Loretta Würtenberger photographed by Anne Schönharting
Photo: Showmik Khan
Erwin Wurm (2024): “Balzac”, 185 x 100 x 70 cm, Aluminium, Acrylfarbe Photo: Showmik Khan, courtesy of the artist
Christian Jankowski (2007): “Dalì Woman”, 220 x 90 x 80 cm, Bronze Photo: Marcus Boxler
Toshihiko Mitsuya (2020): “The Aluminium Garden - Structural Study of Plants”, Größe variabel, Aluminium Photo: Showmik Khan
Toshihiko Mitsuya (2020): “The Aluminium Garden - Structural Study of Plants”, Größe variabel, Aluminium Photo: Toshihiko Mitsuya
Hans Arp (1958): “Architektonische Skulptur”, 193 x 94 x 18 cm, Bronze, Ed. o/III, Guss 2012 Photo: Hanno Plate © Hans Arp, courtesy Stiftung Arp e.V. Berlin / Rolandswerth
Brad Downey's Bed Installation Art Biesenthal 2024 | Auras Present Decay Photo by Jack Hare.
Julian Rosefeldt’s PENUMBRA Open-air screening of the 2019 production and rave at Wehrmuehle forest, for The Opera Antwerp's Interpretation of Faust, in collaboration with Richie Hawtin. Art Biesenthal 2024 | Auras Present Decay Photo by Lilika Strezoska
Brad Downey's Bed Installation Downey intervenes with his environment using objects in an unconventional manner. Co-production with Ayla Meyer Hecken. Art Biesenthal 2024 | Auras Present Decay Photo by Jack Hare.
"FRANK" by Shira Kela and Ylva Falk An experimental video installation and performance exploring the complex interplay between our external personas and internal realities. Offsite by Wehrmuehle, Friedrichstraße 112, Berlin Photo by Lilika Strezoska
Young Boy Dancing Group Performance ignites communal catharsis through mercurial and modular movement, constructing a ballet of structured improvisation. Offsite by Wehrmuehle, Friedrichstraße 112, Berlin Photo by Lilika Strezoska

IN CONVERSATION WITH TJIOE MEYER HECKEN AND LORETTA WÜRTENBERGER

It is frequently lamented by politicians and the public that rural areas lack balanced cultural offerings – the competition with major cities seems too one-sided. Yet, just outside Berlin, there are two places that harmonize art, nature, discourse, and events: Schlossgut Schwante and Wehrmuehle.

Internationally renowned contemporary artists are showcased at both locations: Norbert Bisky, Tony Cragg, Alicja Kwade, Paul McCarthy, Nan Goldin, Lee Ufan, Kiki Smith, Michael Sailstorfer, George Rickey, Jorinde Voigt – the list could go on and on. What opportunities arise from nature-oriented cultural practice, and what challenges must be overcome?
A conversation with the two directors, Dr. Loretta Würtenberger and Tjioe Meyer Hecken.

Marcus Boxler: Both of you have ties to Berlin and London and now manage prominent cultural venues in rural Brandenburg. Have you ever spoken directly?

Tjioe Meyer Hecken: So far, we’ve mostly exchanged flyers and materials 😉

 

Loretta Würtenberger: I’m glad we’re finally speaking directly. Building something like you and I are doing – essentially from our own means and resources, while presenting a demanding and recognised programme – is something where you really appreciate having allies.

Both venues are private initiatives. In the institutional landscape, such “lighthouse projects” are sought after. Why aren’t they publicly funded?

Loretta: I’m disheartened by the lack of political attention, which is so contrary to the attention and support we receive from people from all over Northern Germany and especially our neighbors from Schwante and other nearby communities. We’ve invited the Ministry of Culture over and over again, we informed them about all our activities. International publications such as The Guardian and the FT have written about us, yet, in Potsdam, we are ignored. It’s quite astonishing given our regional impact, attracting thousands of visitors each year.

 

Tjioe: I entirely agree, we bring internationally renowned artists with impactful messages to northern Brandenburg, yet receive no support and have even faced attacks on our art.

Institutional exhibitions face similar issues. Most recently, Anne Imhof’s “Wish You Were Gay” billboards in Bregenz were destroyed twice, showing strong reactions to art everywhere.

Tjioe: We are not discouraged by this; iconoclasts exist everywhere. We remain unrestrainedly positive. We want Brandenburgers to be involved in the region. We work with schools, with children, with the new generation. And it can be said: We are open to everyone. We are here in the north of Brandenburg and embrace mondialité as a posture of worldliness to unite people and cultures.

How would you each describe the work you do?

Loretta: We aim to create a place in which nature and culture come together on equal terms, while keeping the park open and inviting. In the center of our activities is the 20 hectare Schlossgut Schwante sculpture park with its wide range of international artists. With our program of accompanying events, such as music, yoga, meditation, family workshops, we invite not only visitors who are interested in contemporary art but also those who want to simply enjoy such activities, bringing openhearted people together.

 

Tjioe: We have a lot in common but position Wehrmuehle as a museum and a community-driven, artist-centred institution. We focus on artist residencies and community involvement. Whether we have a rave in the forest by Julian Rosefeldt, which is actually part of an art production for the Opera Antwerp, or conduct a children workshop with Maryam Keyhani: it always comes back to the artist and the art. Plus: What can the community contribute? How do people want to get involved, and how can we expand and utilize our platform for this?

