Interpretation of the Pergamon Altar
The Altar’s famous frieze of the Giants and Gods is interpreted by the artist through a 34-channel composition. Fragmentary relics of the Altar were transported from their original site in present-day western Turkey to Berlin late in the 19th century. “Bergama Stereo” is a site-specific work and the visitors’ movements and listening activities determine how the composition is perceived.
In the newly founded German Empire, as of the 1880s, the great significance attributed to the Hellenistic site was closely linked with a flourishing appreciation of antiquity in science and culture. Beyond that, the Altar played an important role in the cultural competition between the German Empire and other great European powers, and ever since, has had a unique history as a source for other artworks and debates and as a participant in world events. A museum expressly designed for the Altar was opened in Berlin in 1901; it remains one of the city’s most popular museums. The Pergamon Museum is currently being renovated, meaning that the Altar is removed from public view for several years.
Bergama Stereo in Berlin
After the first presentation of the work in Bochum during Ruhrtriennale 2019, Bergama Stereo is on view in Berlin as part of the series "Works of Music by Visual Artists". In Berlin, as in Bochum, an integral component of the presentation is the concert and performance program in the exhibition hall. The program picks up on themes and structural aspects of the architecture. Musicians have been invited to relate to characteristic features of the installation such as symmetry, balance, contradiction and the content-related aspects of the work such as history, ritual, power, struggle, conflict, expulsion and migration.
Information about the exhibition and program
Cevdet Erek: Bergama Stereo
19 October 2019 - 8 March 2020