Situation (collaboration with Jonathan Meese) 2003

Editor: So, this is "Situation," a mixed-media piece from 2003, created by Albert Oehlen in collaboration with Jonathan Meese. It's certainly... striking! I'm really caught by the figure and how abstract and figurative elements clash here. What do you see in this piece, especially given the unusual collaboration? Curator: The immediate thing I consider are the implications of co-authorship itself, challenging the myth of the singular artistic genius. Think about the physical act: which artist handled which part of the canvas, and how did their individual approaches to materiality, such as the oil paint and other media, intersect and possibly clash? The female form seems like it’s pieced together, or constructed—does that tell us about their process of negotiation? Editor: That's a fascinating point! I hadn’t thought about the actual making of the artwork as a negotiation. Does the almost collage-like construction reflect a fragmented understanding of the body? Curator: Precisely! The work reveals an intense focus on production. The choice of mixed media – are these high art materials, or items found and repurposed? It breaks the boundaries of "high art." Also consider its display in a gallery— how does it commodify female sexuality, and what statements are being made about display as a form of consumption? Editor: It feels almost… raw, less polished than some of Oehlen's other works I've seen. Is that rawness deliberate, pushing back against established conventions? Curator: Yes, and further examine the materials used to evoke the raw sensation that you mentioned. Oehlen’s methods expose the underbelly of artistic production, rejecting notions of taste in favor of an authentic, perhaps even uncomfortably honest statement about how the painting was manufactured from its various resources and social context. Editor: This collaboration makes me reconsider my view of artistic production, I hadn't deeply reflected on what's truly valued. Curator: It forces you to reassess conventional narratives of creativity and labour itself.