A DELIGHTFUL RAINBOW EXPLOSION FROM ARTIST MARKUS LINNENBRINK

The German artist draws visitors into a supersized scientific and artistic exploration of color

German-born, New York-based artist Markus Linnenbrink embraces color with open arms. In fact, the vast majority of his work is spent examining color and its impact. But he didn’t always throw himself wholeheartedly into the rainbow abyss. He even used to be a little frightened of color. We find this reassuring in lieu of the overwhelming sense of panic we feel when simply gazing upon his latest installation that is part of the exhibition “Off The Wall! Image Spaces and Spatial Images” at Kunsthalle Nürnburg.

Officially titled ‘WASSERSCHEIDE(DESIREALLPUTTOGETHER)’, the installation encloses visitors in a life-sized optical illusion. Void of external sensory distractions, visitors are confronted with bold stripes of color running from floor to ceiling and from room to room, making the space seem infinite. Rather than feeling like an entity separate from the artwork, visitors become part of the tableau.

Linnenbrink frequently works on site-specific installations and concentrates on creating a dialogue between the space’s blank canvas and his work. For this particular installation, he was inspired by light refraction and human perception of color. Indeed, the colors often seem to bend and refract upon hitting a corner or curve. To accomplish the paint’s impressively shiny patina, the artist used matte acrylic paint and then coated it in epoxy resin.