Plastic, which today is almost synonymous with garbage, was a sign of a new way of life in the fifties and sixties. It was these cheap and highly malleable synthetics that set the younger generation apart themselves from the older generation, who were still fascinated by virgin materials such as wood and cowhide. Just like the Chinese in the seventies and eighties preferred "really good" to pure cotton. The art world was similarly hit by plastic, with Andy Warhol (1928-1987) saying, "Everyone is plastic, I love plastic, and I want to be plastic." Thus, Pop Art entered a "plastic age". Plastics represent material progress, the democratization of consumerism, and even the spirit of utopia, and today they are a threat to the human environment and a lingering nightmare.
As soon as I entered the hall gate, I saw two plastic figures flying in the air, as if celebrating the victory of plastics.
The Cup-within-a-Cup is a large teacup and saucer stacked with many small teacups and saucers by the German installation artist Thomas Bayrle (1937-). He is a professor at the Staddell Academy of Art in Frankfurt and often draws his painting subjects from the world of consumer goods. Created in 1969, this work reflects Pop Art's passion for new materials, as well as its fascination with everyday culture.
The skull-like collage is titled The Ranger and was created in 1967 by American pop artist James Rosenquist (1933-2017). He collages pieces of plastic in different colors onto a large mylar curtain, broadening the use of materials and methods in his artistic practice.
What is it about plastic that really fascinates the material? Is it delicate, soft or transparent? Or is it the flamboyance and variety of colors? The smoothness of the plastic in its new state shows purity, innocence and cleanliness.
Italian artist Gino Marotta (1935-2012) assembled an Artificial Garden of Eden from acrylic materials in an attempt to explore the relationship between nature and artificiality. He deliberately emphasizes the modularity of modern society in this toy-like stitching approach, and the transparent acrylic material evokes a sterile environment, while at the same time having a playful lightness.
Bright hues and a splash of colour are another feature of plastic. Berta Fischer (1973-) makes good use of this feature in Nironimox, a contemporary German artist (I couldn't find a suitable translation, so I guess I would translate it as "nylon ugly fish"). Berta Fisher is fond of making modern sculptures from materials such as acrylic and organic fibers, which she dyes in a variety of fluorescent colors such as red, yellow, blue, green and purple, and delicately cuts, folds and bends them to a fantastical effect, reflecting a strange brilliance in the light of the lamp. This art form is known as filigree sculpture (filigrane skulpturen).
At the end of the exhibition hall there is a huge space of 160 square meters, which is reserved for only one work, "Anemone: Air Aquarium". Stepping into it is like entering an underwater world, where ten large red or transparent sea anemones dance in the air, making people feel a poetic interest. The work was designed by German artist Otto Piene (1928-2014) for an exhibition in New York in 1976. Due to the aging of plastic materials, what is now seen is remade according to the original design. The process itself has led to a deeper understanding of the durability of plastics as a material. **10,000 Fans Incentive Plan