Reality (Old Katzler's House) 2013

Editor: Alfred Freddy Krupa's 2013 mixed-media work, "Reality (Old Katzler's House)," it's got such a melancholic feel to it. The dilapidated facade is intensely textural, there is an actual old, weathered building as part of it... almost painfully so. What stands out to you when you look at it? Curator: You know, it reminds me of those childhood haunts you're drawn to even when they're falling apart - a strangely compelling beauty. The work seems to explore layers, literally. Physical decay and societal memory, maybe even trauma, peeking through in the graffiti and the swastika... Have you thought about site-specific art's relationship to history? Editor: That's deep! So, you're saying the site itself—this specific building—is like another layer of meaning in the artwork? How much does context influence what is being appropriated from what exists, versus its relationship to fine art? Curator: Precisely. Krupa invites us to ponder this urban palimpsest, to use that loaded term. What does it mean to photograph, and include in art, a location that is covered with controversial symbols and text from our present moment? Appropriation becomes a mirror reflecting our own biases and historical blind spots, right? Editor: Okay, I’m seeing that so clearly. Using graffiti in the work of art adds a gritty truth! Like it's peeling back the layers of comfortable perception. Thanks. Curator: Yes, exactly! It makes you wonder about the truth behind the facade, behind every facade, not just this one in particular. And it allows us to engage art that doesn't make excuses, doesn't hide, and is raw, real, visceral. That’s always my kind of art.