Liminal
Lilian Nachtigall
Moving Grounds #4
Lilian Nachtigall (*2000) graduated in fine arts from Prof. Karsten Konrad's sculpture class at Berlin University of the Arts. Her works, which initially took shape as space-related pieces in a workshop room at the university, have developed into a processual exhibition that occupies the space of the B-Part Exhibition. “Moving Grounds” is a format that offers artists the opportunity to independently realize projects that simultaneously enter into a dialogue with the overarching themes of the overall project: new urban forms and future models of living and working. Within “Moving Grounds,” new prototypes of urban space are created over several days, which, in their processual and open forms, question the interactions between artistic practice and cultural and social approaches.
Nachtigall's works, consisting of modular sculptures and large-scale installations, refer to the principle of the workspace and explore it on the level of sculpture. The works function both as autonomous sculptures and as spatial reflections of the specific architectural conditions of the workshop space in which they were created. In the context of “Moving Grounds,” an artistic practice evolves that approaches the architecture and elements of the B-Part Exhibition. In the course of this process, the working process transforms into an exhibition situation and focuses on the principle of the threshold state. Nachtigall works primarily with plasterboard and drywall materials, which are not only used in the actual construction of rooms, but whose materiality also references the character and color scheme of the workshop and the exhibition room. Her works hover between the imitative elements of models and the actual reference to construction.
In addition to the sculptural and installation works, “Liminal” is expanded by a cinematic component. The modular spatial sculptures and camera rails mimic the principle of a film set and are simultaneously integrated into the practice of camera work. The resulting film serves both as a documentation of the exhibition in the UdK workshop space and as an independent cinematic investigation of space. Nachtigall's spatial sculptures refer to the temporary structure of the B-Part building, which—like her works—is part of the ongoing urban development of the Urban Center at Gleisdreieckpark. The building is modular and can be dismantled, which underscores the relationship between space and time in her work.
The term liminality (Latin limen = threshold) describes a transitional or threshold state in which new possibilities open up, but at the same time uncertainties can arise. The term was first used in ethnology and can be traced back to Arnold van Gennep's publication Les Rites des Passages (1909). Van Gennep defined transitions between phases of life or social status as “liminal.” Anthropologist Victor Turner further developed the term and regarded liminal spaces as those that exist beyond established social orders and enable behaviors that are considered irrational, amoral, or anarchic by society.
In pop and internet culture, liminal spaces have been popping up on social media and forums since 2019: pictures of deserted but man-made places that give off a disturbing, almost dreamlike vibe—empty offices, abandoned hotel rooms, or supermarkets that remind you of “off-spaces.” These places are neither completely foreign nor completely familiar; they seem eerie and fascinating at the same time. Similar concepts can be found in film and painting, for example in Stanley Kubrick's shots of empty hotel corridors in The Shining, the mystical Black Lodge in David Lynch's Twin Peaks, or the deserted urban spaces in Edward Hopper's paintings.
Nachtigall's works also move in these liminal intermediate states. They oscillate between model and sculpture, between the processual workspace and the exhibition as a finished product. Her works lie between workshop character and artistic installation, between reduction to formal principles and the detail accuracy of the craft process.
The B-Part Exhibition space accompanies the future development of the Urbane Mitte Am Gleisdreieck with artistic autonomy and thus at the same time enters into a dialogue with the overarching themes of the overall project - forms of New Work, Co-working, Culture and Sport - and creates synergies between artistic, cultural and social approaches. The artistic director of the B-Part Exhibition is Rüdiger Lange (loop - raum für aktuelle kunst).