Roland Roos

Zero materiality also forms the backbone of the following subtle yet charming artwork. While some may not regard this piece as art at all, it is evident that its execution relies on the involvement of notable individuals, particularly artists. During a group exhibition, Roos utilized his production budget to grant free entry to visitors who were personally acquainted with him. In this instance, the mere act of knowing someone became the essence of the artwork. He aptly titled this piece Art As Connection. Through this work, Roos aligns himself with artists like Henry Morton and Stanley Brouwn, who similarly explore the fundamental nature of artistic zero materiality and therefore challenging conventional expectations. As a further similiarity, this work resists categorization, prompting viewers to reconsider their definitions of art and artistic value.

For further details see the publication COLLECTING THE EPHEMERAL by Prof. Dr. Rachel Mader

Even without a major battle, a work of art can create a significant impact, as the following example illustrates. Contradictions have long served as an exciting source of inspiration for extraordinary artworks. As markets have shrunk for Switzerland’s major armaments companies, new avenues for expansion became necessary. In 2018, the Federal Council decided to permit Swiss armaments companies to export war materials to areas experiencing civil conflict. This decision starkly contrasts with the country’s celebrated humanitarian tradition.

To reconcile this dissonance, Roos sought to diminish the relevance of this humanitarian legacy. He replaced the memorial plaque on Peak Dunant (Dunantspitze), named after Henry Dunant, the founder of the Red Cross, with a modern version. This new plaque notes the peak’s former name, Eastern Peak, and reflects the Swiss Federal Council’s current political stance. The original plaque was then exhibited in a museum as a relic of a bygone era. Although this work received an award, the Zurich cantonal government refused to grant Roos the 24,000 francs. This work was part of a larger popular position against the liberalization of the arms export law. Before the exhibition was over, the decision on arms exports was suspended.

Read one of the many articles about this work here.

As the number of artworks continues to grow and there is still a desire to make the developments of our time tangible through collections, the deposits are gradually reaching their limits. This creates a straightforward equation: the more art works a collection accumulates, the larger the portion of art that will remain unseen. Consequently, not only does the professional storage of collected art require increasing resources, but an ever-growing number of artworks risk being forgotten within the expanding deposits. Thus, the act of collecting can lead to a kind of disappearance.

In response to this challenge, Roos developed the idea of the Golden Egg Gallery. This Gallery is dedicated to all art that has lost its importance. This loss can have various reasons and it is also we as a society who decide what can still be shown and what cannot. The gallery thus creates an image of what is no longer considered worth showing in a sense of community.

The name Golden Egg is derived from a fable that says: If someone kills the goose that lays the golden egg, he destroys what brings him money, power or advantages. But what if the steel is so full that there is no room for any more golden eggs?

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In the film Brazil, the fictional character Harry Tuttle, portrayed by Robert De Niro, becomes an unwitting symbol for a work of art titled Free Repair. Tuttle is a disillusioned heating engineer who grows increasingly frustrated with the bureaucratic demands of his government job. In a series of clandestine acts, he sneaks away to perform repairs before the official technicians arrive on the scene. This subversive behavior not only disrupts the bureaucratic system but also creates an air of mystery around how the broken systems were fixed in the first place.

Similarly, Roos embodies this spirit. He does not wait for an invitation or seek permission from anyone; instead, he takes the initiative to create his own path. A central theme in Roos‘ work is the crafting of almost fictional narratives that often seem too extraordinary to be true. Through his actions, he challenges conventional norms and raises questions about authorship and the nature of art itself, much like Tuttle’s defiance against an oppressive system. In this way, Roos positions himself as an agent of change, using creativity to subvert expectations and provoke thought.

Read an article about this work.