The freely accessible work Labyrinth by Olaf Nicolai stands in the garden of the GfZK. The striking object, which is particularly popular with children, had to be dismantled in 2009 because the material had disintegrated over the years due to the effects of the weather and the mounting structure had been destroyed.
In addition to the implicit aspects – the labyrinth as an ancient symbol in human history and the topicality of migration and acquisition policy – the specific material of plastic as a material in contemporary art is examined in the conservation machine. Furthermore, questions of destruction and self-destruction of artworks as well as of original and reconstruction are raised and discussed.
[The work, initially on permanent loan from the artist and Galerie Eigen + Art, entered the GfZK collection as a donation from the artist after its reconstruction in 2012].