Hajnal Németh
Contrawork (Version 3)
September 2013
Ebensperger Berlin
Eröffnung der neuen Galerieräume im ehemaligen Krematorium Wedding
William Engelen, Antje Majewski, Hajnal Németh, Thomas Rentmeister et al.
21.09.–16.11.2013
Performance of 2 × 6 hours for the reopening Ebensperger at the former crematorium in Berlin Wedding.
Delivered by István Dankó, Vanessa Vieto (singers) and Simon Wahorn (as car mechanic), performing the song “Blue Volkswagen Golf”.
“Contrawork” is a contra-concert in the scope of which two different work processes - with contrary motivation and goal – are completed in the course of 12–18 hours. A car's meticulous disassembly into its parts – like a systematic and slow destruction – happening simultaneously with the piece by piece chanting of the destructed vehicle's parts – like a linear construction. To define briefly the gist of the piece: dismantling contra composing. The end-product of one action is the raw material for the other, so the score of the musical piece is composed by the system of the removed car parts.
As a Volkswagen I am the people's car since 1937
Small and affordable at each revision
A basic vehicle for family movement
For two unknown adults and three unknown children
For so many souls, for such long journeys
I am still present as a machine in blue blood
But I started to lose some of my attributes and features
As I know, yes I know
“I go shuffling out of life
Just to hide in death awhile”