The new research field “plant neurobiology” deals with the perception of plants, their reaction to signals, and their communication. Merlin Reichart’s (*1991 in Munich, Germany) “Motion-Detector-Tree” appears like a Terminator of the plant world, with branches made of steel and motion detectors instead of leaves, originating from a dystopian world. If you step closer, the tree starts to tick. The more people stand in front of the tree, the more the ticking becomes a constant noise. It seems as if the tree wants to point out that it perceives us just as we perceive it—a memento mori in times of climate change.
Exhibitions and art fairs
2024:
– Touching grass is not enough, Kunstverein Gastgarten e.V., Hamburg, Germany
– Place to be, Kunstlabor 2, Munich, Germany
2023:
– #OrangeTheWorld, Gallery Kellermann, Düsseldorf, Germany
– Academy Selection, Gallery Kellermann, Düsseldorf, Germany
– Positions Berlin Art Fair, Gallery Kellermann, Berlin, Germany
2022:
– Die Alltäglichkeit des Untergangs, Graduate Exhibition, Gallery of the HfBK Hamburg, Germany
– Self & Purpose, ICAT Hamburg, Germany
– No Escape Room, MS Stubnitz, Hamburg, Germany
2021:
– Permanent exhibition, Kunstlabor 2, Munich, Germany
– Conditions of a Necessety, Kunsthalle Baden-Baden, Germany
– And Now, Baumwollspinnerei, Leipzig, Germany
– The Digital, Weltkunstzimmer, Düsseldorf, Germany
– Lift on Lift off, Mundhalle, Hamburg, Germany
2020:
– Always Together-Mostly Happy, Godsbanen, Aarhus, Denmark
2019:
– Art Berlin, Galerie Conradi, Berlin, Germany
– Hiscox Art Prize, HfBK Hamburg, Germany
2018:
– SKIP INTRO, Golden Pudel Club, Hamburg, Germany
Scholarships
2020:
– Erasmus scholarship and exchange semester ERG, Brussels, Berlgium
Merlin Reichart (*1991) studied design, painting and time-based media at the HFBK Hamburg and graduated with a Master of Fine Arts in summer 2022. In his art, he processes observations of current dynamics in our society and thus gives the “collective unconscious” its own and intuitive form.
Using industrial materials such as metal, concrete or plastic, he creates multimedia wall objects, sculptures and installations. These are often enhanced by interactivity or time-based elements. These deal with the following themes, among others: the relationship between culture and nature, as well as with technology, capitalism, internet culture, climate change and the mentality in times of infinite crisis.
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