Every now and then one should reconsider accustomed points of view by stepping back and aside to get an alternative and unprejudiced perspective onto the things and situations that we are confronted with. This advice applies to all circumstances we face in our life.
The same, simple approach to control one's own perception is adopted by a certain branch of artistic practice to reflect our everyday's reality.

The exhibition "-zoom+" presents works that not only analyze and question usual viewpoints. They also create a moment of uncertainty as far as the starting point of perception is concerned thereby irritating our perception in a subtle and subversive way. Among the employed artistic techniques are the intentional shift of perspectives, dimensions and proportions, the close up or zoom out, the interleaving of layers of perception as well as the stretching and compression of simple actions and processes in time. By these means a tension is created between the poles of recognition of familiar facts and the discovery of unexpected oddities that throws a new light onto everyday's objects and scenarios.

Je-Hun Choi and Julia Arztmann create an expansive, dynamic landscape at the Kuenstlerhaus Dortmund. The whole exhibition space that Choi covers with cardboard is included in the work; all its elements like walls, windows and radiators function as parts of the complete three dimensional picture.
This scenario is combined with Arztmann's tents made from colourful-patterned cloth. The small scale as well as the deformation of the objects leave the observer with an impression of an odd toy model camp site.

The new interweavement of simple everyday's objects in Hyun Kyoung Kims works creates a space for multifaceted associations.
The sculpture "A sunny day - the houses" confronts the observer with a scenario that seems to be very common at first sight: Linen hangs out of the windows to be aired. - Yet another association could be that the houses hang out their tongues in exhaustion.

The enlarged eye is following a tiny sphere that can be seen as a reflection in the pupil. What cannot be seen: The sphere is carried up and down by breathing air through a special toy. The anonymous person is thus directing the process of the observed movement by itself. A tension is created in the relation between the huge eye and the tiny sphere that leads to the question: What is at the core of the work - the image that can be observed or the process of observing itself? Observing an observation - a floating that is directly related to the observation - offers space for self-reflection about time and livelyness.

Markus Zimmermann's contribution to "-zoom+" is an installation consisting of a rack with so-called raree shows. More raree shows on the wall are framing the rack on both sides. A reading lamp is attached on either side of the rack. The observer is invited to pick a raree show from the rack or the wall, hold it under the lamp and look through the hole to discover a new world inside the box.

invitation card ©:
photographs ©: the artists, opening: Jens Sundheim
Concept: Elly Valk-Verheijen
Organisation: Elly Valk-Verheijen, Willi Otremba, Ulrich Weber

supported by: Sparkasse Dortmund, Kulturbüro der Stadt Dortmund