How present is Berlin in your work?

Tjioe: We’re very Berlin-affine, with many visitors from the city seeking weekend escapes. We offer a cultural space for people to explore contemporary art, and experience it in an interdisciplinary way. The museum fosters a connection between art and nature. 

 

Loretta: What defines us both is definitely that people usually travel a distance that is not necessarily different in time from a trip from Wedding to Kreuzberg, but it is an active decision to linger there. More active than within the city, where you’re used to the distances. You don’t drive three-quarters of an hour outside Berlin only to rush through in seven minutes. This benefits the perception of the exhibited art greatly.

You both have international orientations and residency programmes. What are the main differences?

Tjioe: We host three shows a year and more. We have been curating projects internationally and have had the pleasure of running an Offsite in Berlin for two years. Here, we host performance art (Göksu Kunak, Young Boy Dancing Group), experimental dance (Ylva Falk, Amanda Donato, Soraya Schulthess), and music (Labour Studio and Kaan Bulak). In recent years, we’ve found that an accompanying programme – even related to the city – really draws people out, and we’ve unintentionally specialized in that.

Although Schossgut Schwante also hosts artists in residence, such as the author Viktor Jerofejew at the moment, and has artists such as Jorinde Voigt and Christian Jankowski give tours in the sculpture park, I have a feeling you emphasize more on well-being factors with yoga, meditation, and other body-conscious practices. Is that right?

Loretta: This stems from my own belief that experiences such as body-conscious breathing and yoga within art integrate into the spiritual space provided by nature and art, and this combination  makes visitors more receptive to their surroundings.

Would you say it’s a coincidence or is femininity necessary to create such a place?

Tjioe: It is always refreshing to see women in the forefront of the male-dominated art world. Whether on the art market, at fairs, in museums, or galleries. At the same time, I believe that places like ours need a host . It’s not a feminine characteristic, but I think Loretta has it, and I think I do as well. Perhaps that is a coincidence.

 

Loretta: I want to separate the question from gender and add what I believe is necessary: our activities require a strong intrinsic motivation and sensitivity to the spirit of the place we are entrusted with. A sensitivity to ensure that art does not compete with its surroundings. That art is not aggressively set against nature, but that both are seen as emerging from the same creative force. Lastly, you need to be able to think and act ong term since places as such we manage  are not established in two or three years. But rather need a vision which goes far beyond, to grow into its environment.

Is there a societal gap between city and countryside in art and environment perception?

Loretta: Definitely, but I would view the gap as leaning towards Berlin, not Brandenburg. I first came to Berlin in the early 1990s. The city was an absolute wasteland – in the best sense of the word! Where everything could develop, where everything could happen, where there was no financial pressure, where gentrification debates did not exist, where people from diverse backgrounds could meet. Looking at today, I’m discouraged by the development in the last 10 years. There are unbearable financial aspects, but also questions of self-constitution: Who am I in Berlin? Where do I locate myself in Berlin? Personally, I feel much freer in the countryside of Brandenburg, where I have found many of the positive aspects I so much enjoyed in Berlin many years ago, now outside Berlin.

What’s the reason?

Loretta: Things are less heated, less contextualized, because the urge to conceptualize is less. Many of our artist friends find inspiration in the nature around Berlin. Not only are the residency artists with us, but also artists who come “unofficially” and realize individual projects here. They all take a deep breath when they arrive. We are grateful that the metropolis of Berlin is within reach. I frequently go to Berlin. I am grateful for the Philharmonie, the Komische Oper, Tanz im August. But I no longer want to live there. I feel that I can breathe, think, and be creative much more freely here. A bit like Berlin in the 1990s.

 

Tjioe: In the end, I am still a city person. (laughs) Although I have spent a considerable amount of time in nature and traveled extensively for research due to my degree in behavioral ecology. Perhaps, we are just a bit closer to Berlin, gradually bringing Berliners closer to the enthusiasm for the surrounding nature. Showing them a bit of deceleration.

 

Loretta: Due to our location facing near to the Hamburg autobahn, our focus is on all of Northern Germany, integrating visitors from places such as Hamburg or Hannover. Some even come from far abroad, quite a lot of visitors from the United States, often coming in patron groups of American museums or other renowned institutions.  

 

Tjioe: We remain open to new ideas and perspectives. This exchange has been vital to our growth and development. Wehrmuehle is the center of our activities, and it has become customary to refer to Berlin as our Offsite. When we say, ‘We are going to the city,’ we acknowledge that Berlin is, indeed, our Offsite in Brandenburg.

In winter, there are no exhibitions at Schwante, and the Art Biesenthal hosted by Wehrmuehle is your summer exhibition. Hence the question: Must we simply accept that one has to endure the winter in Brandenburg depressively?

Tjioe: We celebrated our season finale during Art Week Berlin in partnership with ArtReview, showcasing renowned DJ/producer Nina Kraviz. As we transition into winter, we’re maintaining a more intimate profile with exclusive dinner events and invite-only art happenings. Our residency program continues year-round, and we are actively planning international collaborations and Offsite programmes to keep our community engaged.

 

Loretta: Our situation is different from yours, because we don’t have an indoor public space. And I must confess, I also need that winter break. For me, it’s not a desirable goal. I feel connected with the cycles of nature and have no problem retreating and reflecting in winter, and then starting preparations again in the spring. When the blossoms come, we too blossom again.

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