Darren James Jorgensen’s interview with German artist Wolfgang Laib provides an insight into the artist’s unique and life long practice, and how through his work Laib inspires us to consider his use of materials and their placement within a new context. It seems as though the process as much as the final product is a crucial element in understanding the work’s intentions, as Laib discusses the profound experience in sourcing the material that will eventually become the basis for his work. Throughout the interview Laib talks about his practice in relation to the contemporary art scene, his influences, and his views surrounding the current art practices seen today as well as his beliefs about art’s potential to change the world.
Jorgensen presents us with an overview of the artists’ practice, which is immersed in the sourcing of organic materials such as bees’ wax, pollen and milk. By removing these materials from their original, natural setting and with them creating detailed, abstracted art forms, Laib is offering us the opportunity to appreciate their simplicity and pure form. The ephemeral quality of Laib’s works further highlight the meticulous and overpowering process undergone in order to retrieve these materials and replace them within a gallery space, where viewers are given room to respond. This repetitious and time-consuming procedure gives the viewer an indication of Laib’s personal experience with art, which he considers to be vital to understanding and experiencing life in a totally new way.
Whilst the interview comes across as light-hearted, Laib’s deep enthusiasm for the importance of art and its powerful influence on the world is felt. Through his practice Laib aspires to provoke change, in questioning our society and the morals and values by which we run our lives. These views become evident throughout the interview, as Laib declares his ‘non-European’ cultural influences and describes his workspace as being isolated from the art world, deriving his inspiration and knowledge from natural surroundings. Rather than engaging with art scenes surrounding the art world (as Laib stated in the interview his thoughts concerning the lack of originality seen within art practices today), Laib’s practice is embedded within his life, whereby each day is intended to inform his work. Within this philosophy stems the possibility for something new, with the intention for prescribing change.
Jorgensen’s interview was successful in displaying a personal account of the artist’s practice and beliefs about art, also providing useful images of three of Laib’s works, Pollen from Pine, 1999, Passageway-overgoing, 1996 and Ziggurat, 1999.
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