Berliner Zeitung 05.12.2006

The German painter Tomma Abts yesterday won the Turner Prize. Sebastian Preuss thoroughly approves. "It is a good choice, because Tomma Abts is one of the most relevant painters of our time, who has long and wrongly stood in the shadow of fashionable figuration. Her small-scale compositions which emerge from endless over-paintings breath new life into geometric modernism. They are wonders of graphical elegance which classical forms and a pinch of zeitgeisty retro design permeate in so matchless a manner that one could sink into each one of these stereotypically 48 by 38 centimetre paintings for hours at a time."


Die Tageszeitung 05.12.2006

The upcoming day of celebrations in the honour of the FSB has prompted Klaus Helge-Donath to conclude that the secret police in Russia now has a stronger footing in politics and society than ever before. And "since an ex-spy came to power in the Kremlin, the service has become a brand name with street cred among the youth. The sword and shield emblem of the secret police is considered chic and can frequently been seen shining out from the spare tire of many an in-your-face western SUV. FSB is in. Anyone determined to get their hands on money and power joins 'the organ'. Because certainly since Putin has been in the Kremlin, the Chekists have secured all number of pole positions from which to conduct lucrative business – in the name of heroic patriotism."

Ira Mazzoni has been to the Pinakothek der Moderne in Munich to see the major retrospective of works by light artist Dan Flavin, who died in 1996. "Flavin's artworks are more than beautiful. They do not form a counterpoint to the observer. Rather, they unite viewers with the space. And sometimes they attack you from behind with political messages: 'Monument 4 those who have been killed in ambush' is pointed like a taut crossbow at everyone one who enters and exits the room. And woe betide anyone who walks under this installation, for a large, tombstone-like cross will loom over them. This monument for all those killed in ambush was created during the Vietnam war. But as an existential memorial it extends far beyond this event."


Süddeutsche Zeitung 05.12.2006

Lou Ye is director of the film "Summer Palace", which takes place against the background of Tienanmen. The film is banned in China, and Lou has been banned from working for five years for allowing "Summer Palace" to be shown at Cannes. Lou explains in an interview with Anke Sterneborg what that means to him: "You can't shoot films, and you can't work as a producer or agent for another director. But I can write a screenplay in my own home, I think. And of course the censorship authorities know that this ban only holds in China. The bureaucrat responsible actually said to journalists: 'If he tries to make a film in another country, there's nothing I can do about it.' That kind of attitude didn't exist before, you assumed their judgement applied to the entire world. I think this is all about a test of strength, and in point of fact, this ban in 2006 is nothing but a joke."

Ingo Petz presents "powerpoint karaoke," the latest action by the Zentrale Intelligenz Agentur, the subversive capitalist-socialist enterprise whose agent Kathrin Passig won (some say infiltrated) this year's Ingeborg Bachmann prize (more here): "The rules: the competitor spontaneously selects one of the 15 presentations that ZIA agent and karaoke instigator Holm Friebe has fished out of the Internet and classified according to difficulty. Examples are 'China contacts of the Bochum Chamber of Commerce' (level 10), 'Europe's culture of bread' (level 4) or 'Measuring System Down Time' (level 10). Contestants warm up with a vodka and have five minutes to entertain the audience and jury as best they can with a convincing presentation using the slides. Courage, spontaneity, exhibitionism and unparalleled self-confidence are essential to make up for the fact that you haven't the vaguest notion what you're talking about. Truth is the best bluff of all."