Günther Haese

The objects Günther Haese (*1924 Kiel, DE) creates are at once fragile and stable. Small movable parts, spherical elements, springs and spirals in brass and phosphor bronze are soldered together with the utmost care to form a transparent composition that sets in motion at the slightest breeze. Haese looks to the watchmaking industry for the parts to make his art because only there can he find prefabricated factory components with the requisite stability and lightness needed for his kinetic sculptures. The mobility of the individual elements is a deliberate tactic to keep the surface in constant flux. Haese's sculptures, which belong to the industry-loving school of object art and the tech-savvy kinetic art movement of the 1960s and 1970s, adhere to the theory of the Zero group founded by fellow Düsseldorf students Otto Piene (*1928, Lassphe, DE, - 2014, Berlin, DE), Heinz Mack (*1931 Lollar, DE) and Günther Uecker (*1930 Wendorf, DE). The group's name, Zero, was chosen to reflect an idealised fresh start in art. On his quest for new ways to represent physicality, Haese finds a structure in the area between abstraction and complete dissolution. Haese frequently uses titles to guide the viewer to a meaning to go with the visual impression of the tiny form. However, in the case of "Sirius", that meaning is something of a puzzle. In the search for a connection between object and title, the viewer can but marvel at the simultaneity of stability and fragility.