Umgang / Round Trip

Lutz Fritsch has incorporated dialogue-based concepts in several of his works, such as the two-part sculpture Standortmitte / Location Center, which marks the beginning and end of the historic autobahn in Cologne and Bonn. In Marl, the artist also erected two formally reduced landmarks in the form of simple, signal-red stelae, which are barely distinguishable as artistically designed sculptures on their own. It is only through their shared dialogue and connections drawn by the viewer that the work of art emerges, incorporating the surroundings and redefining how they are perceived.

In contrast to Standortmitte / Location Center, where both stelae cannot be seen at the same time and can only be connected in the viewer’s mind, the two stelae in Marl stand on opposite sides of Citysee. The two elements are within sight of each other, denoting an imaginary axis, a line of sight across the lake. If, however, a viewer wants to get from one stele to the other, he or she will have to travel a considerable distance around the lake. In this way, thinking and acting can be directly experienced in their different dimensions.