23rd - 25th March, 2006
Berlin

Transmissions captured three independent highlights from the opening weekend of events in and around the 4th Berlin Biennial. Paul McCarthy's 1992 'Bang Bang Room' -a brilliantly pared down haunted house style stage set-in-motion- was reinstalled in the Jewish School for Girl's as part of one of the major presentation on Auguststrasse for this year's Biennnial, 'Of Mice and Men'.

Away from the Biennial but attracting its crowds Galerie Giti Nourbaskhsch presented Cezary Bodzianowski, a Polish-based artist whose very idiosyncratic performative work has been described as "insouciant flanerie", which "recalls the chess career of Marcel Duchamp, or Arthur Cravan’s forays into boxing". On this occasion the artist was found standing stock still on the road opposite the gallery holding a bunch of bananas whilst a large crowd stood in the gallery waiting for an event, many of whom remained unaware of the small action outside.

Occupying its own historic position next to the Volksbuhne -one of the main east Berlin early 20th Century theatres- is Galerie Meerrettich run by artist Josef Strau. Housed in a small pavilion set next to the concert hall in a space that was once its ticket hall the exhibition programme is produced within the special conditions of the building as object, with its special architectural limitations. An intruiging mise-en-scene of beautiful two-dimensional painted characters was on show, entitled 'Jigsaw (jeu de societe) by artists Lucile Desamory, Lucy Mckenzie and Birgit Megerle.

VIEW ITEMS

 'Bang Bang Room' Paul McCarthy

 'Best Before', Cezary Bodzianowski

 Jigsaw (Jeu de societe), Galerie Meerrettick

Credits
Image capture: Christabel Stewart