on focus
from 01.08.2018 to 29.11.2020

"Am Anfang war das Wort am"

Rediscovering Concrete Poetry

This show focusses on the phenomenon of poetry that can not only be read but also viewed as an image. In 1976, Curt Heigl curated an exhibition called Schrift und Bild (Writing and Picture) as the fourth show from the City of Nuremberg’s collection of international contemporary art at the Norishalle. From this period, the collection possesses numerous treasures of Concrete Poetry and related movements.

Visiting a shared chapter in the history of both art and literature, the show includes work by many well-known artists like Heinz Gappmayr, Jochen Gerz, Ferdinand Kriwet, Franz Mon, Maurizio Nannucci and Timm Ulrichs.

Encountering this art form afresh, one is surprised by its topicality in terms of the kind of mature, active reader and viewer called for by such playing with language and typography.