Anti Social Distancing

Given current times and the eruption of so-called ‘new norms’, like Social Distancing and Collective Isolation, Frankfurt-based collectors Johanna and Friedrich Gräfling have compiled a selection of works from their collection as an anti statement. Anti Social Distancing!

These days, when we are all forced to keep our distance to each other and maybe even stay in complete isolation, sammlung FIEDE sees the urge to allow art do its magic and work against it. This exhibition, titled “Anti Social Distancing”, explores the beauty of actual human interaction through visual imagery which reminds us to stay positive and hopeful that this WILL be us again some time soon.

Reaching from a more personal scale highlighting family ties, as suggested by Gregor Hildebrandt’s “Spiegel” (– a reflection of an old family photograph), has become more and more important to some of us over the past weeks, to an oh so common scene of friends sitting in a bar as drawn by Grace Weaver. There is also pure joyful interactions as seen in her painting of a packed dance floor, depicting a fun social gathering, or Andreas Gursky’s public swimming pool series littered with bathers. Anti Social Distancing further extends to completely free social dynamics as propelled by Michael Sailstorfer’s “Pulheim gräbt” (Pulheim digs), where the normality of daily life has been turned upside down.

In this sense, Wolfgang Tilmans’ “Tube” series, seems an almost utopian scenario– people squished together on public transport – a once dreadful experience slowly turning into somewhat of a longing… Equally, Jorinde Voigt’s abstract drawing of the Moscow Airport as well as Hynek Martinecs photo-realistic painting of an airport in full operation already appear as experiences from the far past.

Learn more about the young pair in this interview, who urge to engage in collecting as a whole and do so with an active pursuit. For example, in 2011, they converted a former slaughterhouse in Friedrich’s hometown of Aschaffenburg, into a 600-square-meter venue which features one new exhibition annually, as well as initiating the independent exhibition space, Salon Kennedy, in a historic apartment in Frankfurt.