DREI BIOGRAPHISCHE VERSUCHE: Kapitel 2 “Der Wolkenvermesser”

The basic assumption of Müller’s “Cloud Atlas” is that understanding is only possible through the linking of individual elements, through which similarity becomes perceptible. Müller believes that in every repetition a difference arises, even if it is marginal, in which only sense and understanding can be formed. This belief ties in with French philosopher Jacques Derrida’s theory of deconstruction. Müller questions the possibility of a comprehensive and complete system of meaning and knowledge, and artistically demonstrates the fact that fragments can exist at the same time. These fragments, individually can make sense on their own, but also elude a systematic representation because they lose their meaningfulness in their structural consideration. This is contrasted by the self-referential elements that Müller integrated into the installation work, such as the index of the index can be seen (plate #65), and the grid structure is taken up by individual drawings and passe-partouts.

(Jacques Derrida and Jean-Luc Nancy were peers with an ambiguous relationship—intellectually, they challenged each other greatly. The two brilliant thinkers took on different strategies in exploring the plurality of singularities. Müller pays tribute to the duo in his “Cloud Atlas”.)

Another major work is Fucking Prain (Miss Spelling), a diptych created with acrylic, lacquer and digital print on alu-dibond and glass. The pair of paintings consists of many layers, not just physical layers, but layers of time—Müller’s personal time, traveling from the artist’s early works to his most recent explorations in the Schwierige Bilder [Difficult Paintings] series.

Müller created Fucking Prain (Miss Spelling) with the idea of dissecting a brain—would we be able to see how information passes through our nerves? How does our brain work? Specifically, Müller photographs his early work, exercises the image on Photoshop, prints it onto the alu-dibond, and then paints over some parts again. This process is repeated. The original image is itself part of the process, subject to revision. In the end, the actual original is nowhere to be found, except perhaps a few remaining fragments.

How accurate is our memory? Is it possible to go back to where we were, both as we were and as the moment was? Could it all be recreated? Can we process a piece of information repeatedly, or are we always cultivating new information? How do we make sense of the world?

Questioning assertions or making new ones—has been a central motif in Müller’s artistic practice. And where could this aspect be exemplified in a more forceful manner than in painting, the medium that has such an inherent ideological charge.

In addition to the large works, Der Wolkenvermesser features two floor installations which include a Scarlet Ibis specimen. Known as the bird of knowledge and the holy bird in North African traditions, the Scarlet Ibis serves as the “observer” of Müller’s “Cloud Atlas”. There are also three unusual format wall objects, and 15 graphite drawings inspired by incidents and dreams from his travels in Tibet and the Himalayas.