Kunstverein Ebersberg awards audience award – Ebersberg

The tastes are different, as was once again proven in Ebersberg: the audience of the members’ exhibition of the art association chose three very different works or artists as their favorites. The Iranian illustrator Shakiba Booshehri from Markt Schwaben is happy about the first place, the color field painter Stanko Ropic from Rechtmehring was chosen for the second place and the third went to the sand artist Frauke Menger from Aßling. What their work has in common, however, is that they are all very personal images. This is not surprising either, because the Ebersberger Kunstverein had proclaimed the topic of “self-portrait” for its anniversary members’ show on the occasion of its 40th birthday. The artists should therefore “show their faces”, should reflect on themselves and their work, the past and the future. The three winners did the same – each in their own way.

Shakiba Booshehri says she usually doesn’t paint self-portraits. In her illustrations she combines elements of Persian art and Eastern sensibility with modern motifs, the result is often fairytale-like, colorful stories. For this year’s theme of the art association, however, the Schwaben woman has put her “inner feeling” on paper: The self-portrait was “a good, but also serious self-reflection” for her. The painting, which has now received an award from the public, was the first to come, as Booshehri says, “but because I’m an illustrator, I usually sketch a few things out and then decide which motif I actually use and also design with color”. The title of her acrylic painting is “The Lost Identity”, it shows two women, one with red, long hair and closed eyes, one with dark hair and open eyes. The latter is practically upside down. “This self-portrait reflects the changes and duality in my biography”, explains Booshehri, “the emigration from my homeland, Iran”. This deep emotionality seems to have appealed to the visitors of the exhibition – although Booshehri’s picture was not one of the largest and most eye-catching in the gallery, it was voted right at the top of the podium. The artist is very happy about this: “There were so many great works in this exhibition, it is an honor for me that the public chose my painting. The surprise was huge!” The Markt Schwabenerin has only been a member of the Kunstverein Ebersberg for about two years, so the show was the first for her – “but certainly not the last,” she adds and laughs.

The peculiarity of the picture by Stanko Ropic is that it only looks like it has been painted. The 59-year-old has also had nothing to do with the subject of the self-portrait. His profession is rather color field painting, abstract, monochrome paintings that are supposed to “breathe or pulsate” noticeably. The pandemic, however, led Ropic into uncharted territory: He began to create art from digitally processed photographs. And now he also applied this style to the theme of the Ebersberger Kunstverein, of which he has been a member for several years. The award from the audience is the very first art award for Ropic – and the greater the joy. “Yes, the picture has a certain radiance, but I’m still very surprised!” The artist from Rechtmehring used and edited five portrait photographs from different years for the award-winning work. Photoshop allows them to “flow into one another”, he explains. Ropic controls the coloring intuitively. In this way, new, completely surprising images are created over and over again. The title of the extremely complex work is “Future Now”, because he found the timing of the topic and the process very exciting, according to Ropic. The head that can best be recognized in the kaleidoscope turns its gaze to the left – for the artist an indication that he is not only living in the present, but also always looking into the future. “This is an area of ​​tension in which I like to move.” In addition, there is a pop-like, downright cheerful color scheme – also not by chance: “I think there is always a reason to be positive, even in these difficult times.”

Open detailed view

The work in third place is a classic painting – which is all the more astonishing since its creator has actually made a name for herself as a sand artist: Frauke Menger tells stories made of tiny grains in live performances. But she has been painting freelance for 15 years, she says, and she has also created many classic portraits. For the exhibition of the Kunstverein, however, she decided on a different, unusual approach. “I wanted to show what makes me special,” she says – that’s why you can see her from behind: Menger kneels on the floor in a green dress, stroking the floor with one hand. About the sand, their medium. The picture impresses with its formal clarity. The whole background is beige, there is only the person and the sand. Only the dark hair and the dress offer color contrasts. The gaze inevitably follows the arm. The Aßlinger called the acrylic painting “touch”, because that’s what it’s about: a deeply felt touch. “And that is the most beautiful thing: that people told me that they could feel what was happening,” says Menger. Because an emotional effect is most important to her, be it in sand art or painting, with which she has now shown herself for the first time at the art association. She is particularly pleased about the award because it encourages her to continue on a new path: the 50-year-old has just opened a studio in Grafing, in which she would also like to give courses in free painting and portrait painting and sand art. “In this respect, the award from the audience is a great encouragement.”