Since summer 2005 the artist-book "on the occasion of an exhibition of Andreas M. Kaufmann at
Bunkier Sztuki Krakow 2002" is officially available.
This book and its process of creation have been always considered as something alive, with several
stages. Being published, it has gone already through several phases of its existence:
it has got a sort of own biography! Before being published the book has manifested
itself in public
two times: in the exhibition curated by Maria Anna Potocka "100%" at Bunkier
Sztuki Krakow (2002) and in at the exhibition: "Claude Leveque, Andreas M. Kaufmann, Dan Graham:
Palais des arts - Present Distance" (Curator: Lydia Hempel / Site: "Palais im großen Garten",
Dresden (2005). This biographical process will hopefully go on in the heads of the viewers / readers,
in form of texts about, book-presentations, new projects triggered by, etc.
The artist Andreas M. Kaufmann, who initiated this project, which
has become the book "On the occasion of an exhibition of Andreas
M. Kaufmann at Bunkier Sztuki Krakow 2002" considers himself
in this case as key player who just has asked over 100 pretty different
people worldwide for a reaction towards a selection of public accessible
images, all collected by him. He reduced his role to deal with the
authors, to organize the received materials and to write eventually
the editorial"After All" which gives clues, what the book
is all about.
It is a collaborative and nonprofit book project with 101 contributions
– most of them made exclusively for this publication and all
by different authors, such as architects, designers, filmmakers,
artists, critics and curators etc from all over the world.
The book opens up to the outside by referring and linking itself to other media. It follows
issues that are situated in the complex field of the "local" and "global" and asks for the collective
memory/memories questioning if there can be a copyright on them.
Being rather organized like a film-story-board, it subversively
undermine of what one would generally expect from a book: In the
main part of the Book all contributions are displayed in the original
language they had been submitted; and the names of the respective
authors as a rule can only be found in in the second part of this
book called "references" unless the contribution is a
letter for which sender and receiver are constitutional. Here however
one may find most translations, names and biographies of the respective
authors, additional information, etc. All texts have been translated
into Polish and English.
Last but not least the book is also to be understood as an object
that wants to be used!
© Andreas M. Kaufmann