16 May through 30 July: Viktor & Rolf (NL), Purple Institute – (Olivier Zahm and Katja Rahlwes (F)).
‘Standort Berlin – Places to stay # 3f’ formed a new episode of the exhibition project at BüroFriedrich. Already present in earlier episodes, the focus of this part was fully concentrated on f = ‘Fashion’ – new links between art and fashion.
The artists/designers Viktor & Rolf from Amsterdam, performing as stage designers, used BüroFriedrich as the location for a sinister and, at the same time, hilarious play on labels and fashion. Transformed into a promotional boutique, their logo dominated the (showcase) windows and hundreds of black balloons in the exhibition. A video projection of their latest fashion show underlaid with a soundtrack of a hysterically cheering crowd was combined with a billboard displaying a self-portrait of Viktor & Rolf presenting their own latest creation in the vicinity of Friedrichstraße. The billboard made for this presentation showed the artists wearing their proposal for a cross-gender haute couture.
This presentation merged with a choice of 17 videotapes viewed simultaneously, curated by
Olivier Zahm, founder of the Purple Institute and editor of the Paris-based artists’ magazine,
‘Purple,’ together with Katja Rahlwes. As a kind of video magazine, the tapes focussed on the
overlapping aspects between art and fashion. In the form of a catwalk, the videos were
presented on monitors in a strict line-up, allowing the visitors to perform a passage between
the different statements. Performance videos were presented as well as artists’ documentations
of fashion ‘defiles’: Hussein Chalayan, Comme des Garçons, Martin Margiela, Kostas
Murkudis were shown with their recent collections. ‘Dynastie’ by Antek Walczak,
performance work by Sarah Schwarz and Giasco Bertoli and a video statement by Tomato
installed next to each other in a non-hierarchical set-up proposed a shared laboratory of
working and thinking on contemporary lifestyle.