Counter Monuments (Escher, de Pury, Merian)

Kunstmuseum Olten, 2021

The ephemeral Counter monuments dissolve over the course of the exhibition, as the material begins to decompose in the air after some time. With the choice of the controversial monuments replicated en miniature (monuments to Alfred Escher, David de Pury and Christoph Merian in Zurich, Neuchâtel and Basel) Utzni reflects the current debates on the worthiness of monuments to be remembered and preserved.

His symbolic "monument toppling" refers to the discussion about who deserves which monuments and how we deal with them today. Instead of tearing down the monuments from their pedestals or preserving them the small sculptures make a different, holistic proposal: The monuments dissolve very slowly, so that the viewers inhale small particles of them. Together, they "metabolise" the monuments, so to speak, and thus allow something new to emerge. At the same time, this process raises the question of the extent to which we today, as exponents of certain communities, participate in the legacy of the past.

Sebastian Utzni
Counter Monuments (Escher, de Pury, Merian)

http://www.sebastianutzni.com/cms/files/projects/counter-monuments-escher-de-pury-merian/ec8c7410-ed4a-493c-a121-690b5dcf3fc9.jpeg

Counter Monuments (Escher, de Pury, Merian), 2021, Screenprint, Cyclododecan, 8 x 5 x 3 cm each

http://www.sebastianutzni.com/cms/files/projects/counter-monuments-escher-de-pury-merian/e34f11c6-d313-4caf-9424-2b3fd660d1ab.jpeg

Counter Monuments (Escher, de Pury, Merian), 2021, Screenprint, Cyclododecan, 8 x 5 x 3 cm each

http://www.sebastianutzni.com/cms/files/projects/counter-monuments-escher-de-pury-merian/3a896116-2f56-4c46-94bc-f7a17fac521d.jpeg

Counter Monuments (Escher, de Pury, Merian), 2021, Screenprint, Cyclododecan, 8 x 5 x 3 cm each

http://www.sebastianutzni.com/cms/files/projects/counter-monuments-escher-de-pury-merian/b4997d41-b474-4cdd-93e1-fe98ed0b472b.jpeg

Counter Monuments (Escher, de Pury, Merian), 2021, Screenprint, Cyclododecan, 8 x 5 x 3 cm each

http://www.sebastianutzni.com/cms/files/projects/counter-monuments-escher-de-pury-merian/eaaee141-be83-4bd1-9def-65006fa7f4cb.jpeg

Counter Monuments (Escher, de Pury, Merian), 2021, Screenprint, Cyclododecan, 8 x 5 x 3 cm each