Judith Rau & Hannah Regenberg at SPERLING

Artists: Judith Rau & Hannah Regenberg

Exhibition title: Obsolé

Curated by: Sebastian Schneider (Lenbachhaus)

Venue: SPERLING, Munich, Germany

Date: July 6 – 28, 2018

Photography: ©the artist. Courtesy of SPERLING, Munich. Photos by Sebastian Kissel

Obsolé is a made-up word, which is reminiscent of associative neologisms from the world of product marketing. Fittingly, the French sounding “obsolé” implies a leftoverness, which can be found in content as well as in structural aspects of Hannah Regenberg and Judith Rau’s work.

And so, Hannah Regenberg deals with the transition from language to writing to image. Found leftovers of script act as source material, which go through a multilayered reworking and abstractional process. With the use of the serial process that is silkscreen printing, she uses letter shapes, for example from constructive elements, to acquire always-new compositions. Recently, she transformed letters into evocative sculptural forms using 3D-print, wax- and bronze cast or drawn-out plaster profiles.

Judith Rau predominantly uses found footage for her videos, which she eclectically combines with music from various genres. She is less interested in a linear storyline, than in generating emotions through montage. Rhythmic musical structures lay the basis for the videos, similar to those used in popular formats such as music videos or musicals. La Nuit De L’Homme (2018) delves into a world of male amateur perfume testing and seeks answers to how the outdated and superfluous idea of manliness can be synthesized or archived.

Judith Rau studied at the University of Fine Arts Hamburg, as well as CalArts in Los Angeles. In 2017, she completed her master in the class of Prof. Michaela Melián. She is part of the group New Media Socialism. Since 2017, their surreal TV series Hallo Deutschland – Die Einwanderer is screened at Kampnagel.

Hannah Regenberg graduated in 2014 as ‘master student’ of Prof. Paco Knöller at the University of the Arts Bremen. She lives in Berlin and, alongside her artistic work, also works as a translator and editor. In May 2018, she had a solo presentation of her work at Galerie K’ in Bremen.

-Sebastian Schneider