Galerie Fenna Wehlau - Dieter Kränzlein

Dieter Kränzlein Stone sculptures – plain and powerful   Today´s world is dominated by the far clutching effects of digitization on nearly all aspects of life, where human perception operates merely in real time, in a swift paced society marked by a lack of concentration and the inability to reflect. The sculptor Dieter Kränzlein exercises a skill that is, figuratively speaking, as old as the hills. In the Stone Age, the earliest epoch of human history, tools of stone i.e. flints were being crafted. Already in ancient times outstanding works of art were evolving, such as the 11-centimeter limestone sculpture “Venus of Willendorf” of the early Paleolithic period (about 40,000 BC). From the Stone Age arose the Iron Age, which was then followed by the Bronze Age etc. For eons humans have continuously incorporated new materials and techniques. And so in the era of the 3D printer traditional stone carving may at first seem anachronistic: Why take days, weeks or even months to chisel away at a block of stone, at the same time, taking in all that sweat, dust and noise of such an operation, when a three-dimensional form, designed by a computer, can be formed at the click of a mouse? Grappling with such hard matter creates a connection that is self-evident even unto the viewer. Sculpturing stone calls for technical skill, fortitude and concentration. Working a stone indeed takes both time and patience. In this regard Dieter Kränzlein acts counter-cyclically to the ever accelerating pace of life. Under his guiding hand timeless forms emerge which captivate with their unpretentious simplicity. Dematerialization of the stone Dieter Kränzlein has worked primarily with Norwegian marble and Mooser limestone, out of which he´s hewn freestanding sculptures and wall reliefs. His works of art exhibits upmost reduction and clarity of form. The geometric angularity of earlier pieces has given way to increasingly softer and rounded forms. His terse, meditative form language is finely tuned to the dynamic surface design of his work - which the artist daringly sculpts using an angle grinder. Gashes on the stone´s exterior serve no more than to enlivened and disperse any would-be impression of static or heavy-weighted density. Thus, the line-work in Kränzlein´s grinded drawing gives the stone rhythm and movement. His hatching creates both regular and irregular grid patterns – filigree textures that appear borrowed from nature. Both artistic signature and material property merge to fashion the final expression of any one work. As the artist notes, each rock type has its own distinct property: Marble is crystalline and its tiny cleavage faces reflect light when played in the sun, while limestone with its iron packed inclusions is fragile and porous. The innate rock texture inherent of several works is accentuated with a monochromatic color scheme. Estrangement effects make use of color applications quite foreign to the stone – virtually amounting to a taboo break. Painted sculptures common to wood sculpture, are rare in contemporary, particularly non-figurative stone sculpture. Dieter Kränzlein not only gives his sculptures a paint coat, but downright soaks it with paint, i.e. he lets the color penetrate the surface. Up to now Kränzlein has employed mainly achromatic grays and black. Now with the application of red, yellow, green and blue color, the unabashed natural exuberance of his work is lessened. Nevertheless, as monochromatic reductions suspended in space they go on to ensure a symbolic quality, whose presence is awarded additional substance in having it set off against the object´s weight. The ongoing dematerialization of his stone is further assisted by a novel work method: Kränzlein casts inversed forms from his original stone sculptures using a negative mold, which, in the end, is poured out with synthetic resin. His resin casts are not only light-weight, but slightly translucent. Sensuality of the surface Although the artist´s reduced, symbolic colors and forms are capable of revealing themselves from a distance the feel of the surface can only be comprehended up close. At close-range, the viewer will not only realize the (analog) aura of the unique, but will also be able to feel the inherent time contained within the stone – having nothing to do with the enormous age of the stone – but to feel those countless days and weeks that went into its making, and the artist´s upmost devotion in transforming the stone into a work of art. Dieter Kränzlein understands how to penetrate the essence of the stone and extract its meaning. His work poses a quiet, settling charisma. It brings the viewer to the here and now, for the most part, because his art appeals so much to our sense of touch. Because the digital world focuses primarily on the visual and the auditory sense, tactile sensuality and literal comprehension of our world have largely gone lost in our daily lives. The legacy of this Bietigheim-Bissingen residing artist not only includes three-dimensional, free-standing sculptures and relief-like wall objects, but also printed monotypes, which he pulls directly off the worked stone. Binder and pigment, mixed with stone dust, track the eroding stone and more so, its eventual disappearance. Although each print is unique, Kränzlein´s monotypes typically occur in series. Whether monotypes or sculptural creations - the sensuous nature of the sculpted material proclaims its very existence (Dasein), without diverting from the other temporal dimensions in his work.   Lucia Angela Cavegn