Vernissage and Film
In March, the Pretty Portal Gallery starts the exhibition year with an exhibition by Wolfgang Krell titled "Wummenizer." The vernissage will take place on March 6th. Shortly thereafter, on March 11th, we will show a film by the Persian artist A1ONE in the gallery, rightly considered the pioneer of the Persian graffiti and urban art movement. Wolfgang Krell "Wummenizer" The disarming effect of colorWolfgang Krell found his passion for spray cans in the Dortmund graffiti scene back in 1984. From the beginning, he continuously explored the possibilities of spray paint material and presented his works in numerous group and solo exhibitions, including at the Carhardt Gallery (Public Provocations), in Zurich, and London. With Krell's willingness to constantly push boundaries (the sky is not the limit), he has significantly influenced the current street and urban art movement in Germany.
Krell experiments with a mix of spray paint, acrylic, and pencil. He also works with stencils, among other techniques. His motifs include female portraits and pop-art side views of pistols and rifles. Although these two subjects couldn't be more different, Krell manages to connect them with his unique artistic signature. The playful exhibition title "Wummenizer" brings the motifs of female portraits and "Wummen" (slang for guns) to a common denominator and aptly summarizes them. The combination of dynamic tag styles and stencils with elements of contemporary painting dissolves the threatening character of the weapons, while the female portraits parody the severity of facial expressions from beauty photography with punkish, colorful hairstyles. Krell's intense, contrasting color scheme, which he places against a white surface, immediately catches the eye and magnetically draws the viewer in. His colorful and positive works strip weapons of their negative connotations and beauty motifs of their often inherent seriousness. Wolfgang Krell's visual language is disarming and makes his motifs approachable in a pleasant way. In the "Wummenizer" exhibition, Wolfgang Krell shows works on canvas. The artist will be present at the vernissage. Wolfgang Krell "Wummenizer" Exhibition March 6th – April 10th. Vernissage March 6th, 7-10 PMA1ONE „DeeVaar – The Wall“ A film about urban art and graffiti in IranA1ONE is the first artist to combine traditional Persian calligraphy with street art / graffiti, thereby developing a completely new visual language. His stencil works, inspired by socially critical documentary photography, appeared in the streets of Tehran in 2003 and ignited a new movement in his home country. A1ONE has gained worldwide recognition for his visual language, in which he tells stories from his homeland and reflects Iranian culture. He is considered the pioneer of Persian urban art.
Due to his remarkable and undeniable influence on Iranian culture and his fundamental role in creating a cultural trend in Iran, A1one was abducted by Iranian intelligence in 2012. After his release, he was forced to leave his country and found political asylum in Germany. At this point, he decided to fight for the artistic creation and visual freedom of expression of future generations in Iran. His film "DeeVaar – The Wall" documents the life and work of the first generation of Iranian graffiti artists, as well as the reactions to it from their environment. The scenes show real, life-threatening situations that had to be filmed without the permission of the Iranian government to maintain their authenticity. The artistic-scientific project is not yet complete but continues to collect video material from Iran, just as the history of Iranian street art is not complete. Pretty Portal shows the film "DeeVaar - The Wall" on March 11th at 8 PM at the gallery on Brunnenstr. 12. After the film, there will be a discussion with the artist. The film is in Persian with English subtitles. Admission from 7:30 PM, contribution fee 4€