Irène Hänni Epp

Female
Irène Hänni Epp
I am: Artist
Style: Digital Media
Category: Prints
Motto: Fluxus
City: Goldau
Country: Switzerland

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Contacts
Geert Winkel

About

Specialties:

Neue Medien

Ethnicity:

White / Caucasian

Interested in meeting:

Business

Experience (in years):

School:

Schule für Gestaltung Basel, ETH Zürich, Universität Zürich

Education:

Vorkurs und Basis Erweiterungsklasse, diverse Origianldrucktechniken, Zeichnen, Skulptur, 3 Semester Architektur, 3,5 Semester Germanistik, Publizistik

Website:

www.haenni-irene.ch

Statement of the artist:

There is always an idea, a text or something in a lingual form in the beginning. This forces me to think things over; this makes my phantasies searching for an equivalent. Philosophy was a topic that made me thinking over in early times. Also the research of language or the cultural history of relegions or mathematics inspired me. I need a concept, a structure to follow. I am searching a long time for the suitable expression and the corresponding technique on my way to a new work. Here the computer helps me a lot. I consider it being an instrument for realising my ideas. I am astonished about beauty of nature, but an architectural Oevre or a sculpture can fascinate me in the same way. I always took photographs (human beings, buildings, landscapes and towns - or nature). I am interested in processes; I am always looking for the fundamental reason of things. In former times I was working with sculpturing. My first artistic oevre was an egg made of chalk stone (a bottiglio). This was like a starting point for my artistic carreer. I work with different printing-techniques. Language is very important for me, bat also paintings and drawings sometimes are very close.

My interests

Photographs, drawings, paintings, sculptures, modern art, spare time in nature, sun, light, living.

I like:

Architekture and landscapes. Human beings, animals. Mountains and lakes. Well-balanced self-confidence.

I hate:

Arrogance. Bad smells. Annoying sounds.

My hobbies:

Art, Music, Movement, Art...

My favorite artist:

Alberto Giacometti. Constantin Brancusi, Vincent Van Gogh, Henri Matisse, George Braque, Fernand Léger, William Turner, Pipilotti Rist, Marc Rothko, Paul Klee, Marc Chagall, Hans Arp, Juan Mirò, Piet Mondrian u.a.

My favorite art books:

I am reading little; I cannot affort many books.

About my work

About work:

Developing processes and the change are the main topics in my work. The Theory of Signs of Umberto Eco is the basis of my numbers' and names' prints. The Development of the numbers (a book by Georges Ifrah) has influenced me strongly. I work with European sign-systems, the German language and "translate" it into new sign-systems. My new signs are completely different from the basis. Anyway the core is always remaining. But visable ist a different kind of sign something similar to a asiatic or arabic sign. My technique led me to a universal form-language that is the bases for every kind of sign-language...

Also the works based on photographs follow the processus of changement. Some time they are overworked very strongly and added by traditional printing-techniques as litography or high-pressure-process. Or I develop on the computer in complex working-processes complex images as those from the group "transparencies".

Further information see under: www.irene-haenni.ch

My style:

New media are fascinating because they allow to find new experessions by experimental work on the computer. But the classical techniques also influence me because they allow me to find the new expressions in my work.

Photography was always important to me. For many years I take portrait fotographs of people and plants. Landscapes and architecture take part of my favourite subjects. All my photographs are the basis for my further works.

My concept :

In the Beginning of my different work-groups there is alwys a concept that has something to do with developing processes and changement as mentioned above.
My aim is the complete art work. I am fascinated by the big parallels between different cultures..

Communication defines mankind. But here always are the biggest misunderstandings. This is exactly the reason why I work with the sign's theory. It is universal for all cultures.

In the sign's theory it is said that there is also a significant and a significat. that is why I develop artist's books. Here the connection between image and sign is alwas very special.

I work with these materials:

The main print-techniques in my work are:
digital print with pigmented ink, silk-screening, lithography and high-pressure process

I work on different papers as on offset-paper,japanese papier, cotton paper u.a. or on canvas.

I would like to work more in drawings and paintings.

What kind of materials I prefer:

At the moment: prints on canvas or cotton paper.

What inspires me?:

Who are we and where do we want to go?

Favorite work and why:

The works from the series "transparencies", my numbers' prints and my artist's books are very important to me because they take the main topics of my history.

My message:

I am a perfectionist. Quality is before quantity.

About art

How I got into art:

I always liked drawing and painting. I started with taking photographs in early times. Music always accompanied myself. Thinking things over and developping ideas was always interesting for me. When I was a young girl I read a lot and wrote much. I learned the conceptual thinking at the technical university, what was very important for me. Today I improve my photographic knowledge. My aim is that my photographs become as good as photographs can be. I paint with the camera. I search for completely new pictures, for the poetic topic in the picture.

What art means to me:

Art stands for freedom in thinking and being. With art I can develop myself, I find the expression for the ideas in my mind. I always am moving, I am never standing still. I am always looking for new visual expressions.

My favourite artists:

I rarely visit exhibitions, especially modern art I do consume rarely. Despite this there are some very important artists I like very much as Matisse, Turner, Van Gogh, Goguin, Alberto Giacometti, Mondrian, Paul Klee aso. There are also some Renaissance-artists I adore very much.

Most impressive piece of art of another artist:

The sowing-man in the Bührle Collection from Vincent Van Gogh.

My favourite art books:

I am seldomly reading. I cannot affort a lot of books.

What has changed in the world of art in recent years:

I think there are only a few contemporary artists people will remember in one hundred years. The market of art has become quicker. The public often ist more impressed by the hype than by the long-term relevance of an oevre. This is my impression.