U2 (Schmetterling weiß) – Gregor Hildebrandt

Product detailed description

The limited edition of prints U2 (Schmetterling schwarz and Schmetterling weiß) is a continuation of the successful edition created for the exhibition A Blink of an Eye and the Years are Behind Us of Gregor Hildebrandt for Kunsthalle Praha in 2022. Both motifs are based on monumental collages inspired by the glass reliefs at the Mendelssohn-Bartholdy-Park subway station in Berlin. The butterfly motif appears here in both positive and negative forms, reflecting the artist’s long-standing interest in repetition, presence, and absence.

Gregor Hildebrandt is one of those artists who have long been bridging the gap between the visual arts and music. In his work, he uses audio tapes, videotapes, and vinyl records as full-fledged artistic materials. For the series Worte ohne Lieder, he recorded compositions from Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy’s Lieder ohne Worte onto audio tapes and subsequently used them as a basis for creating paintings. The recorded music thus becomes part of the paintings’ surface.

The distinctive “rip-off” technique that Hildebrandt has been developing since the beginning of his career involves applying a piece of audio tape to the canvas and then removing it. On one side of the painting, a faint imprint of the original material remains; on the other, the audio tape itself. This creates a dialogue between positive and negative, presence and absence, image and sound –⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ themes that permeate his entire body of work.

Both designs were released as archival Giclée prints in a limited edition of 25 copies each. Each print is numbered and signed by the artist.They are collectible prints that convey the poetics of Hildebrandt’s work with music, memory, and materials in an intimate format, while also directly tying in with his exhibition at Kunsthalle Praha. 

With each print, you will also receive a copy of the exhibition catalogue Gregor Hildebrandt: A Blink of an Eye and the Years are Behind Us signed by the artist. 

Gregor Hildebrandt

Gregor Hildebrandt (*1974) is one of Germany’s leading contemporary artists. In his work, he has long explored the relationship between image, sound, and memory through unconventional materials such as audio tapes, videotapes, and vinyl records.

His distinctive approach to working with found sound media transforms the ephemeral recording of music into a tangible image. Thanks to his iconic “rip-off” technique, he creates works that oscillate between presence and absence, materiality and memory. Hildebrandt’s work is represented in leading international collections and is regularly exhibited at institutions across Europe and around the world.