Matthias A. K. Zimmermann

Matthias A. K. Zimmermann
Born
Matthias Alexander Kristian Zimmermann

(1981-05-06) 6 May 1981
Basel, Switzerland
EducationUniversity of Fine art, University of education
Known forWriter, Painting, New media art, Video game art

Matthias Alexander Kristian Zimmermann (* 6 May 1981 in Basel) is a writer, painter and new media artist from Switzerland.

Biography

Matthias A. K. Zimmermann was born in Basel and grew up in the canton of Aargau. He studied music/composition at the University of Arts Berne, fine art at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, game design and art education at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences and didactics/pedagogy at the Swiss Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (SFIVET). His artistic work has found a reception in international exhibitions as well as in scientific and essayistic texts. Zimmermann's artworks are in collections of various museums.[1] His debut novel, CRYONIUM, has been published by Kulturverlag Kadmos (Kadmos Publisher).[2]

Work

Literary work

Literary Concept and Connection to His Own Art

Zimmermann’s fictional worlds emerge from the concepts underlying his modular image compositions. His narratives likewise follow a modular, building-block principle. Palindromes, numeric sequences, anagrams, and codes form the formal building blocks.[3] Time travel and spatial configurations, as well as the themes of transience and infinity, are among the variable components of his narrative system.[4] The book covers he designs incorporate motifs from his paintings, which in turn appear within the narrative. The writing process can take up to ten years, as Zimmermann constructs his fictional worlds with the intricate precision of a clockwork.[5]

Novels (in German)

  • KRYONIUM. Die Experimente der Erinnerung. Novel. First publication: Kulturverlag Kadmos, Berlin 2019. New edition: Edition Modellwelten / BoD, Hamburg 2025, ISBN 978-3-8192-8019-1
  • INTOXIKATION. Chemie der Illusionen. Psychological thriller. (Authors: Matthias A. K. Zimmermann, Kristina Schippling). First publication: Kulturverlag Kadmos, Berlin 2024. New edition: Edition Modellwelten / BoD, Hamburg 2025, ISBN 978-3-8192-4779-8
  • IMITATHYOS. Das unendliche Alphabet. Novel. Edition Modellwelten / BoD, Hamburg 2024, ISBN 978-3-8370-6776-7
  • YOGAMINO. Im Zickzack der Zeit und Ruckzuck der Räume. Novel. Edition Modellwelten / BoD, Hamburg 2026, ISBN 978-3-6957-4228-8

Artistic work

Content, concept and execution

Zimmermann's artistic works, which he refers to as "Model Worlds", contain a smorgasbord of visual languages borrowed from digital space, the vocabulary of different cultures, and the history of art, design, and media. Computer game elements, source codes, japanese gardens, Buddhist symbolism, and icon paintings from the Middle Ages can be found predominantly. The pictorial motifs show landscapes in varying degrees of abstraction. This ranges from photorealistic, clearly recognizable places to spatial entities. The pictorial motifs convey both cheerful and gloomy atmospheres that paraphrase utopian and dystopian scenarios. The staging of the pictorial space using things from different times and places illustrates the simultaneity of virtual distance resolution. The geometric frameworks of the pictorial contents result from the most Miscellaneous perspectives and spatial representations. Each picture is based on a system that is constructed like a construction kit or puzzle and illustrates the playful concept of modularity – the variable combination, transformation, and ever new composition. The "Model Worlds" are designed as paintings on canvas or digitally constructed on the computer and implemented as Diasec. Each painting is preceded by meticulous sketch studies that last for months or years. Zimmermann's creative process reflects the interface of the analog and digital. His painting technique adapts the aesthetics of computer images, whereas his digitally created pictures mostly refer to motifs of classical painting.[6][7]

Artistic Research

The art book Digital Modernity (Hirmer Publishers), published in 2018, discusses Zimmermann's work primarily under the aspect of artistic research. By combining elements of aesthetic mediation with those of the knowledge system, new epistemological spaces are opened up for the reception of art. The "Model Worlds" form a topology through space and time, research in the history of art, design and media, and point out technical connections.[8] The series of pictures, The Space Machine, layers the picture content in six levels – energy, hardware, binary code, 3D graphics software, game world (electronic visual display), source codes – and illustrates the construction of digital worlds. Among other things, the source codes shown have the function of source references.[9]

Museums

Exhibitions

Inventory

Artwork by Matthias A. K. Zimmermann are in the permanent collection of the following museums and cultural institutions

Literature

  • Natascha Adamowsky (ed.): Digital Modernity. The Model Worlds by Matthias Zimmermann. Hirmer Publishers, Munich 2018, ISBN 978-3-7774-2388-3[15]
  • Mark R. Hesslinger / Beate Reifenscheid (ed.): Reality and the Divine – From the Deutschherrenhaus to the Ludwig Museum 1216 – 2016, Ludwig Museum, Koblenz 2016, ISBN 978-3-9816878-2-8
  • Christian Huberts, Sebastian Standke (Hrsg.): Between|Worlds: Atmospheres in the Computer Game. Werner Hülsbusch, Glückstadt 2014, ISBN 978-3-86488-063-6
  • Dagmar Fenner (Hrsg.): What can and may art do? An ethical outline. Campus Publishers, Frankfurt a. M. 2013, ISBN 978-3-59339-871-6

Publications about Matthias A. K. Zimmermann (selection)

