In fall 2007 the Ilgens have started a new initiative for Berlin. These 'Checkpoint Ilgen' events are a kind of art salons, meeting points for personally invited artists, art historians, art critics, collectors, art dealers. The main objective is to discuss the experience evoked by works of art. Each event will include a group exhibition and a substantial discussion, often centered around a major personality in the international artworld or important actual theme. The leading themata are "experience works of art evoke" and "global art".

These events are not intended to project Fré Ilgen's own opinions but to stimulate a dialogue on
topics that concern all art lovers as human beings. While as main guests representatives of the
various players in the art world are invited and the topics are obvious though still unusual as
currently these are not asked in the art world, the growing involvement of the audience (each time
apr 70-80 persons all concerned with art but from very different backgrounds and generations,
between 25 – 85 years of age) demonstrates the need for such encounters. The dialogue with the
audience starts gradually to revolve around the central subject: what is fundamental in the encounter and interaction of a human being and a work of visual art?

'Kunstsalons Berlin – Der Dritte Raum', Gunnar Luetzow, Berlin,
in ART-Das Kunstmagazin,www.art-magazin.de
'Berlin, Mon Amour', by Donald Kuspit on Artnet
'Im privaten Kunstsalon von Fré Ilgen', von Eva Kaczor www.artberlin.de

CHECKPOINT ILGEN #8

On November 26th 2011 in the private apartment of Jacqueline and Fré Ilgen in Berlin 'Checkpoint
Ilgen #8' took place in direct collaboration with Beck&Eggeling International Fine Art, including a
discussion moderated by Fré Ilgen with main guests art dealer Michael Beck and art
historian/curator/museum director of exhibitions Dr. Marc Wellmann. Special guest: Hazem Taha
Hussein, who flew in from Cairo. This event builds further on the 'Checkpoint Ilgen#1-#6' events
(see below) which positioned a legendary museum director of the Guggenheim, some leading art
critics and artists from various cultural backgrounds, and continues directly to the dialogue in
'Checkpoint Ilgen#7' with a passionate collector and two younger artists with the present audience.

"ART AS EXPRESSION OF BEING II:
Analogies in Creative Focus/Analogien im kreativen Fokus"
Though there are clear differences in the perception and therefore execution between two- and
three-dimensional artworks, art history demonstrates occasionally very interesting and clear
analogous forms of expression. This 'Checkpoint Ilgen', building on works by Fausto Melotti and
Paul Klee, and additional sculptures and paintings/works on paper by other artists, has attempted to offer an incentive to consider this phenomenon from the angle of perception. Michael Beck
presented an introduction with slides of the remarkable visual analogies they showed at the gallery between Paul Klee and Fausto Melotti. Fré Ilgen then showed a slides series with quite a few examples of visual analogies from mainly 20th century painting and sculpture.

In the discussion that followed Marc Wellmann presented professional (art historical) objections to
merely visually comparing artworks from very different times and from very different artists,
providing important incentives for all present to make up their own minds. Michael Beck
emphasized that he as dealer respects artist's own points of view and concepts, but that for him the initial (visual) encounter with a work of art is of prevailing importance, thus touching upon a key issue that concerns all art lovers and collectors. Fré Ilgen repeatedly stated that whatever we prefer in art we have to remind ourselves to return to our humanity, and consider how with body and brain we perceive the world around us, because there we may find the reason why humans need visual art. A reason why he collaborates with the neuro-scientist Prof. Partha Mitra (the main guest of 'Checkpoint Ilgen#9'). He explained how visual analogies may occur and are natural, even unavoidable phenomena of being human and not to be confused with copying, faking or 'appropriating'.

A large variety of topics was touched, including the artistic views of the art presented, especially of Michael Bette, Hazem Taha Hussein, Wolfgang Flad, David Smith, Brice Marden, Bernhard Heiliger, and their visual relationship to works developed by other artists, maybe even in another time. Loops in history seem more interesting, and tell more about human creativity, than a continued belief in infinite artistic novelty. Fré Ilgen clarified how all artists are similar though individually different human beings for whom the basic tools (hand and brain) are similar. Like in the 'CPI#7' again the subject of ethics in art was touched and distinguished from censorship. Ethics results from a respect for the other and should be considered by the individual artist prior to bringing his/her work into the world. Censorship is very different from individual ethics and imprinted by a central authority. If an artist prefers to rattle the audience, he/she should be aware of the possibility that one might hurt or offend others. Hazem Taha Hussein mentioned how certain contemporary art in a too simple way purposely abuses features of Islamic culture just for marketing in the West. It is always simple to apply easily recognizable cliché's of other cultures with the purpose to be political, while disregarding the actual meaning and the other. There are more important reasons for art than mere rattling. Offering a profound experience through a work of art is not the same as offering a mere pleasing or merely beautiful picture. Persons in the audience involved themselves soon in the discussion initiated on the podium. A collector mentioned she and her husband are never asked for their opinion and why they prefer this or that art. Several artists in the audience contributed to the naturalness of influences and inspirations from works created by others before finding one's own. This was an inspiring, constructive and actual dialogue.

