A REFERENCE TO THE TEMPORALITY OF ARCHITECTURE
Claudia Märzendorfer’s subtle wall drawing turns the hallways of the conference floor in BIG’s former headquarters into a poetic place of transformation.
“My work involves visually translating the technical term ‘Wandabwicklung’ (interior elevation) in the form of a wall drawing that stretches all the way along the hallway,” the artist explains. “Here, I understand the term ‘Wandabwicklung’ (unravelled wall) in its literal sense, as if one were rolling the wall out, but it were slightly displaced.” By applying grey pigments directly to the wall with a brush, Märzendorfer doubled the openings of the doors, windows, edges, power sockets, ventilation flaps, indentations and protrusions. The viewer is reminded of dusty construction sites or the markings left behind when pictures or cupboards are removed after many years. The “unravelled wall” intensifies the effect of this very heterogeneous hallway and leaves a subtle, temporary mark.
The judges were impressed by the subtleness of Märzendorfer’s design, which breaks a number of clichés. The effect of this restrained yet fascinating work only fully reveals itself when viewed more than once, and therefore does not lose its appeal over a longer period.