RAM Gallery
20th anniversary-exhibition

November 19th 2009 - February 14th 2010

– active/(de)constructive until February 14th 2010

Release of a-one-of-a-kind book:
Eine Versuchte Geschlechtsbestimmung des Waisen Kubus

– ein animierter wissenschaftlicher Auszug von,

zu und aus Kontiguität.

By Angeliki Dimaki-Adolfsen and Jonas Adolfsen (N)

Bookrelease Thusday January 21th at 7pm

I seldom have a clue about what I’m doing. Also when partaking in an attempt to explode/implode the White Cube. I do not understand entirely what it is I’m participating in. Hence I often need the help of others to figure out what to do and how to do it.

This might sound disturbing but is – as you all probably know - rather comforting. It is comforting me – and I think it is comforting most of us who do - and no matter what it is we do.

The interest in the White Cube and its alter ego and/or – if there is any – its antonym, is what I’m certain about. What I do with this interest remains to a certain degree uncertain.

Almost to the day ten years previous to the opening of RAM Gallery’s 20th anniversary exhibition on “an attempt to explode/implode the White Cube” I worked – again - on another white cube: The gallery in the former Oslo school of architecture was to be prepared for an exhibition of architectural drawings and images.

In the course of that work that sought to prepare the white cube for that exhibition, the white cube got altered. The reason why the white cube got altered is difficult to explain, but it might have had something to do with the quest for the optimal. Whatever that quest is. But the white cube got altered. Not much actually, but it got altered and appeared differently. Though it still belonged to the white cubes.

The exhibition took place and the exhibition was partaking in the transformation of the white cube. Yet it did not do that alone.

Today, on Thursday January 21th we mark the release of a-one-of-a-kind book with the German title:

Eine Versuchte Geschlechtsbestimmung des Waisen Kubus –
ein animierter wissenschaftlicher Auszug von, zu und aus Kontiguität - by Angeliki Dimaki-Adolfsen and Jonas Adolfsen.

Jonas and Angeliki were handed out a material consisting of two sets of photography’s. One set is showing a group of five nudes (male and female) as the undraped human figure in art while the other set views a young woman in fragile clothing and probably shows something completely different. Both sets were photographed with two different types of film, constantly changed apertures and shutter time. Both sets were taken inside the gallery space of the former Oslo school of architecture and while the mentioned exhibition tock place – though after closing hours that is.

The photographs were not entering that particular exhibition but they made it into other ones. Although it’s uncertain why they came into being they were nevertheless constructive. They inspired new works and other doings and that in spite of an obvious motive or argument.

Ten years after their creation it’s time to let them go. The unbearable pathos with its pathetic narration shall be unveiled, exploded, imploded or deconstructed and who better to do that as Angeliki Adolfsen-Dimaki and Jonas Adolfsen, a married couple and dear friends of mine, former and soon former students of the Oslo School of Architecture and Design….

Both Jonas and Angeliki have during their studies - on their own but also as a couple - worked with and on the white cube, several times and with acclaim. Both also show a strong interest in photography and moving imagery. Jonas spend half a year of his studies in order to move still pictures into an architectural spatial becoming while Angeliki, a year later, used the same amount of time to observe her own perception and try to make architectural sense out of it and through the rearranging and re-reading of what moved so smoothly before.

There is a relation between architecture and film. Always. Like film and architecture relate to ‘something’, Architecture and film relate to each other.

What if Angeliki and Jonas are asked to question and/or animate the white cube’s gender – it’s authority, neutrality, kindness, cruelty, emptiness and/or subtleness - through still images they did not produce themselves – and in a book and not on film – and as a couple - as the male gaze – as the female gaze – would something become unveiled, deconstructed, exploded – or will the construction remain meaningless?

With this I like to raise my glass and wish us welcome to the release of a one of a kind book by Angeliki and Jonas

– may they make sense out of it all!

Cheers!

Biography

Rolf Gerstlauer is professor at The Oslo School of Architecture and Design and runs together with his partner a small atelier in Oslo. Studio Gerstlauer Molne’s works are on architecture, film, photography, dance/choreography and include now also noise-production. As an architect Gerstlauer has a love/hate relationship with the white cube, yet as a constructor and maker the extended exploded/imploded white cube represents the base for all of his creative works. Earlier confrontations with the white cube include works like: Momentum 2000 – nordic biennale of contemporary art Moss (with Moment Architecture), Oslo Kunsthall – Oslo Art hall 2000-2003, Contiguity 1999 – AHO, Architecture as Infrastructure – National Museum for Architecture Oslo (with StudioB3), ‘Timeroomchamber’ - Uri/Switzerland and ‘Headhunting’ - DogA/Dansens hus Oslo.