BEYOND WHITE

A glance at art history shows how much the color white has inspired artists over the centuries. Its meaning is highly diverse and changes with each epoch. In ancient times, it stood for purity and clarity, in the Middle Ages for spiritual sublimity and enlightenment. In modern and minimal art, white becomes the color of reduction and silence, the color of nothingness.
In fact, white evokes a wide range of associations: it can radiate objective neutrality or be emotionally charged, convey meditative calm or coldness, meaninglessness or transcendence. In every work of art, white remains an open space that leaves room for thoughts and feelings. White is like a calm horizon where new meanings are constantly emerging – changeable and infinitely ambiguous.
It is noteworthy that although the color white is generally associated with neutrality, in art it often has emotional connotations. Many artists use white deliberately to create moods or feelings. This can already be seen in medieval religious art, in which white is often associated with innocence and divinity, but also in 20th and 21st century art, in which white is often used as a powerful means of creating silence and emptiness, of experiencing transcendence.

This already applies to the Russian artist Kazimir Malevich, who made white, often referred to as a non-color, a central theme in 20th and 21st century art. In his most famous work, “White on White” from 1918, the Russian artist focuses on white in its purest form to explore the concept of pure color and absolute abstraction. Malevich's use of white influenced numerous artists who explored questions of abstraction, emptiness, and the relationship between color and space. Artists such as Ad Reinhardt and Robert Ryman, as well as artists of Minimalism, Zero, and the present, use white in their works to explore art-immanent themes such as the relationship between light, shadow, and space.
Many of the works shown in the exhibition “Beyond White” also make it clear that the influence of avant-garde artists continues to be felt in contemporary art. However, artistic links to Minimalism and the Zero movement can also be seen. We are therefore particularly pleased that the exhibition also features works by Oskar Holweck (1924-2007) and Rolf Kissel (1929-2024), two artists closely associated with the Zero movement. But not only these two, but all 16 participating artists are in a close discourse with 20th-century art, although they have all succeeded in developing their own unique artistic handwriting. We can look forward to a multifaceted exhibition that shows us that white in art is not just a simple color, but a complex tool that opens up both artistic and emotional dimensions and expands the possibilities for interpretation and engagement.