This event was made possible with special thanks to:
Beck&Eggeling International Fine Art Düsseldorf, Margo Leavin Gallery Los Angeles, Dr. Marc
Wellmann, Ulla and Heiner Pietzsch, Siegfried Loch, Bernhard Heiliger Foundation Berlin, The
David Smith Estate, the artists.

Exhibition:
Fausto Melotti (Italy) (B&E); Paul Klee (Switzerland) (B&E); David Smith (USA)
(Collection Ulla & Heiner Pietzsch); Wolfgang Flad (Germany); Brice Marden (USA) ( ACT Art
Collection Sammlung Sigfried Loch); Bernhard Heiliger (Germany) (Bernhard-Heiliger-Stiftung);
Fré Ilgen (NL). Added were works from the Jacqueline and Fré Ilgen Collection: Michael Bette
(Germany); Hazem Taha Hussein (Egypt/Bahrain); Fausto Melotti (Italy); Paul Suter
(Switzerland);

'Checkpoint Ilgen#8', discussion of artists, art historians, gallerists, collectors, curators, and continuation of dialogue in informal gathering afterwards; photos: Achim Kleuker, 2011



'CHECKPOINT ILGEN #7'

On July 9th 2011 this event took place with the theme "ART AS EXPRESSION OF BEING". First was presented the major documentary film "The Painter Sam Francis" - film made by Jeffrey Perkins. A discussion followed with Fré Ilgen, moderator, with guests Thomas Vroom (collector, the Netherlands), Shingo Francis (artist Japan/USA), and Christian Awe (artist, Germany). Topics involved the sincere interest and passion for art as part of one's life, the average young age when one is able to have an 'art-experience', the need that artworks are visually appealing (which is not the same as mere beautiful), the necessity for ethics in art, physical involvement in making art, global art.

Quote from the introduction by Fré Ilgen:
'While tonight we cannot cover all subjects linked to this theme, one of the leading motives is to acknowledge human artistic expression to evolve from the physical, bodily or biological in immediate unity with the psychological – the often forgotten unity of body and mind. Though we may perceive our creative abilities to be infinite, the limitations set by our bodies and minds give reason to assume a still very large but limited range of artistic expressions possible. Said otherwise, we cannot create something we as humans with our bodies and minds cannot create within the perimeters of being human. These perimeters help explain why art history is not developing in a linear way but keeps looping back and forth in time and we often find analogies between artists from very different time-periods and cultures while they are not copying from each other. The selection of our exhibition is for a part based on these thoughts – in the discussion we will get back to this.'

The exhibition included artworks by Philip Guston (USA; ACT Art Collection Siegfried Loch), Emily Kngwarreye (Australia; Thomas Vroom Collection), Issai Kulvianski (Lithuania/Israel, Marianne Geitel Collection), Jaybo Monk (France/Germany, courtesy CircleCulture Gallery), Shingo Francis (Japan/USA), Christian Awe (Germany). With special thanks to collectors Siggi Loch, Tom Vroom, Marianne Geitel, and Mr. Johann von Lanzenauer of Circleculture Gallery, and to artists Cristina Barroso, orig. from Brazil, Hazem Taha Hussein, from Egypt. Added were works from our own collection: Herbert Beck (Germany), Michael Bette (Germany), Natvar Bhavsar (India/USA), Megan Craig (USA), Gotthard Graubner (Germany), Frank Owen (USA), Anton Unai (Spain/Germany).

'Checkpoint Ilgen#7'; photos: Achim Kleuker, 2011


'CHECKPOINT ILGEN #6' – Wednesday January 21st 2009

Special guest Prof. Dr. Donald Kuspit, Distinguished Professor of New York University, leading art critic in the US, who also studied psychoanalysis.

The exhibition included three major works of Surrealism by Leonora Carrington (England), René Magritte (Belgium), André Masson (France) from the Ulla and Heiner Pietzsch Collection, plus works from the Fré & Jacqueline Ilgen Collection.

