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Albert Mertz

SEE SEE

It is a great pleasure to open the extensive exhibition "SEE SEE" featuring Albert Mertz. The exhibition is curated by Sam Jedig, who, through Stalke Gallery over the past 30 years, has arranged six major solo exhibitions with Mertz and numerous group exhibitions.

Albert Mertz passed away in 1990, and this year marks the celebration of his 100th anniversary. Sorø Kunstmuseum has just opened the special exhibition "ALT DETTE ER DERES" (ALL THIS IS THEIRS), which will subsequently be moved to Holstebro Kunstmuseum.

Albert Mertz is one of Denmark’s most significant artists, navigating through a multitude of artistic expressions, methods, and media. As he often articulated himself, "the difference is the same." It was not about a specific style or form but the most precise communication of content and meaning. Mertz experimented through his art and time and again posed the fundamental question: What is art?

Stalke Gallery presents a significant selection of works from the 1950s and onwards until Mertz's death, showcasing various expressions such as collage, assemblage, pop art, and a broad spectrum of conceptual painting. The exhibition title is derived from one of the exhibited works, "SEE SEE," from the 1980s.

Albert Mertz's first exhibition at Stalke Gallery was in 1988, together with Lawrence Weiner. Subsequently, several Danish artists such as Jens Brinch, Søren Andreasen, Nils Erik Gjerdevik, Peter Holst Henckel were challenged to curate exhibitions with Mertz and to explore angles not previously highlighted. This has been an important foundation for the new generation of artists in Denmark.

Mertz’s most recognizable production is his "Red-Blue" works from the 1970s and 1980s, a distinctive signature that is also revisited in this exhibition.

The exhibition includes more than 75 selected works.

The exhibition opens on Saturday, November 7, from 12:00 to 17:00, and afterwards by appointment.
The gallery can accommodate 25 visitors at a time.

Sam Jedig & Stalke Galleri

Review

A Glimpse of a Blue-Red Reality

ART: Sam Jedig's development as a gallery owner and artist is connected to Albert Mertz, who is today considered one of the most significant figures in modern Danish art. Now, Galleri Stalke is exhibiting over 75 works by Mertz.

SONNERUP: An exhibition featuring more than 75 works by the legendary Danish artist Albert Mertz can now be seen at Galleri Stalke in Kirke Sonnerup.

And some might say that Galleri Stalke is closely tied to Albert Mertz. As early as 1988, gallery owner Sam Jedig met the artist’s wife, Lone Mertz, at Jedig's gallery in Copenhagen. She challenged him to organize an exhibition with Albert Mertz and Lawrence Weiner, a renowned American conceptual artist.

Sam Jedig took on the challenge. And it would prove to have great significance for his later career, both as a gallery owner and an artist. Over the last 30 years, Sam Jedig has arranged six major solo exhibitions of Mertz's work and countless group exhibitions.

Albert Mertz was a professor at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in the 1980s, and he passed away 30 years ago. Yet he remains vivid in Sam Jedig’s memory:

"I was very young myself in the 1980s and very curious about him. He inspired everyone. Lone Mertz challenged me again in the late 1990s; she owned part of his works, and this resulted in yet another exhibition, which I curated with Lone’s help. This was after his death," Sam Jedig recounts.

"At that time, there wasn’t much interest or sales of his works, and it was still difficult to promote him beyond Danish borders. But then there was a breakthrough in the 2000s—museums bought his works, and he became more internationally recognized," Sam Jedig explains.

"Since then, things have progressed significantly. Any collector would now want to own something by Mertz. It’s now universally acknowledged that he was one of the most significant Danish modern artists. Many have been influenced and inspired by Mertz, such as Olafur Eliasson, for example," he adds.

Olafur Eliasson is today world-renowned for a long career.

Olafur Eliasson

And yes, Olafur Eliasson has also been exhibited at Galleri Stalke, even before the gallery moved to Sonnerup 20 years ago.

Sam Jedig, who lives in the house adjacent to the gallery in Englerupvej, Sonnerup, recalls first knowing Olafur Eliasson from the early years in Holbæk. He was among the first to exhibit Eliasson’s works, which were some of the hottest trends when Jedig’s gallery in Copenhagen was at its peak.

Albert Mertz constantly sought to challenge art’s boundaries, exploring an expressive visual language across media and methods. At the core of his work was the fundamental question: “What is art?” This remains a defining focus.

Like a Mirror

The exhibition at Galleri Stalke features both Sam Jedig’s own Mertz-inspired works and others he has borrowed.

Albert Mertz was deeply interested in exploring reality. He was among the first to work with text in images and experiment with abstract simplicity. He came from Paris, drawing inspiration from his travels back to Denmark, explains Sam Jedig.

"In the ’70s, one investigates what a room, a canvas, or a painting actually is. By turning the back of the canvas outward, you suddenly see the painter as part of the picture," says Jedig, who is also an artist.

"I have used Albert Mertz as a mirror. And I’ve been fortunate enough to present his work in many museums. His art has inspired countless people to understand what new art is," he adds.

Blue and red are almost a logo for Albert Mertz. Many of the works exhibited at Stalke carry these colors—a recognizable signature.

The exhibition of Mertz’s works runs until December 20 and is open by appointment.

A Cube Room in the Gallery

SONNERUP: Galleri Stalke on Englerupvej 62 in Kirke Sonnerup was once a community meeting house.

If you walk quietly around, you can almost hear echoes of the many voices and experiences that the local people of earlier times shared here.

In the middle of the gallery, Sam Jedig has built his cube room with high walls. Inside, you can see dazzling displays of a wide variety of art, offering a sensory experience especially appreciated by connoisseurs.

As a gallery owner, Sam Jedig has brought together many things, and during the recent opening of the Albert Mertz exhibition, visitors were almost lining up to step inside the cube room—but they had to wait a moment to comply with the coronavirus regulations.