Charlotte Posenenske: Vierkantrohre Serie D

About

This kit can be assembled in a variety of combinations, limited only by the number of elements available. Contrary to classical sculptures, therefore, there is no restriction; the work can be continued and changed to respond to a wide variety of spaces, standing, lying, hanging, indoors or outdoors. It is left to the curators of the exhibition or invited guests to build the installation according to their own criteria and to change it over time. Traces of previous use, be they in the form of small scratches or fingerprints, are part of the work itself. The elements were factory-made as authorized reconstructions from 1967 until the death of Posenenske’s widower Dr. Burkhard Brunn in April 2021. In this way, the artist attempted to challenge the artwork's claim to originality and undermine the market price it generated.

Charlotte Posenenske is one of the most important German artists of the post-war period, whose rather brief artistic career - she was active for ‘only’ 12 years - is characterized by its radical openness. Posenenske's interest in geometry, repetition, and industrial production is noteworthy. She conceived a mass-produced minimalism, challenging both the art market and established formal and cultural hierarchies, and addressing the socio-economic issues of her time. At the same time, her work is still highly relevant today. Although Posenenske's oeuvre has received more attention in recent years, the radical nature of her work, and thus her contemporary relevance, have not been acknowledged adequately.

After concluding that art ultimately failed to bring about sufficient political impact, Posenenske took the radical step of abandoning it altogether in 1968. She then studied sociology and worked as a social scientist.