Dieter Roth. Islandscapes shines at Hauser & Wirth during IFPDA week

Hauser and Wirth’s current exhibition, “Islandscapes,” offers a mesmerizing journey through Dieter Roth’s transformative approach to printmaking and artistic expression. Showcasing works from the early 1960s to 1975, this exhibition is a testament to Roth’s revolutionary spirit and his profound ability to deconstruct traditional artistic boundaries.

The exhibition is a masterful exploration of Roth’s intricate relationship with landscape, particularly his deep connection to Iceland. Through innovative techniques like cutting, rotating, and reassembling postcards, Roth creates uncanny symmetries that challenge viewers’ perceptions of landscape and representation. His “Melancholic Knicknacks” series, derived from postcards, ingeniously transforms familiar scenes into surreal, mirrored landscapes that blur the lines between reality and imagination.

Roth’s artistic journey is deeply rooted in his technical mastery and relentless experimentation. Having begun his first etchings on tin sheet metal at age 16, he developed a comprehensive understanding of printmaking techniques through an unconventional education. His apprenticeship with Swiss graphic designer Friedrich Wuthrich and lessons in lithography with Eugen Jordi provided a foundation that he would later radically deconstruct.

A standout piece in the exhibition is undoubtedly the “Giant Double-Piccadilly” (1969-1973), which exemplifies Roth’s experimental genius. This remarkably large work, created by dramatically enlarging a postcard of London’s Piccadilly Circus, is a dynamic composition that invites viewers to circumnavigate the artwork, much like the traffic circle it depicts. The use of chocolate, glue, and cocoa powder not only adds visual complexity but also introduces an element of temporal transformation, as these materials gradually change and decay.

The exhibition’s timing coincided beautifully with the IFPDA (International Fine Print Dealers Association) week event on March 25 in New York, providing print enthusiasts with a comprehensive look at Roth’s groundbreaking printmaking techniques. The exhibition highlights Roth’s mastery of various printing methods, from traditional intaglio to innovative screenprinting, and his radical approach to reproducibility.

Particularly striking are Roth’s “Icelandic Landscape” works, which employ halftone block intaglio to transform Polaroid photographs into muddied, pointillist impressions. By reducing photographic precision, he emphasizes the fundamental element of landscape: the horizon line. In works like “Hut (Hat)” (1966), Roth further demonstrates his inventive spirit by screenprinting a bowler hat silhouette and using it as a frame for manipulated postcard landscapes, exploring endless variations through color and technique.

Roth’s engagement with volatile and dynamic materials reflects a profound philosophical approach to creativity. His series on Surtsey, the volcanic island formed off Iceland’s coastline, brilliantly conflates the island’s ephemeral nature with themes of transformation. Like the island itself, which is expected to vanish beneath the ocean by 2100, Roth’s artworks embrace impermanence and change.

The exhibition goes beyond traditional printmaking, challenging conventional artistic boundaries through Roth’s use of unconventional materials. Pieces like “Kleine Landschaft (Small Landscape)” - composed of two rounds of cheese pressed in a plastic sleeve - and “Gewurzfenster (Spice Window)” - a sculptural pieces layered with spices between windowpanes - demonstrate his ability to transform everyday materials into profound artistic statements.

During his time as a lecturer at the Rhode Island School of Design, Roth began implementing perishable materials like chocolate, cheese, and mayonnaise into printmaking processes. This approach aligned him with art movements that challenged traditional notions of art, from Duchamp’s “Readymade” concept to Pop art’s embrace of mass-produced imagery.

“Am Meer (By the sea)” (1970-1974) further illustrates Roth’s fascination with impermanence. This installation of 54 wood-and-paper flags planted in molded sugar cones represents an empire designed for fleeting existence, a metaphor for the transient nature of art and life itself.

The exhibition is a powerful reminder of Roth’s legacy as an artist who constantly pushed the boundaries of artistic expression. By embracing impermanence, decay, and transformation, he created works that are not just visual experiences but philosophical inquiries into the nature of art, perception, and existence.

“Islandscapes” is more than an exhibition; it’s a comprehensive exploration of an artist who refused to be confined by traditional artistic conventions. It invites viewers to reconsider their understanding of landscape, printmaking, and the very essence of creative expression.