Artist Present! Air Castles in Wonderland - The Serendipity of the Found

Description

"The urbanity of a country can be recognized by what lands in its waste, what is thrown away as everyday, still usable, what is discarded as poetry, and considered worth destruction." This quote by Heinrich Böll from 1964 is the motto of the solo exhibition by MariAn Martin. Passionately, the 77-year-old native of Valais, who has lived in the Canton of Fribourg since 1968, collects objects with a past: paper, texts, fabrics, street and household waste, but also materials from nature. On decluttering tours of the deceased and acquaintances, she found much "superfluous" that needed to be "disposed of." With much wit and irony, she transforms such items into autobiographical art — whether in the form of assemblages, paper collages from self-made paper, textile texts, installations, or sewn objects — which are not only aesthetically pleasing but are intended to provoke thought through their often provocative statements. "I came to art by chance. When in 1994, two female artists called me to offer my newly built house for an exhibition and to participate, I was overwhelmed. I had been writing poems for several years, but exhibiting them? Nevertheless, I accepted the challenge and thus came to installation art. The Freiburg gallery owner Hilde Figuth 'discovered' me. And since it is difficult to keep writing all the time, I turned to textiles and other materials." Imaginative, poetic, and multi-layered in the truest sense of the word are MariAn’s works, full of hidden secrets and numerous details to smile and ponder. Titles like "One must stretch after the ceiling — wall hangings with North-South inclination" or "The sleep of the environmentally friendly" show a strong social consciousness, seasoned with a generous pinch of humor. "Art — the only true form of expression in my life," says MariAn. And one believes the autodidact at first word. Vernissage Friday, 09.10.2026 from 5 pm to 9 pm Meetings with MariAn Thursday, 15.10. and 22.10 from 5 pm to 8 pm Friday, 16.10. and 23.10. from 5 pm to 8 pm Finissage Saturday, 24.10.2026 from 11 am to 5 pm Musical surprise with the Trio Schakôb at 3 pm