GOLDEN DAYS. FRANCIS BAUDEVIN, DOMINIK STAUCH FEATURING DAAN VAN GOLDEN
Golden Days shows works by two Swiss artists, Francis Baudevin (born in 1964 in Bulle, lives and works in Lausanne) and Dominik Stauch (born in 1962 in London, lives and works in Thun). The exhibition in Thun is the first time the two artists have shown together. They’ve created new works for the exhibition and adapted older groups of works to fit the museum’s space. The two artists share some of the rooms, thus entering into a direct dialogue.
The work of the two artists has several things in common: both studied graphic design before becoming visual artists, and both refer heavily in their work to the design of everyday objects and their specific codes and manifestations in the media and subcultures. Music is another important reference for both artists. Their works repeatedly contain references to musical movements, from the rock ‘n’ roll of the 1960s to the punk of the 1970s and the new wave movement of the 1980s. Francis Baudevin uses logos from well-known medication packaging, corporations, music labels, and record covers for his abstract and geometric color compositions on canvas or directly on the wall. In his work, Domink Stauch creates a dense world with references from art and music history through a mix of media including video, photography, painting, drawing, found images, and sculptures. In his spatial and video installations, sound determines the rhythm of the image sequences.
As a link between the two artists’ worlds of ideas, the art museum presents the 72-part work Golden Years by Daan Van Golden (born in Rotterdam in 1936). The Dutch artist selected one image from the daily newspaper for each year from his birth until his 70th birthday (2006). The images were chosen by the artist according to purely subjective and aesthetic criteria and depict in part major historical events, but also minor occurrences or well-known personalities. The collection forms a fascinating reflection of Western culture over the last 70 years and often shows images that have become engraved in the collective memory of this period. The newspaper clippings are presented in chronological order on a neutral gray background, allowing the viewer to take a fascinating journey through the last 70 years.
Francis Baudevin
Since the 1980s, the paintings of Lausanne-based artist Francis Baudevin have been based mainly on found graphics developed for a wide variety of products: medicines, clothing brands, logos for large corporations, and even record covers. He abstracts them to such an extent that, although he does not change the existing patterns and colors, their original origin is no longer immediately apparent. The paintings show flat geometric figures in often bright color combinations. However, the shapes and colors evoke memories in us that we often cannot immediately identify without the accompanying characters and due to the changed size. Often, only the names of the paintings refer to the origin of the abstract shapes and colors. The logos of large global corporations and their colors were originally intended to create identity and thus help the brands achieve international recognition. Through Francis Baudevin’s abstraction of the symbols, they lose their recognizability, but still refer to the underlying marketing strategies.
Dominik Stauch
Thun-based artist Dominik Stauch works with a wide variety of media: painting, computer animation, and installations. In addition to oil paints and animated pixels, he also uses found images and objects from everyday life. He transforms furniture and carpets into sculptures and works with images from the media and pop culture. He alters the latter through minimal interventions, for example by enlarging them so much that the image grid comes to the fore as a geometric pattern. He combines the various media and images in ever-changing contexts to create a coherent whole. His videos captivate viewers with their clearly thought-out geometric images on the one hand and their simple, reduced forms on the other. His animated images are often accompanied by a soundtrack, such as his own compositions or well-known melodies that refer to music history.
A catalog (German/English) is being published to accompany the exhibition by Kehrer Verlag, featuring numerous illustrations and contributions by Susanne Bieri, Paul Young, Caroline Soyez-Petithomme, Emmanuel Grandjean, Siri Peyer, and an interview with both artists by Helen Hirsch.
With generous support from:
Pro Helvetia, Swiss Arts Council / OERTLI Foundation
