Object
Suitcase in brown synthetic material with works in various media:
1 audio tape, 1 Super-8-film,
1 video tape (empty reel), 12 black and white 35mm slides,
13 black-and-white photographs (13.8 x 9 cm / 9 x 13.8 cm each),
"Street Portfolio" of roofing paper, painted, (31.8 x 25.5 x 3 cm)
with 15 blueprints in plastic sleeves (29.9 x 21 cm each),
Edition 61/100
2 keys, 2 certificates (29.7 x 21 cm each), 2 textsheets (index),
39 x 36 x 12 cm (suitcase)
Edition 1/11
The Media Suitcase was first exhibited at Documenta 5 (1972) in Kassel, it was offered for sale as a multiple in a branch of Walther König’s bookstore that had been converted into a sales room for artists’ editions. It contains works by Gottfried Bechtold in completely heterogeneous media such as spoken text (on an accompanying audio tape), film, video and photographs. It also includes the Street Portfolio, a further edition issued by the artist which consists of blueprints of image-text montages. A certificate with fingerprint and signature guarantees the originality of the various components, which document the artist’s trip to the Documenta in Kassel and also contain instructions for potential buyers. The use of widely differing types of media conveys an extremely disparate and heterogeneous view both of the world and of Bechtold’s own artistic personality. At the same time, the title, choice of materials, and presentation can be read as his ironic commentary on the 1970s “media artist.” (Claudia Slanar)
