18. Armin Schubert

An astute observer of landscape, the Austrian artist Armin Schubert designed natural architecture. Inspired by details in nature and structures, he mainly worked with natural materials found outdoors (stones, branches, roots, leaves, earth, etc). He then rearranged these commonplace elements into new units, putting them together according to their characteristics (shapes, colours and textures), seeking to give them a new appearance and new meaning. The value and dignity of this 'waste' was restored as it found new purpose as carefully fashioned parts of a whole, revealing a new perspective to viewers. Once the idea for the work had been sketched out, it was built by hand, with few technical resources. During the production phase, he often let the material guide him. He also attached great significance to the relationship with the environment. The unique features of the landscape, luminosity and distances were taken into account, for the work of art was defined by the space and the context.

"I've always been attentive to the landscape, to the unique features of the environment, nature and its structures, I want to create objects, expressive, new entities, by transforming and rearranging nature's offerings: material properties, colours and shapes. My installations take their time: the preparatory phase required is often lengthy as it involves the patient and passionate combination of materials. For me, finding the final position of the object outdoors is an integral part of the artistic concept. The landscape's character, dimensions and luminosity are determining factors. Normally I work in my chosen location using my hands and only rely on technical support in special cases. I feel that meticulousness and patience are vital in order to bestow upon the object the intended expression. As an artist, I sort of cultivate the earth. I respond to the complexity of natural processes and phenomena through material "landmarks", indications of human interaction on a ground which lends itself to it. In high uninhabited mountain areas, where the forces of nature roam free, works of art, crafts, or their traces are only rarely found. Human presence there is only temporary and we are forced to learn to submit to environmental conditions – unlike what normally happens in our high-tech civilisation". Armin Schubert

A creator of natural architecture, Armin Schubert’s work is essentially based on raw materials (stones, branches, roots, leaves, earth, etc.). The Objets sphériques entitled “sub-ex-terre”, which he designed for Domaine de Chaumont-sur-Loire, seem to literally rise up out of the ground.

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES

Armin SCHUBERT
AUSTRIA

Armin Schubert was born in 1950, in Lustenau in Austria. Between 1971 and 2010, he taught German, Art and Biology in Dornbirn in Austria. As part of his work, he created a number of art projects and regularly took part in the Arte Stella Biennale. He completed self-taught training courses in Arte Povera, Art in nature, Land Art and Environmental Art.

He died on 1 January 2016.