Yoshitomo Nara and around Schlesisches Tor

Ever since i arrived in Prenzlauerberg, i decided that anything out of that area was way too far away. Only Mitte is situated at an acceptable distance because there's the Pro QM bookshop where i spend much more money than i can afford, Dolores and my new favourite vegetarian haven Blatt.

Today, i've been brave and ventured until Schlesisches Tor in Kreuzberg and realized that this voluntary provincialism (borough-ism?) had to stop. Seconds after i stepped out of the metro station, i fell in love with that tall guy on the left. Does anyone know who's the artist?

The reason for that trip far away from home was to check out the Berlin Baracke exhibition at the Galerie Zink.

Five Japanese designers have built six rooms to host Yoshitomo Nara´s new works. Each of these wooden rooms seems to have been built for kids. The walls are candy-coloured, there are only 1 or 2 paintings by Nara in each room, the doors are too low for our frames, floors are situated at various levels and outside the constructions are tiny benches and party lights. There was also a drawing room with toys everywhere, drawings, empty beer cans and a window that looks on the river.

Watching Nara's paintings of freaky kids in such atmosphere is fantastic. I felt like a child happy to have been forgotten by her parents. In each room was a new surprise: two paintings, then just one painting and a small bench, a billboard with "3 sisters", a Berlin bear, etc.

The show closes on April 21. I put my images on flickr as usual.

Right next door, is the gallery Peres Projects. They have this show of Folkert De Jong everyone had told me about. Called Der Falsche Prophet, the installation features sculptures made out of styrofoam and polyurethane plastic.

Der Falsche Prophet is a pink, blue and yellow mess. A 19th century carriage has tipped over. Up on a pillar is a ship model of the Spanish Armada. There's a Christ whose arms are made of what looks like the horizontal part of his wooden cross and grotesque characters everywhere. One has only one leg but most of them have only their head and a heap of books and undefined shapes that form their body, another one wears a helmet, they have paint spit on their face, etc.

I wasn't too charmed by that exhibition. Hummous was waiting for me outside. I might want to move in the area at some point.

Runs until 03 March 2007. Images, this way.