Schering Stiftung

Exhibition 

Retreat into Darkness. Towards a Phenomenology of the Unknown

Retreat into Darkness. Towards a Phenomenology of the Unknown
Photo: Kristina Lenard IFStudio

Ivana Franke: Retreat into Darkness. Towards a Phenomenology of the Unknown, exhibition at the Schering Stiftung, April - July 2017

Ivana Franke: Retreat into Darkness. Towards a Phenomenology of the Unknown, exhibition at the Schering Stiftung, April - July 2017
Photo: Ivana Franke

In the Faraway Past and in the Future, 2014. Aluminium construction, LED lights, control units, monofilament. Diameter 600 cm.

In the Faraway Past and in the Future, 2014. Aluminium construction, LED lights, control units, monofilament. Diameter 600 cm.
Photo: Umang Bhattacharya (c) Courtesy Insert2014

Ivana Franke

Retreat into Darkness. Towards a Phenomenology of the Unknown

Ivana Franke

Retreat into Darkness. Towards a Phenomenology of the Unknown

Duration:

April 27 – July 16, 2017

Exhibition opening:

Wednesday, 26. April 2017, 6–9 p.m.

Opening hours:

Thursday through Monday, 1–7 p.m

Venue:

Schering Stiftung
Unter den Linden 32–34 | 10117 Berlin


“The peculiar property of the pure spirit is seeing, not knowing.”, wrote the poet and physician Justinus Kerner. This statement is called into question by the Berlin-based artist Ivana Franke with her project Retreat into Darkness. Towards a Phenomenology of the Unknown. Do we only see what we know? What can dislocate us from our comfortable, predefined point of view and challenge our gaze on the world?

The project Retreat into Darkness. Towards a Phenomenology of the Unknown includes an installation by artist Ivana Franke, curated by Elena Agudio, at the Schering Stiftung, along with a series of experiments to be conducted by the artist in collaboration with the vision scientist Bilge Sayim, as well as an interdisciplinary symposium and a publication. The above-mentioned are all integral parts of Ivana Franke’s artistic practice, which represents the full-fledged investigation of the limits of our perception, which is conditioned by our minds and bodies and by the environment.

With her new installation Ivana Franke takes us into a visual and bodily experience able to break our preconceived idea of reality, lending it other dimensions that are decidedly fictive, imaginary, and cosmic. Reflected light appears as if floating on air and emerging constellations of “objects”. Initially, these stand still, as if frozen. When the visitor begins to walk around, these objects move in unexpected directions. These curious constellations seem to extend deep into the space, only to come back towards us in a counter-intuitive motion. Like standing before twinkling fireflies, the viewer is invited to glimpse the “unknown” moving objects revealed in the dark. Perceived light translates into experiences that challenge our perception and imagination, suggesting spatial architectures that cannot be identified through the ones we already know. Creating “epistemological ruptures”, those experiences give us the capacity to imagine and challenge existing common modes of knowledge and to create room for different possible futures.

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Side events 

Symposium “Towards a Phenomenology of the Unknown”

June 27, 2017, 11 a.m.–6 p.m.
In cooperation with SAVVY Contemporary Berlin
With: Elena Agudio, Jimena Canales, Ivana Franke, Bilge Sayim, et al.

Schering Stiftung/silent green Kulturquartier - Kuppelhalle
Registration at anmeldung@scheringstiftung.de.

Book Launch and Conversation

Artist talk — June 20, 2018

The Schering Stiftung, in cooperation with Savvy Contemporary, will present the recently released publication “Retreat into Darkness.

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Towards a Phenomenology of the Unknown

Symposium — June 27, 2017

The symposium aims to explore the experience of seeing the “unknown” on a phenomenological level, while also shedding light on its transformative potential.

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Lange Nacht der Wissenschaften

Festival — June 24, 2017

In its interior courtyard, the Foundation offers exciting neuroscience lectures on visual perception and human consciousness.

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Publication

Retreat into Darkness. Towards a Phenomenology of the Unknown, published by Schering Stiftung and Spector Books

Ivana Franke

Retreat into Darkness. Towards a Phenomenology of the Unknown

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Gallery

Ivana Franke: Retreat into Darkness. Towards a Phenomenology of the Unknown, exhibition at the Schering Stiftung, April - July 2017
Ivana Franke: Retreat into Darkness. Towards a Phenomenology of the Unknown, exhibition at the Schering Stiftung, April - July 2017

Ivana Franke

Exhibition Opening "Retreat into Darkness. Towards a Phenomenology of the Unknown" on April 26, 2017

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Partners 

Die Schering Stiftung ist Partner der Langen Nacht der Wissenschaften 2017.

Lange Nacht der Wissenschaften

Profile 

Ivana Franke is a visual artist based in Berlin. Her works, often in forms of light installations, investigate the interface between perception, cognition and environment, focusing on perceptual thresholds. She represented Croatia at 52nd Venice Biennale with solo exhibition Latency. Her other projects include Disorientation Station (11th Shanghai Biennale), Seeing with Eyes Closed (Peggy Guggenheim, Venice, Deutsche Guggenheim, Berlin), other exhibitions include Manifesta 7, Museum of Contemporary Art Zagreb and MoMA P.S.1

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Schering Stiftung

Unter den Linden 32-34
10117 Berlin

Telefon: +49.30.20 62 29 62
Email: info@scheringstiftung.de

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Thursday to Monday: 1 pm - 7 pm
Saturday to Sunday: 11 am - 7 pm
free entrance

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