Prof.Kuspit initially presented an introduction to the birth of Surrealism and Psychoanalysis, then he discussed all three paintings of the Pietzsch Collection, while Fré Ilgen asked him some questions and the audience participated with questions as well.

Afterwards many guests stayed around in little groups to discuss the pros and cons of Donald's ideas and interpretations.

For this event approximately 90 persons had confirmed their participation, but on the last day due to the flu-wave about 15 canceled and 75 actually participated.

This event was partially supported by the Ulla and Heiner Pietzsch Collection.


Donald Kuspit at Checkpoint Ilgen #6

Berlin, Mon Amour
Feature Article about Berlin on Artnet.com by Donald Kuspit

"Checkpoint Ilgen #5" occurred on October 24th 2008 and featured a talk by Fré Ilgen with Thomas M.Messer, the legendary Director Emeritus of the Solomon R.Guggenheim Foundation, about his own professional life in which he witnessed and was one of the main founders of the development of the moden museum for art and one of the major museum directors of the 20th century; accompanied by an exhibition including works by Max Beckmann (Germany), Megan Craig (New Haven, CT, USA) and Japanese star artist Hiroshi Senju (Japan/USA); the main talk focussed on Tom's exciting professional life which started well before he was appointed director at the Guggenheim in New York, and continued after his official retirement in the late 1980's, it included his firm view on the responsibilities and scope of museum directors and their museums, especially emphasizing that art should come first and finances later - Tom always advocated to mingle American developments in art with European developments, and no distinction in importance between abstraction and figuration; because of the high interest in this event, we had to allow about 80 persons to attend; the whole talk was video-taped; for more information, see the introduction by Fré Ilgen and the information letter to this event;


foto: A. Kleuker

for more information, see the introduction by Fré Ilgen: 
welcome + Willkommen + briefing + flyer (outside)



"Checkpoint Ilgen #4" occurred on Friday July 11th 2008 and featured a talk by Fré Ilgen with the NYC art critic Irving Sandler about his life as witness of the development in art and his friendship  with artists in 6 decades; accompanied by an exhibition of young artists Christian Awe (Berlin) and Megan Olson (New York), plus major works of the Ulla and Heiner Pietzsch Collection of the formative years by Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, Barnett Newman, David Smith; the talk was an exciting trip through mainly the 1950's, the impact of the evolving art market, including many personal anecdotes and clear minded view by Irving Sandler on the developments of art in the last part of the 20th century; about 65 persons attended this exciting and historical event; the whole talk was video-taped;

* this event was realized in collaboration with Beck&Eggeling Fine Art, Düsseldorf, where also another talk with Irving Sandler took place, involving also Michael Beck and Fré Ilgen;
for more information, see the introduction by Fré Ilgen: welcome + flyer

The "Checkpoint Ilgen #3" consisted of an introduction to the theme "Global Art" (for a short text, see the main web-site under "THEORY"), involving an exhibition of works by Cristina Barroso, Ali Hassan, Fré Ilgen, Anil Revri. Ms. Mayen Beckmann opened the event with a substantional introduction to the theme and each artist, while Fré Ilgen as organizer introduced some more about the event itself. Of each you find the texts as pdf file here. The opening was attended by some 80 personalities from the Berlin artworld, including representatives of the Indian, Brazilian, Iraqi and Palestinian Embassies. The discussion, a few days later, was attended by some 27 persons who stayed discussing the theme for about 4-5 hours. All involved agreed it was a very open-minded, substantial and rich discussion. Not in the least because of the many contributions to the discussion by persons from very different cultural and professional backgrounds, ranging between a professor in Economics to Cultural Attachés, arthistorians, a museum director, curators and artists, from very different generations.
for more information, see the introduction by Fré Ilgen: 
welcome + Willkommen + Mayen Beckman introducing + flyer (inside)



"Checkpoint Ilgen #2" consisted of a presentation by and disscussion with artist/computer scientiest Prof. Dr. Ernest Edmonds, Technical University Sydney.



The 1st event was opened by Mr. Heiner Pietzsch (Ulla and Heiner Pietzsch Collection) and included an exhibition with works by Michael Bette, Fré Ilgen, Jean-Pierre Maury, Stefan Ssykor.
flyer (inside)


'Checkpoint Ilgen #1', The first event was opened by Mr.Heiner Pietzsch (Ulla and Heiner Pietzsch Collection)






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