Guadalajara Reporter

"He who ensouls the clay, with a view from above, composes, rejuvenates. The genuine potter endows his pieces with joy, teaching
the clay to stand proudly, speaking to the heart. Toltec, with agile
hand, give life to your pieces with formation, know the art. Another,
who knows the trade, but with clumsy hands, acts out life as though
dead."
- from an ancient Aztec poem.

Helmut Köhl is not just the average gallery owner, he is an architect
of invisible bridges. Constructing traveling exhibits of Mexican arts
is the structural framework he uses to offer a link with which to
bridge the artistic souls of distant cultures.
The blueprints for his newest undertaking, Vida y Muerte, were on
exhibit at his Haus der Kunst, Puente del Arte Contemporáneo gallery
in Guadalajara this past November. Scheduled to open in full splendor
November, 2000 in Europe, Köhl´s latest viaduct will offer a visual
bridge to the perceptions of death and life from the vantage points of
Mexican and non-Mexican artists.
The two-week prelude exhibit opened November 2, in conjunction with
Mexico's traditional Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) festivities.
Like a tantalizing appetizer of what is to come, paramount works by
Marco Antonio Castillo, Adrian Luis Gonzalez, Theodor Riedl, Nacho
Gomez Arriola, Ismael Vargas, Judith Gutierrez and many other
outstanding artists, adorned the exhibit's main "altar" and
surrounding spaces. Marco Antonio Castillo's exquisitely detailed
miniature "Tree of Death," - not more than five inches in height-
portrayed tiny skeletons making merry on earthenware branches.
Surrounded by flying doves, plates of mole, mugs of pulque, and a
colorful assortment of fruits and vegetables, the work masterfully
depicts Mexican culture through the use of traditional popular art.
Flanking either side were two miniature Metepec "Trees of Life,"
created by Adrian Luis Gonzalez. Gonzalez's use of soft earthtones
contrasted marvelously beside the vivid reds, purples, yellows and
greens of the "Tree of Death."
At the foot of the installation altar, created by Nacho Gomez Arriola,
hung an impressive wool tapestry by Theodor Riedl (b. Austria, 1954;
d. Jalisco, Mexico, 1987), entitled Vida y Muerte. The detailed
textile personified Mexico's view of the endless cycle of life and
death by using an image of the human face ... somehow familiar, yet
unknown, which softly melted into the form of a skull. The view
transforms itself into a child before regressing back to the original
central facial image.
Helmut Köhl, along with son and gallery partner Christian Köhl, will
be commissioning two works from each of these artists, and numerous
others, for the planned November, 2000 exhibit. Scheduled to open in
Chicago, Illinois before continuing on to museums in Germany, Austria,
Switzerland, Denmark and Hungary, this is Köhl's second international-
scale exhibition featuring Mexican masters.
In 1984, Köhl, along with above mentioned weaver Theodor Riedl, Miguel
Carmona and Gilberto Ramos began researching, documenting and
commissioning works of traditional Mexican pottery from 120 studios
located in 15 different states (in conjunction with the German
cultural center, "El Puente," which helped fund the project).
By 1986, the foursome had logged several thousand miles, assembled 359
pieces and had compiled a 238-page book, in German, cataloging the
exhibit. "Wer den Ton beseelt ... Cerámica Mexicana" (He Who Ensouls
the Clay... Mexican Pottery) ran for two years along side the "Glanz
und Untergang des Alten Mexico" (Twinkle and Twilight of Ancient
Mexico) exhibit, under the administration of Director Eggebrecht. The
sub-exhibit of contemporary Mexican pottery was so successfully
received that during the two-year stint, before the exhibition closed
its doors, invitations for showings from other European museums were
already piling up.
The display traveled independently for an additional eight years
before being incorporated into the Hildesheim Museum's collection in
Germany. The tremendous reception which these works received in
western Europe inspired Helmut Köhl to open the "Haus der Kunst,
Puente del Arte Contemporáneo" (House of Art, Bridge for Contemporary
Art) gallery in Guadalajara earlier this year.
Köhl, who made Mexico his permanent home 24 years ago, intends to
forge an even stronger bridge between this nation's deep-rooted
customs and international awareness of Mexico's master artists. Haus
der Kunst gallery - and Helmut Köhl - are a far cry from the "seduce
and plunder" attitude too often perceived as the "norm" in a nation
which continues to totter between the First and Third World. As Köhl
wryly noted, "My friends - artists, artisans, creators - are closer to
my heart than some members of my own family. Together we talk about
what we can create for the future ... not what we can buy to 'profit'
from. Not recognizing or wanting to know about the artist of a piece
is, in my mind, akin to what happened in Germany during the 1940s ...
no one gains by wanting the art while destroying the artist."
The exhibit, and publication which accompanied it, were named after an
Aztec poem which begins with the line, "He who Ensouls the Clay..."
Köhl would like to see the German volume produced in Spanish and
English as well. He noted that of the 10,000 issues published, the
majority were sold in the United States. Wer den Ton beseelt was not
exhibited in Mexico or the U.S.
Copies of the original book are available from the publisher, El
Puente GmbH, or through El antiQuario Magazine.

(This article is from the latest edition of the bilingual publication
on Mexican arts and antiques, El antiQuario Magazine. For subscription
or other information contact: elantiquario@infosel.net.mx Offices in:
Argentina 73; Col. Americana, Guadalajara, Tel. (3) 827-1990 & 827-
0378 www.elantiquario.com.)

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