more about the work of Heinz Gappmayr? Then you should also check out our artist page! New videos from the series are released regularly on our YouTube channel.