Works by the sculptor Rainer Kurka

They make an impression as if they arose from real-world examples. The mostly female terracotta figures from Berlin sculptor Rainer Kurka, regard the observer invitingly, contemplatively or melancholically. Sometimes, several emotions can be seen simultaneously in the faces, which further fascinate with individual details such as small veins and freckles. The posture of the life-size figures looks natural and not posed: sometimes inflexible, sometimes laid back, although it is reasonable to assume that the artist’s work does not use genuine portraits. The physiques are fantasy figures.

Selected sculptures from Kurka can be seen as interventions in the Ornamental Cast Iron Museum Büdelsdorf permanent exhibition. They establish a dialogue with the individual 19th century cast iron statues of persons. With their positioning in the permanent exhibition and thus amidst the 19th century cast iron items, Kurka’s works effectuate a deliberate break. The comparison between the contemporary sculptures and the 19th century portraits ensures confrontation with the spirit of the time, prevailing taste and social developments in the past and the present.