Andreas Arndt, Madeleine Boschan, Mitchel Breed, Chad Burt, Frieder Butzmann, Sol Calero, Francesco Cavaliere, C U, Jan Deyrieux, Alex Dordoy, Lucie Freyenhagen, Christina Gay, Philip Grözinger, Nathan Gwynne, Andy Hope 1930, Nicolas Humbert, Christopher Kline, Raul Kraz, Sebastian Meschenmoser, Zoë Claire Miller, Paula Müller, Patrick Niemann, Julia Oschatz, Michael Pohl, Emma Van Der Put, Judy Ross, Simon Schäfer, Caroline Schmidt, Nico Spencer, Steven Warwick, Marlon Wobst

Curated by Fritz Bornstück & Ernst Markus Stein

The German word Elektronik describes the movement of electrons and the internal activity of electronic appliances. Batman is the famous comic book superhero who assumes the appearance of a bat in his battle for justice. The exhibition entitled BATMAN ELEKTRONIK describes the relationship between man, technology and superheroes.  

For the curators, Batman, who has been popular for over 74 years, is an example of a heroic figure that has continually developed in accordance with technical dystopias of each generation. Against this backdrop the exhibition investigates to what extent artists from the 1980s generation have been influenced by images and role models; an example being the Batman brand with its films, comics and other merchandise. How much of this, through popular culture, is anchored in the collective consciousness?

Since the late 90s, personal computers along with the use of the internet have become an indispensable tool for people in in the west. Consumers and producers merge and now anybody can become an artist. The disparity between the aspiration and the actual pursuit of celebrity is becoming less clear. Online social networks create a platform for a constant reinvention of the self. The very same individual can virtually adopt different profiles; changing appearance, gender or location. This ability is principally linked to the concept of superheroes, most of which tend to lead a double life.

The 32 artists exhibiting were all born in the 1980s and have approached the subject crossing all genres and without restriction to a particular medium. The result is a series of fascinating works which span from more abstract approaches to interactions between the hero and the world, illusion and reality.

For the duration of BATMAN ELEKTRONIK, a library has been installed in the gallery which provides the visitors with literature, images, and audio data, and which also holds the catalogue published for the exhibition. The covers of the 32 limited edition catalogues have been specifically designed by each individual artist.