19 June - 06 September, 2004

Although his work is largely unknown outside Europe and Japan, John Körmeling is one of the most inspiring contemporary Dutch artist-architects. His interdisciplinary strategies investigate how many people negotiate the complexities of public/private life to ultimately expand the range of creative solutions through art, architecture, design and city planning.

John Körmeling was born in Amsterdam and graduated from Eindhoven Polytechnic in architecture and urban planning in 1980. Early in his career he became dissatisfied with small-minded systems and the constrictive practices of traditional and much of modern architecture, urban planning and art. His primary focus has been to circumvent systemic limitations and he has struggled to liberate space by creating solutions with a sudden and resonant impact.
Since 1981, Körmeling has designed and/or built an amazing array of objects and ingenious installations with an emphasis on light and lightweight solutions. One of his first recorded projects at De Appel, in 1983, focused on liberating space with light, when he presented an interactive installation, Ontwerpmachine (Designing Machine). By exposing phosphorescent filaments and small Styrofoam balls to three-minute doses of artificial light, he demonstrated how the largely ephemeral materials would reveal, in the alternating periods of darkness, the existing space within a new space of phosphorous green. Another project, at the Apollohuis in Eindhoven, was the sculpture Hangen en staan (Hanging and Standing). For this project, Körmeling shot a beam of light through the building, from the basement to the attic, using a series of holes in the foundation and carefully positioned mirrors to reflect the laser’s beam. His large-scale neon birthday signs on buildings (Kop van Zuid - Rotterdam, 1989), his electric light shining through miniature-scale faux storm clouds onto a sunbather (Gat in de Wolk—Hole in the Cloud, Madurodam, Den Haag, 1989), or his long awaited Theehuis (Tea Shop,) in Valkenberg Park, central Breda, 2002—these and other projects showcase again and again the way he breaks design open , creates space and remarkable flashes of beauty by a process of subtraction and the use of light to engage the viewer. Furthermore, the exhibition catalogue plays a vital archival role by providing a a wide-ranging overview of his career. Körmeling’s creative strategies make the politics of urban growth and space conservation more malleable and enlarge the possibilities for cutting-edge solutions. The exhibition and catalogue reveal how Körmeling’s projects retain a critical but unconventional approach to architectural standards and design-build projects, often prioritizing the automobile and the urban infrastructure. Numerous projects, including Simultaan Ontwerp Wedstrijd voor Stedebouwkundigen (Simultaneous Design Match for Urban Developers), Eindhoven, 1992, or Old-Fashioned New Housing Development as a Sculpture, Kattenbroek Amersfoort, 1992, Molensloot, Den Haag, and Clever Roads, both 1994, present a confluence of design solutions guided by an uncompromising directness. In each case Körmeling contemplates and elevates the much-maligned automobile. Square Car (1994), Flat Car (1995), Mobile Fun (1999), Coach Car (2003), the Fastest Guided Tour of the Netherlands (1992) and other works reflect on its ubiquity. The presentation of Körmeling’s concepts at The Power Plant is certain to elicit audience anxiety and at the same time kindle the desire for freedom of movement.

Whether Körmeling creates with light, unique physical solutions, political text in newspapers or challenging approaches to city planning, he invariably infuses each project with an unnerving strain of humour. He pushes the absurd to expand the range of possibilities for architecture and design solutions, making the impossible not only possible but desirable. HI HI HA HA (1993, Schiphol Airport), NIEUW! (1992), Mobile Fun (1999) and many other projects employ absurd displacements of objects, ideas and people to strategically introduce practical solutions for environmental issues. The Power Plant exhibition intends to highlight and further explore Körmeling’s biting, critical wit.

Wayne Baerwaldt

On the occasion of the exhibition, The Power Plant, Plug In Editions, Winnipeg, and the Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven, have co-published A Good Book, a 180-page colour and black & white catalogue with 460 images documenting Körmeling’s significant output over the last twenty-four years, including his most recent international projects.

Presenting sponsor of the John Körmeling exhibition: SAAB Canada.

The John Körmeling exhibition is generously supported by the Mondriaan Foundation, Amsterdam. John Körmeling’s Mobile Fun is presented in partnership with the Toronto zooarts Festival and with the support of the Ontario Cultural Attractions Fund. Additional support for the exhibition is provided by the Royal Netherlands Embassy, Ottawa, and the Royal Netherlands Consulate, Toronto; KLM; Mr. Steven Latner; and Mr. Richard Sawyer.

John Körmeling is represented by Galerie Zeno X, Antwerp.