Interview

Humans on the trace come - in the dialogue with stone
The stone, basalt, the artist, the sculpture, the viewer

 

Can one talk that at all, about sculptures?
Is the task of the artist, particularly the sculptor not straight those to work on "the range for that beyond of language is appropriate?"
It leaves, means Knut Hueneke, which stone rather for itself talk - and with the viewer.
We try it nevertheless.

To speak first about the material, over its geological origin, its history, its force of expression which is connected with it.
Those is different in "rigid volcanic melt", than in the "loose structure" of sedimentary rock, which has less internal co-operation.
And these different "priorities" of the kinds of stone affect differently attractively Hueneke.
It cannot serious-take soft rock; the material must show resistance; the stone must sound - over with it into a dialogue to step to be able.

We speak the structure about its color, "of fundamental force of expression" its.
A force of expression, which is already there, before he did the first impact as a sculptor.
Which it looks for and recognizes, if it through the quarries go and select myself a breaking into.
It does not order stones in the sawmill; that is boring "; so similarly as a white canvas."
Hueneke needs an opposite, an opposite with an already existing structure, with substance, weight, with form.

Sometimes the form is already so far pronounced that it only a little "help" must; sometimes he in addition, much must do, in order to come on a form.
Always in the dialogue with the stone.
"the stone has a very large say."
On the one hand.
On the other hand it wants to reach in addition, that itself its "more humanly (Gestaltungs)Wille manifests".
That from the stone a sculpture becomes.
One must balance that; quasi on mutuality: "my goal is it to leave as many to the stone that it can to remain stone and give the figure as much that it goes into action."

Then develop, as it said once a writer on the occasion of an exhibition in Aswan, then develop "stone natures". No human natures, no images of humans, no complete transformations - there is still clearly stones: into human proportions divided, already in early stages of the treatment as human figure recognizably.
In the dialogue with the stone ("I can be led by the stone.): Something take away, so that something new can develop and the original nevertheless remains still visible.

Hueneke describes, as it on the stone draws and with the iron nachaue, and "the coal line became material there and an edge".
"I find it exciting to bring a three-dimensional design on the stone."
To make (in on the stone graphics) it searched - to know without it - and is very glad it to have recognized suddenly that one can work also in such a way.
That means, the stone helped him to develop itself further; and it gets the graphic from that stone, basalt, it help the stone to this characteristic.

And to what extent the artist is visible in the sculpture?
That cannot answer it.
That must try someone outstanding, it knows and the sculpture.
"natural are the sculptures" I ".
"however otherwise legend it to its sculptures nothing; if it tried, it cannot.
That runs over the intuition (and it must also with the viewer), over eye and heart.
"language fails, if one wants to describe that."
The actual only ansatzweise can circle speeches.
And apply also to the question "why for figure?".
The question is "essential, but with language not beantwortbar."
He to his borders came, when he tried to write why it figures makes.
"goes rather fast at to basic celebrations our existence."
He can say only as much that the figuerliche work does not have "anything by program".
It did not decide due to preceding thoughts to make figure.
No matter, as he to the stone near-go, planning or spontaneously - it becomes a figure.
A human figure.
It concerns to it humans; in order to understand the attempt, it to approach it.

And perhaps also the viewer, in the dialogue with the figure, approaches himself.
"Wer`s to see wants, sees it also.
"however that can take one while, because there is" sculptures of the quiet tones ".
There things put in it, "which one only receive if one looks at the third time", if one ready to in-sink itself "into her."
Then it can happen that the sculpture gives something positive, strength; that it a quiescent pole becomes.
Straight one because of in their putting tension.

Christoph Hanckel: After an interview with Knut Hueneke to 01.06.1999

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