KW Institute for Contemporary Art: Fire and Forget. On ViolenceThe new exhibition at Berlin’s KW Institute for Contemporary Art is definitely a must-see. Its title “Fire and Forget” is borrowed from military jargon that describes weapon systems that are triggered at a safe range from the enemy, and can reach their target independently. The group show, curated by Ellen Blumenstein and Daniel Tyradellis, uses the phrase as an entrance point for an examination of current ideas of war and violence in contemporary art, bringing together an extraordinarily diverse panorama of works by artists such as Marina Abramović and Ulay, Ron Amir, Julius von Bismarck, Luis Camnitzer, Mircea Cantor, HARUN FAROCKI, Omer Fast, Damien Hirst, Barbara Kruger, Kris Martin, Pipilotti Rist, Martha Rosler, Santiago Sierra, Tal R, and many others.The exhibition is accompanied by an event and educational program. On view through August 30, 2015 Contemporary Fine Arts: Sammlung F. C. GundlachIn its new group show, Contemporary Fine Arts presents works by Werner Büttner, Günther Förg, Georg Herold, Hubert Kiecol, Jürgen Klauke, Martin Kippenberger, Meuser, Albert Oehlen, Sigmar Polke, and Franz West from the collection of German photographer legend F.C. Gundlach.Gundlach, who began his practice in the 1950s and has since become one of Germany’s most prolific photographers, is known today also for his superb collection of not only of photography but also of contemporary art experimenting with the medium. Interested in the anarchic, cross-disciplinary approach of artists such as Polke, West, Oehlen and Co — most of whom have long since entered the canon of contemporary art — Gundlach began collecting their work in the 1970s. While his primary interest initially was directed at experiments with photography, he later also acquired their non photographic works. The show at CFA brings together both, presenting for the first time a dialogue of photographic works and paintings and sculptures by the artists named above. A great chance to get to know the collection and its history before its restructuring: Gundlach, now 90, is planning to part with a section of the collection in the near future.On view through August 1, 2015Deutsche Bank KunstHalle: Checkpoint California Villa Aurora, German novelist Lion Feuchtwanger’s former home in the hills of Santa Monica, is celebrating its 20th anniversary as an artists residence this year with an exhibition at the Deutsche Bank KunstHalle. Next to the display of works by nine former Villa Aurora fellows (Nairy Baghramian, Rosa Barba, Peggy Buth, SABINE HORNIG, Christian Jankowski, Michael Just, Philipp Lachenmann, Albrecht Schäfer, and Thomas Struth), other former fellows have developed a comprehensive program consisting of film, music, readings, and talks that explores how California as a place as well as an ideal, has inspired unique and extraordinary artworks over the past 20 years.On view through June 28, 2015Galerie Carlier | Gebauer: Dor GuezIn his third solo show with Carlier | Gebauer, Jaffa-based artist Dor Guez presents works from the first part of his ongoing series “The Sick Man of Europe,” a five-part project that examines the military history of the Middle East through the lives and creative practices of individual soldiers. “The Painter,” as the first section is titled, was recently presented at ICA London and Villa Stuck Museum in Munich, and tells the story of D. Guez, a Jewish Tunisian painter-turned-soldier who immigrated to Israel, and was conscripted into the army in 1973 to fight in the Yom Kippur War. In his Berlin show, Guez presents a series of “scanograms” that relate to 13 paintings made by D.Guez during the war. By applying a radiography technique usually used for diagnosis in the medical sector, Guez explores the individual paintings’ constitutions and materiality, thus also reflecting on the conditions and the context they were created in.On view through August 1, 2015Tchoban Foundation Museum for Architectural Drawing: American Perspectives: from Classic to Contemporary The hand-drawn worlds of prominent American architects and architectural draftsmen of the 2oth and 21st centuries are the topic of the new survey at the Tchoban Foundation Museum for Architectural Drawing. Featuring works by master architects such as Frank Lloyd Wright, Richard Neutra, and Lebbeus Woods, as well as drawings by draftsmen like Hugh Ferriss and Achilles Rizzoli, the show highlights the extraordinary quality of architectural drawings in the United States especially in the beginning of the 20th century. The exhibition also pays tribute to the achievements of the American Society of Architectural Perspectivists (today the American Society of Architectural Illustrators ASAI) and its annual Hugh Ferriss Memorial Prize for Architectural Drawing by presenting works by contemporary architectural draftsmen, including Thomas Schaller, Paul Stevenson Oles and Gilbert Gorski. Also on view are works by Richard Ferrier, Steven Quevedo, James Wines, Scott Tulay, Gary Schuberth, and Michael Sorkin.On view from June 20-September 20, 2015
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