Arp Collection 2018

»i have a round piece of cardboard cover
and would like to abscond on a practical hen
I envy milk for its deep sleep«
Hans Arp

Hans Arp's paper works occupy a special place in his oeuvre, as the artist utilized no other medium with such a diversity of techniques and approaches. Again and again he explored paper's boundaries, continually discovering new qualities and uses for the material. Arp did not only draw and create richly colourful graphic works but also tore up, glued, painted over, cut out and crumpled – thus lending paper a third dimension.
Everywhere visible in the presentation of the collection are the principles of his organic abstraction, which he derived from nature. Arp's spontaneity and his irrepressible joy in experimentation are particularly evident in his use of paper.
To go along with the emphasis of the current exhibition, in December 2018 a catalogue will be published documenting the paper works in the Arp Museum's collection.