  • ARD (broadcaster)/Reload, Television publication: Video game art, 7 October 2014[16]
  • University of Heidelberg/Publicationsplattform Art History, René Stettler: Various scientific essays.[17]
  • Berliner Gazette – Culture, Politics and Digital: Various authors.[18]
  • Language at Play – Scientific magazine, Christian Huberts: The re-medialization of procedural atmosphere into static paintings[19]
  • Neue Zürcher Zeitung, Gerhard Mack: Digital world – painters use virtual space [20]
  • Basler Zeitung, Graziella Kuhn: Pixel auf Leinwand[21]
  • Luzerner Zeitung, Urs Bugmann: A World of Extreme Artificiality[22]
  • Luzerner Zeitung, Urs Bugmann: Pictures, perfect like from the computer game[23]
  • 20 Minuten, Jan Graber: When "Mario" and "Tetris" are hanging in the museum[24]
  • Winzavod, Moscow: «Модельные миры»_Маттиас Циммерманн[25]
  • The Village, Moscow: В галерее «11.12» открывается выставка Маттиаса Циммермана[26]
  • Swiss Embassy in Moscow: Moscow. Matthias Zimmermann at Winzavod[27]
  • EA Blog for digital game culture, Martin Lorber: Game Art – Art and digital games: The space machine by Matthias A. K. Zimmermann [28]
  • GamesArt, Davis Schrapel: Miscellaneous articles [29]

References

  1. ^ Page 312 (Chapter: The artist) in: Natascha Adamowsky (Hrsg.): Digitale Moderne. Die Modellwelten von Matthias Zimmermann. Hirmer Publishers, Munich 2018, ISBN 978-3-7774-2388-3.
  2. ^ German National Library – Matthias A. K. Zimmermann, Writer, Novel
  3. ^ Trapped in Infinite Virtuality – Review, Aargauer Zeitung
  4. ^ How Literature Can Recall, Create, and Re-Map Virtual Spaces – Review, Berliner Gazette
  5. ^ Imitathyos – Matthias A.K. Zimmermann – Radio interview, Kanal K: Nosenoise-Literature
  6. ^ Page 354 – 259 (Chapter: Creation process) in: Natascha Adamowsky (Hrsg.): Digitale Moderne. Die Modellwelten von Matthias Zimmermann. Hirmer Publishers, Munich 2018, ISBN 978-3-7774-2388-3.
  7. ^ Page 74, 75 (Chapter: Model Worlds) in: Natascha Adamowsky (Hrsg.): Digitale Moderne. Die Modellwelten von Matthias Zimmermann. Hirmer Publishers, Munich 2018, ISBN 978-3-7774-2388-3.
  8. ^ Page 22 – 27 (Chapter: Digital Modernity) in: Natascha Adamowsky (Hrsg.): Digitale Moderne. Die Modellwelten von Matthias Zimmermann. Hirmer Publishers, Munich 2018, ISBN 978-3-7774-2388-3.
  9. ^ Page 129 – 131 (Chapter: The Space Machine) in: Natascha Adamowsky (Hrsg.): Digitale Moderne. Die Modellwelten von Matthias Zimmermann. Hirmer Publishers, Munich 2018, ISBN 978-3-7774-2388-3.
  10. ^ Press release, Computer Games Museum Berlin – direct link Archived 29 August 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ^ Artists, Supersample – Pixels at an Exhibition, 2015 – direct link Archived 2 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine
  12. ^ Ludwig Museum: Matthias Zimmermann – Vom Video Game zur Apokalypse
  13. ^ Ludwig Museum: The Known and the Unknown
  14. ^ Music and images – Database, Department of Music, University of Innsbruck
  15. ^ Hirmer Publishers
  16. ^ Reload: „Videospielekunst“, ARD, Einsplus, 7 October 2014 – direct link )
  17. ^ Universität Heidelberg/Publikationsplattform Kunstgeschichte, René Stettler: Miscellaneous wissenschaftliche Essays.
  18. ^ Matthias A. K. Zimmermann, Berliner Gazette
  19. ^ Language at Play – Wissenschaftsmagazin, Christian Huberts: Die Remedialisierung prozeduraler Atmosphäre zu statischen Gemälden
  20. ^ Neue Zürcher Zeitung, Gerhard Mack: Digitale Welt – Maler nutzen den virtuellen Raum
  21. ^ Basler Zeitung, Graziella Kuhn: Pixel auf Leinwand
  22. ^ Neue Luzerner Zeitung, Urs Bugmann: Eine Welt in extremer Künstlichkeit
  23. ^ Neue Luzerner Zeitung, Urs Bugmann: Bilder, perfekt wie aus dem Computerspiel
  24. ^ 20 Minuten, Jan Graber: Wenn «Mario» und «Tetris» im Museum hängen
  25. ^ Winzavod, Moscow: «Модельные миры»_Маттиас Циммерманн
  26. ^ The Village, Moscow: В галерее «11.12» открывается выставка Маттиаса Циммермана
  27. ^ Schweizer Botschaft in Moskau: Moscow. Matthias Zimmermann at Winzavod
  28. ^ EA Blog für digitale Spielkultur, Martin Lorber: Game Art – Kunst und digitale Spiele: Die Raummaschine von Matthias A. K. Zimmermann
  29. ^ GamesArt, Davis Schrapel: Miscellaneous Artikel
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