Das Schloss

Kunsthalle Palazzo presents „Das Schloss“, a solo exhibition by Martin Chramosta. The artist works at the interface of sculpture, drawing, performance and installation. His practice involves a multifaceted examination of architectural set pieces and historical references. Using materials such as iron, glazed ceramics and found objects, he creates fragmentary objects – such as fictitious gates and façades – that break with familiar architectural conventions. Schloss means castle in German. The concept of the castle interweaves and crystallizes multiple ideas and associations. The castle is a projection surface for historical, architectural, social or literary fantasies. A castle can be many things: magnificent, eerie, protective, forbidding, labyrinthine, mystical, decadent, elegant. In German, the term also has an interesting double meaning. “Schloss” not only refers to a building, but also to the device used to lock or bolt it. Etymologically, the term is certainly related to “schliessen” (to lock), perhaps also to “Schluss” (End). To enclose something, to lock something up, to protect something: a secret, a treasure, a story, a taboo.