URBAN DREAM _visual art project by ULLA REIMER
“The Philosophical Urbanism of Walter Benjamin has shown almost a hundred years ago that
there is linkage between city-form and mind. Benjamin points out that this linkage suggests
a psychoanalytic discourse related to foundational gender aspects in the process of urban
design. In the contemporary milieu of urban society, policy and politics, such a discourse has
its own significance.” Professor Avi Akkerman
there is linkage between city-form and mind. Benjamin points out that this linkage suggests
a psychoanalytic discourse related to foundational gender aspects in the process of urban
design. In the contemporary milieu of urban society, policy and politics, such a discourse has
its own significance.” Professor Avi Akkerman
Building on Akkerman’s idea,“My Urban Dream” is a poetic excursion to discover the reality of a contemporary city and explore my own personal perception of its past and present. The milieu of my inspiration is derived from the concepts of construction, destruction and reconstruction.
Since my approach to my series always starts from a realistic observation and moves towards an abstract emotion, it symbolically portrays a very personal point of view; a mixture of philosophical aesthetics and abstract expressions.
Exploring light to shadow, I use contemporary architecture and half abandoned places as my subjects, where solitude and liveliness is in both. For me going into a destructed house or space imparts/conveys a memory of the past, a life in another
sphere. May imagination builds esthetic images out of these places, where time is gone but life is spiritually there. In contrast, the contemporary places, buildings and architecture epitomize energy. The beauty and interest of new matters, and the hard working people for whom time speeds by without a care; the fast pace of life.
The contradiction between isolation and sharing. Out of these observations URBAN DREAM creates a series which are
symbolically related; giving new life to timeless spaces. It shows the melting point of modern thinking and forgotten and hidden places, and reveals lines like lifelines of contemporary and abandoned architecture.
Urban Dream is inspired by the city of Seoul, where I am now. In a country where the language is only a sound to me, but a sound which is moving my soul and sensitizing my view.
…visible (in)visible
This “URBAN DREAM” preview is mounted on light white fabric to encourage the viewer to discover like in a dream what is hidden; the visible invisible and the invisible visible. It is a voluntarily effect not to read the pictures in a classic way, not to bring out all the details as in a photo print, not to discover all the contrasts expressed in these images. I want to make the viewer to feel like they are entering a dream, letting the space develop into an individual emotion; an invisible reality. Trying to follow the movement of the white fabric, making the images slightly blurred, symbolizing the lightness of being, the dark side of destruction and the beauty of a dream. URBAN DREAM in this preview version can never been seen again because the evolution of my work is fast.
Thus the next presentation will express the following step in this evaluative series, where the sense of evolution is important as is how I emotionally respond to what my eyes see.
