Johannes Rigal - Skulpturen

Why is this?

Not always can structures, found in the realm of urban spaces, be questioned about purpose or meaning directly.
More often than not, they raise questions and confound the viewer‘s mind. They are a tangible testimony of human
actions and interactions with the city.

These sculptures - readymades - archaeological findings not only entwine different objects that might otherwise not be
linked with each other, but they also show man’s conscious or unconscious shaping of his invironment. Some elements
of these sculptures are installed in the cityscape for technical, safety or planning purposes. Some relate to advertising or political issues. In any case if they have been altered, painted, sprayed, broken or destroyed or something was added.

Our focus shifts from a generic urban surrounding to a very specific part of it - the sculptures. They are extracted from their context through digital post production by cutting out and inserting a plain coloured background. The specific color of the background is determined by the chromacity of the sculptures In some images, the background seems to become foreground due to an expert removal of some parts of the sculpture itself. Some sculptures may still contain remnants of the surroundings while others become so abstracted that recognition may be difficult if not impossible.

Although a good deal of post processing is involved, the reduction process already begins at the moment of discovery and triggering the shutter. After having consciously chosen the perspective and envisaged the object, all that remains to be done is to free it from its undesired surroundings. This, on one hand, changes the function and existential reason of the sculpture and on the other hand, it also triggers a „making visible“, an emancipation from the unmanageable thicket of the urban.

The sculptures are often exposed to adverse weather conditions, urban cleaning and sweeping processes as well as to city dwellers who might use or abuse it. This creates a transient view of the urban environment, common but very unique.