Kathi Kaeppel: Drawing in Space and Time - Exploration of artistic practices of the animated drawing in space

The aim of this scientific-artistic research project is to investigate the development and possibilities of a distinct art genre, the drawn animation in space.

Project start:
2018
Project completion:
2024
Kathi Kaeppel: The lonesome tree, Mehrkanal Video–Installation, 4K–Video, 4096 X 2160 PX, color, Ton, 4 X 45 SEC, Frankfurt am Main, März 2020, Fotograf*in: Anna Imm (opens enlarged image)
Kathi Kaeppel: The lonesome tree, Mehrkanal Video–Installation, 4K–Video, 4096 X 2160 PX, color, Ton, 4 X 45 SEC, Frankfurt am Main, März 2020, Fotograf*in: Anna Imm

The research project “Drawing in Space and Time. Artistic practices of animated drawing in space” examines the development and possibilities of a distinct art form, the drawn animation in space. Its specialty is to create a constructed and controlled media space and to superimpose it with a physical spatiality and plasticity of an installation, which is also part of the artistic expression. In this way, the animated film in its explicit artificiality allows a direct view of the artistic possibilities of the medium.

Since the 1960s, animated film and film have encroached on the environment of the screening in the sense of an "installation" as an object of artistic and commercial debate. The result is a new format: the animated image in space, or expanded animation, in various forms, which in the museum context have so far been recorded as video installations, immersive installations or augmented reality (AR) installations. This work examines the framework conditions, structures and the artistic and cultural effects of the animated film in space and the conditions under which the physical and digital elements combine in new dispositifs. The analytical, theoretical discourse is supplemented in this research project by artistic research, which is more than just a theoretical discussion and is able to show the possibilities and chances of the artistic practice.

  • Project lead: Kathi Käppel
  • Contact:
  • CV: Kathi Kaeppel (*1977, Heidelberg) is an artist working on site-specific installations, exploring the territories of drawing and animated drawing in space. In her works she discusses nature impacted by human interventions and the effects of a missing reference system for our actions. This reference frame is established by accelerating natural and man-made processes to create intense and unexpected experiences. For each work Kaeppel creates a specific system of scale, lines of perception, and colours as a spatial choreography in which the recipient becomes an active participant. The installations are composed of elements that are rearranged to an immersive experience of drawing in time and space. Her interest lies in creating and surpassing boundaries at the same time. Using lines and basic shapes, she creates spaces as a field of possibilities. Despite the level of abstraction and sophistication behind the three-dimensional dynamic installations, Kæppel’s pieces convey a sense of lightness, contrasting the profound atmosphere associated with her themes.Kathi Kaeppel has studied at Kunsthochschule Berlin-Weißensee and University for the Creative Arts, UK. In addition to numerous awards and fundings, she received a grant from the DAAD, the Fulbright Commission and the Foundation for Freedom.
  • Website: http://www.kathikaeppel.com/https://blog.hslu.ch/mied/

  • PhD Advisors: Prof. Dr. Hans Joachim Neubauer, Prof. Frank Geßner
  • Scientific / artistic PhD in the discipline: Screenwriting/Dramaturgy
  • Founded by:  Schweizerischer Nationalfonds, Stiftung Freiheit