Eugen Gomringer: Unikate und Editionen.
Edizioni Conz Raum
Jan 15–Feb 16, 2019
Exhibition view “Eugen Gomringer (Unikate und Editionen)”, Photos by Giorgia Palmisano
Exhibition view “Eugen Gomringer (Unikate und Editionen)”, Photos by Giorgia Palmisano

Archivio Conz and Outset Germany_Switzerland presented Edizioni Conz at KW Berlin on January 15, 2019, with a selection of works and editions that focus of a series of exhibitions to make the extraordinary oeuvre of Francesco Conz accessible to the general public.

The first exhibition will present select editions and unique works by one of the fathers of Concrete Poetry, Eugen Gomringer. Eugene Gomringer (b. 1925 in Cachuela, Bolivia, lives and works in Bamberg, Germany) is a poet and literary critic regarded as the father of concrete poetry in Europe. Gomringer’s concrete poetry demonstrated a reduction of language in an age of communication overload. His compositions are concise and memorable, presented as an independent universe, an object. Parallel to intensified activity as a literary critic, Gomringer published substantial collections of his compositions, including Worte sind schatten, Die Konstellationen 1951–1968 (1968). Poems such as “Wind,” “Ping Pong,” and the paradigmatic “Schweigen,” are the focus of the series of editions on cloth published in collaboration with Francesco Conz in 1990. In these cases, the meaning of the single word is evoked by its repetition in the textual space and the resulting reading action. Gomringer was honored with the Cultural Prize of the City of Rehau, where he also founded the Institute for Constructive Art and Concrete Poetry in 2000. In 2022, he received the Pro meritis scientiae et litterarum lifetime achievement award from the state of Bavaria.

In collaboration with Archivio Conz, art was publicly exhibited for the first time in the premises of Outset Germany_Switzerland, emphasizing Outset’s role as a constant and committed partner in contemporary art and culture. Since its founding as a non-profit organization in London in 2003 by Candida Gertler and Yana Peel, Outset has promoted contemporary art, artists, and cultural institutions worldwide. Outset is unique in this mediating role: there is no comparable organisation that passes on both private and institutional funds to the recipients without any deductions, thus enabling new art to be purchased or created for the general public.

Outset is supported by its member patrons from nine countries dedicated private sponsors, companies, and other cooperation partners. A profound desire to promote art and culture without expecting anything in return is what they all have in common. Moving between traditional classical patronage and innovative modern sponsoring, Outset supports large international museums as well as small public collections and individual exhibitions all over the world. Since its foundation, Outset has supported more than 160 artists and 80 institutions worldwide with over ten million euros. Outset is recognised for creating influential models of responsive arts philanthropy with its innovative public-private schemes and initiatives. Practicing catalytic philanthropy means not only offering crucial funding support but also activating networks and initiating new relationships and partnerships.