Image courtesy of Renate Shweizer

Interview: Renate Schweizer

Director Luca Curci‘s conversation with artist Renate Schweizer about her concept of art and her experience during Pixels of Identities – Spain.

Renate Schweizer is an intermodal artist (video, photography, installations, performing) and paper artist (masks, figures, objects, installations), born in Kirchheim/Teck, Germany, living in Karlsruhe since 1993, Germany. She has a Bachelor & Master study and certificated advanced graduate studies at Art-Institute of Boston At Les. Scholarship for outstanding students, Markelstiftung – Robert Bosch, International scholarship of the ministry of education and the art, NRW; National & international exhibitions & performances in France, Hongkong, South Corea, Italy, Switzerland, Netherland, Romania, Russia, USA, India, Poland, Israel, Australia, etc; Member of international association of art (UNESCO); international association of paper artists and papermakers (iapma). Prices and mentions: 2010 Nomination Saint Leopold peace prize in 2010; 2009 1-price “adoptive country” project of ZKM and HfG Karlsruhe; 2007 internationally award for kind & culture “Lorenzo il Magnifico” in the area Sculpture / installation, Florence, Italy; 2006 nomination design price – honorable mention, design museum, Davis, Californien; 2002 honorable mention active for tolerance and human rights, Berlin

Image courtesy of Renate Shweizer

Luca Curci – When did you start practicing art and why?

Renate Schweizer – I started practicing with making art already in my childhood. Intermodal acting with drawing, painting, sculpturing, performing, making music, writing, playing with puppet theatre and with masks… That are the artistic tools of expression myself being in dialog with the inner – and outer world

Image courtesy of Renate Shweizer

L. C. – Can you talk about your artistic work? Which are your inspirations?

R. S. – Each of my art- work is autonomous and stands by itself however, at the same time its in RELATION with me as the art-creator. I see artistic working as a CHALLENGE, to experience with opposites like dark and light, friendly and angry, good and bad, heaven and hell, and to deal with all CONTRASTS (OPPOSITIONS) and to communicate with it. I see artistic work as an engaged art. The function of the art in itself has to show not only pictures but also to present aesthetic, social and socio-political engagement. My challenge as an artist is – how Paolo Bianhi says, \”the art practise which gets going processes and trials, artistic experiments, arts as experimental research and art practise. Therefore, art means communication, the connection between ME and YOU and US, the forming \”Wirwelt \” by work – observer & artist. My work is stamped by the, longing for the other(different)“ and the „identity in the longing“. I understand my works as “a mirror” – mirror as the creator of my I. And „I is another one“, Jaques Lacan. We are mirrors without any end… I

Image courtesy of Renate Shweizer

L. C. – What are you currently working on? 

R. S. – Currently I have started to work in arts with insane elderly people, researching their worlds, unscramble and decode their expressions-bringing signs of inner and outer reactions together in a new artistic framework… I am dealing with the question: how can arts become a bridge between here and there, me and you, normal world and insanity world, and how do we become a “We” in that different ways of worlds. Therefore I am working with intermodal arts, music, and video.

L. C. – What was the best advice given to you as an artist?

R. S. – The best advice to me was “less is more” 1976, Helga Brehme, artist, Theater am Faden, Stuttgart, to experience the “Community Art”, 1982 of Prof. Dr. h.c. Paolo J. Knill, Phd, and “Art is always best when it serves a social healing” by Edith Kramer 

Image courtesy of Renate Shweizer

L. C. – What is art for you?

R. S. – For me “Art is the highest form of hope” like Gerhard Richter says. Art is sensor and temporary mirror for what’s going on in the Word. Art is language with its own words, it’s always surprise, it’s phenomenal. Daily working in arts is an essential inner need. The highest of all the arts is the arts of Love, Beauty, and Truth. 

L. C. – What do you think about International ArtExpo organization?

R. S. – The Organization of International ArtExpo is dealing with intercultural spirit and offering temporary questions where artists from all over the world can take positions and go in international dialog.

Image courtesy of Renate Shweizer

L. C. – Do you think International ArtExpo organization can represent an opportunity for artists?

R. S. – It’s my first experience and exhibition with ArtExpo. I am looking forward to see how this opportunity will develop and shape. To go into interglobal dialog with contemporary artists worldwide it’s a very need in this times where political chaos, war and destruction is doing to destroy humanity in lots of places, countries and even at last our planet. ArtExpo can bring together artists from all over the world, so it can become a place, where different cultures and opinions start to begin artistic dialogs and therefore an understanding each others cultures in a constructive accepting way.