se souvenir

Katharina Jahnke is exhibiting a new series of works at the Artothek – Raum für Junge Kunst, which explore the concept of private memory culture, focusing on its objective reliability and individual fragility.

In the tourist centre of Cologne, surrounded by numerous kiosks and souvenir shops, the artothek displays drawings and collages from classic art travel guides, cultural illustrated books, and everyday snapshots. These provide a personal view of an urban living environment with many layers, as seen by the artist.

The first series of works, titled "wiegehtesdirmirgehtesgut" (Engl.: How are you, I am fine), consists of around 30 postcard portraits.
Jahnke's drawings appear to constitute an archive of mailed holiday memories, created from found written postcards. The former connection between sender and addressee is examined closely. This brings back memories of banal, familiar greetings received during one's own holidays.
Reading other people's postcards here evokes the thrill of secret observation as well as raising awareness of the loss of the centuries-old culture of sending holiday greetings by post, which has been replaced by digital communication.

The second series, 'Cologne', consists of collages featuring replicas of classic sights in the familiar picture postcard design, as well as motifs from illustrated books. New locations are created from details of various familiar motifs in a surreal setting. Cultural insider knowledge is reactivated for the Cologne public and tourist highlights are presented in a slightly different context. Despite using historical photographs, some of the collages reflect urban reality with more contemporary relevance than any glossy photo on social media.

The two series interact with each other in an installation that engages with the surrounding space, subversively and sublimely reflecting the environment that the audience has just passed through in the outdoor area.