LEFTOVERS
Participation at Urban Art 2021 in Forst
mural, painting, typography
I was invited to participate in the 18th edition of Urban Art Exhibition at the 2021 venue: The Gründer- und Traumfabrik in Forst. The topic of this year was: abandonment. In half a day I transformed a room in the former cloth and textile factory into a spatial experience.
The small town of Forst was once a proud textile metropolis. In 1920, every fifth person in Germany wore a suit made from Forster cloth. Around 1930 there were 169 family businesses involved in cloth manufacturing. Forst was affectionately called “German Manchester” at the time. Even in GDR times, the cloth business was still going well. The 3,000 employees of VEB Tuchfabriken Forst produced for C&A, among others. After the Wall came down, almost all companies closed shop and the large industrial buildings were left to decay. In the rooms on-site there are still wool scraps, spindles and textiles to be found. The organizers of Urban Art 2021 have managed to provide this great location.Thank you to the Gründer- und Traumfabrik GmbH who manages the property now.
When inspecting the location I came across this room and was immediately fascinated by it. Even though we explored some more, I only could think about this room. I previously had experimented with a self made roller that was perfect for mimicking the structures of the wool that was left behind.
I started off by writing the word LEFTOVERS onto the wall and constructed bales of wool around them. The structures leave the ground and start to spread onto the walls, changing one's perception of this room. When stepping towards the room it feels unmanipulated at first, but when entering it the visitor uncovers the artificial layer of painted wool structures.
Details
The catalogue documenting the 2021 edition of Urban Art Exhibition. Designed by the wonderful vorformat.