Artists experience the Lower Oder Valley National Park.
Theme: SCHWEMMLAND.

Participants: Inga Carrière (DE) Simone Distler (DE), Julia Gutkina (R / DE), Tineke Hoogendam (NL), Susanne Hoppe (DE), Masuko Izo (JP / DE) Katarzyna Kowalska (PL) Simona Ledl (AU), Petra Lehnardt Olm (DE), Xue Liu (CN / DE) Ewa Moeller (DE), Klaus Muller (DE), Agnieszka Pakuła (PL), Cora Vries (NL).

Kunstverein Schwedt / Oder e.V. is organising the symposium for the fourteenth year in a row, in cooperation with long-standing partners.
The theme chosen for this year’s international meeting of artists is “alluvial soil”. For 27 years the main theme and concern of our event has been the artistic exploration of the unique beauty of the landscape in the Lower Oder Valley National Park, in the immediate surroundings and around the city of Schwedt/Oder, which is also an important industrial location.

For thousands of years the Oder River has been flowing slowly towards the sea. It is the last stage on a long journey, from its source in the mountains, through the wide landscapes of Poland, later as a border river, before the valley opens up and its waters pour into the Oder Lagoon. In the Lower Oder Valley, which gave its name to our national park, the Oder has only a slight slope. The floodplain valley is dependent on the river, which supplies it with water and constantly changes its appearance. The land by the river is itself an element of this river. Old, meandering branches have been cut off from the main course and now form special biotopes in polder areas. It is easy to recognise places where the river has thrown material ashore during periods of flooding. The artists are to trace these landscape elements and represent them in their art, question them and interpret them in their works. Finally, during the exhibition visitors can interact with the artists through talks and artworks.

On 16.07.2018. The Kunstverein will welcome artists from Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, China, Austria and Japan. For 2 weeks, Galerie am Kietz will again be their home and workspace.
For the opening ceremony at Galeriehof Kunstverein Schwedt eV, we have invited the mayor of the city and symposium patron Juergen Polzehl, the director of Nationalpark Unteres Odertal – Dirk Treichel – and all interested guests.

One of the objectives of the symposium is to bring together artists working in different techniques, to establish contacts and to promote their work in the local community. We work mainly with painters and graphics, but experimental art is also welcome. The gallery also offers printmaking workshops for etching, lithography and typography. Selected artworks created during the symposium will be displayed in an exhibition that will run until the end of August 2018. In addition, a catalogue with the works created during the symposium will be published at the end of the year.

Photo: private archives of the artist and the organizer’s website

information about the event on kunstverein-schwedt.de