Kienholz - Hoerengracht
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Spotlight on Amsterdam
Edward (1927-1994) and Nancy Reddin (1943) Kienholz' prodigious work represents the definitive attention-grabber in a new exhibition where Amsterdam's Red Light District plays the leading role. See The Hoerengracht at the Amsterdam Historical Museum from 20 March to 29 August 2010.
The Hoerengracht
The city of Amsterdam provides the perfect backdrop to demonstrate how The Hoerengracht transcends the status of art to become a significant historical document. During their time in Berlin in the 1980s, American artistic couple Edward and Nancy Keinholz created an immense work 13 metres long, 4 metres wide and three metres high.
Modern-day relevance
The Hoerengracht is a cropped interpretation of the (in)famous Amsterdam district that allows visitors to take a stroll around the Red Light District. In creating the work, the Keinholz's dealt with a number of questions that are still fuelling the fire of debate nowadays. For example, the extent to which prostitution should be allowed or tolerated, how it should be regulated alongside the moral implications of its existence.
Toleration
The open organisation of prostitution in Amsterdam left a lasting impression on Edward and Nancy Kienholz. Although prostitution only became legal in Amsterdam in 2000, it was already openly tolerated back in the eighties.
Fragmentation
The statues of the prostitutes in The Hoerengracht are modelled on the Keinholz's friends at the time in Berlin. The mannequin heads of the figures are encased in glass boxes, symbolising the fragmentation of the female body in the consumer society.
Edward (1927-1994) and Nancy Reddin (1943) Kienholz' prodigious work represents the definitive attention-grabber in a new exhibition where Amsterdam's Red Light District plays the leading role. See The Hoerengracht at the Amsterdam Historical Museum from 20 March to 29 August 2010.
The Hoerengracht
The city of Amsterdam provides the perfect backdrop to demonstrate how The Hoerengracht transcends the status of art to become a significant historical document. During their time in Berlin in the 1980s, American artistic couple Edward and Nancy Keinholz created an immense work 13 metres long, 4 metres wide and three metres high.
Modern-day relevance
The Hoerengracht is a cropped interpretation of the (in)famous Amsterdam district that allows visitors to take a stroll around the Red Light District. In creating the work, the Keinholz's dealt with a number of questions that are still fuelling the fire of debate nowadays. For example, the extent to which prostitution should be allowed or tolerated, how it should be regulated alongside the moral implications of its existence.
Toleration
The open organisation of prostitution in Amsterdam left a lasting impression on Edward and Nancy Kienholz. Although prostitution only became legal in Amsterdam in 2000, it was already openly tolerated back in the eighties.
Fragmentation
The statues of the prostitutes in The Hoerengracht are modelled on the Keinholz's friends at the time in Berlin. The mannequin heads of the figures are encased in glass boxes, symbolising the fragmentation of the female body in the consumer society.
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