Carlfriedrich Claus. Geschrieben in Nachtmeer
Exhibition. April 8 – June 5, 2011
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The Akademie der Künste, Berlin, has put together a retrospective of the works of the artist and philosopher Carlfriedrich Claus (1930-1998). His oeuvre evolves from language and sound and spans poetry, drawings, graphic design and acoustic art. Claus lived in seclusion in Annaberg until 1993, when he moved to Chemnitz. The 250-piece exhibition explores the intellectual and formal complexity of Claus’ body of work and provides an insight into the supradisciplinary nature of his life and work.

Carlfriedrich Claus was influenced by the Kabbalah, mysticism, and Marxist and Far Eastern philosophy. He made no secret of his utopian, communist stance. A voracious reader and truly ‘universalistic’ in his worldview, Claus developed his own style of pictorial writing. Working within the strictures of a linear form, he produced his ‘language sheets’ which are graphics and text at the same time.
A GDR citizen, Claus lived for many years in artistic isolation. He was suspect in his political views and was given the opportunity to leave the country. Despite this, his home was a magnet for European intellectuals from the 1950s onwards. In 1991 he became member of the Akademie der Künste. As a pre-eminent figure and one of the last great avant-gardists, Claus was in many respects the counterpole to Joseph Beuys on Germany’s artistic landscape.

The exhibition focuses on the ‘language sheets’. Drawn on one side or both sides of transparent paper, they are central to Claus’ work. The retrospective also features his extended series of prints, “Aurora”, and for the first time his early photographs as well as letters, diaries, and film and sound recordings. The show concludes with the audio installation “Lautprozess-Raum” from 1995.

Carlfriedrich Claus. Geschrieben in Nachtmeer
An exhibition of Akademie der Künste, Berlin, in cooperation with Kunstsammlungen Chemnitz, Stiftung Carlfriedrich Claus-Archiv 
April 8 – June 5, 2011
Exhibition opening: Thursday, April 7, 2011, 7 pm
Tue – Sun, 11 am – 8 pm, admission: 6 Euros, reduced rate: 4 Euros
Free admission on the 1st Sunday of the month and for visitors under 18 years of age
Akademie der Künste, Pariser Platz 4, 10117 Berlin, Germany
Phone +49 (0)30 200 57-1000, info@adk.de, www.adk.de