20 Aug 2010

Mikkel Carl at Kopenhagen Contemporary

For Kopenhagen Contemporary – an annual event highlighting the art scene of Copenhagen, and this time focusing mainly on performativity – young Danish artist Mikkel Carl has produced his public work IN OUT.

For the duration of the weekend he provides MONTBLANC – a large-scale pavilion made from 10 readily available camping tents. The tents have been subjected to an alteration, endowing them with substantial combinatorial possibilities. By use of his applied Velcro system a number of different pavilions may be assembled. For this occasion a single crystalline structure is chosen. Originally the tripartite shape of each tent corresponded to the inside sleeping cabins, but as these implements of individuation are removed the joined tents form a labyrinthine space, public yet ludic and intimate.

To support dialogue in a manner rather tangible Mikkel Carl has furnished the pavilion with WASSILY, a modified version of Bauhaus architect Marcel Breuer's iconic chair. The new materials – nylon and galvanized steel – make it well suited for outdoor use. Furthermore, being produced as a self-assembly kit the chair can be put together or taken apart at will, anytime and anywhere. Hence a strange adaptability has been bestowed upon this arch modern piece of furniture.

Previously functioning as Carlsberg's distribution station the place of exhibition was only last year transformed into a most progressive gallery area. By now such cultural revaluation of industrial terrain vague is a well-known tool deployed in monetized city planning. By the means of appropriation MONTBLANC and WASSILY are based in a similar schism of cheap labour seriality and artistic intentionality, and so the architectural complexity of the IN OUT installation reflects the nature on site.