Arp Collection 2018
Rendez-vous des amis: Kurt Schwitters and Hans Arp
18. Feb 2018 – 17. Jun 2018
"That's why when snapping off lilies place left hand on left handle." Hans Arp
In 1918 Hans Arp and Kurt Schwitters met at the Café des Westens in Berlin. This would prove to be the beginning of an intense friendship between the artists, the 100th anniversary of which we will be commemorating with a new exciting Rendez-vous des amis.
Shaken by the effects of the Great War and in search of an artistic reaction, Arp and Schwitters defied tradition and classical techniques from very early on. Both also declared collage to be one of their most important artistic vehicles.
As predecessors of DADA and MERZ, they were bound by a close philosophical affinity that was characterized in no small part by humour and irony. Fantastic texts and avantgardistic publications allow us to vividly experience this intimate connection. "We poetize, merzize and arpize the whole day long", reported Arp and Sophie Taeuber-Arp euphorically on their collective projects.
Placing emphasis on their collages and collective publications, in the Graphic Cabinet we explore the often amusing and always ingenious cooperation between two great artists that still harbours many secrets.