Spatenprobe

An upcoming trip to the field for the event is planned with precision. It is a barn where the equipment is stored and prepared. It is workshops where we conceive our devices. Before the area is worked on, it must be measured. Its size must correspond to the project. The machine will help us. We will be satisfied.

BLOOM is pleased to present a solo exhibition by Berlin-based artist Ivan Geddert. The exhibition brings together a selection of new sculptural works. The title *Spatenprobe* (spade test) refers to the field of agriculture. As a simple method of soil analysis, the spade test provides immediate insight into the nature of the soil: A piece of soil is dug out, lifted, and examined for its quality. At the same time, the title addresses the underground location of the exhibition space. Its walls dig into the earth and hold back the surrounding earth. The exhibition space thus appears as a kind of underground capsule.

Ivan Geddert explores the connections between physicality and mechanical processes. His interest lies in physical labor as well as psychological states and the interdependencies that arise from the interplay of mechanical and natural forces. Like machines, Geddert’s works consist of several interconnected components. The moving appendages evoke human limbs while simultaneously alluding to function and action. The frequent use of natural materials lends Geddert’s sculptures an organic, living appearance. This is contrasted by fragments of steel and wire. The various materials and forms do not stand side by side in isolation, but are related to one another through complex mechanisms. Connections between individual “limbs,” such as the “head” and the “body”, do not appear free, but rather limited and trapped within themselves. Through these mechanical constraints, an image emerges of an inner state of a psychological dimension. Fixations create a snapshot of a tense standstill. Within this rigidity, a space of resonance opens up between mechanics and the body, dependence and resistance, function and vulnerability, between the visible and what can only be surmised.

Irene Bretscher