There were any interesting thing at the exhibit. The fact that the music and the vibe in the room made it feel mysterious and scary. The blood smears on some of the pieces made it scary and mysterious but they there where beautiful things in the exhibit as well like the dresses which show elegance and class. There was a specific piece that was colorful and lively. The contrast between the beauty and the violence we see the negative capability in the exhibit. There were beauty in some of the art works while others brought on horror.

There was a specific piece of art work that looked interesting to me and it was near the back of the exhibit. the piece was of a guy who legs looked like someone bit into it. It reminded me of when i broke my leg and the horror of pain. The feeling of the disconnection between my upper and lower legs but then the piece of the two men who had knocked out from a fun night brought joy. I feel like the exhibit brought on many emotions that are different as we go along a journey that the artist is trying to show us.

Taking the first step into the exhibition already gave an atmosphere of unease. The ominous music was creepy, pairing well with the displayed artworks that were equally unsettling. When the music changed into the audio of someone just laughing made the experience even more scary. The only thing I can get out of the exhibition was that everything seems to be showcasing the world at its worst. When I thought I finally found a pleasant picture of what seemed like children getting ready for a party, it turns out there was one student hiding behind the curtains dressed like a clown. Due to the horror of the displayed artworks, when I saw the display of two dolls on the ground in the corner, my natural thought was that they were dead rather than they were simply drunk or sleeping. Being in the exhibition diminished my hope so much that I just did not think anything good was going to happen.

There were many impressionable artworks due to their gruesome nature, one featuring a man dragging a knife down his own back, another where a man’s legs seemed to be in reverse and parts of his bones could be seen, a display where the lonely doll was situated on a couch with a box of bugs spilling out next to her, and the display of a half body mother hanging onto her son. Although I am unsure about the definite connection of all the artworks, it is easy to tell these artworks display the worst in humanity and the demons of society.

When I first walked into the collection for Kai Althoff I thought that it was very strange. The general mood was creepy, and frankly very eerie. I found most of the artworks to be very depressing. The background sound effect/music in the corner had a woman mumbling incomprehensible words, or perhaps it was in another language that I didn’t understand, she occasionally yelled and screamed, I found it increasingly more scary as I listened more.

The artworks in the collection was a huge mixture of different mediums and artistic styles. I thought it was kind of interesting to see a visible change in style as I walked around the exhibition, as if the artist was showing his artistic journey from his childhood to the present. I think that a lot of the artworks inside the collection is like bits and pieces from his life, a lot of them isn’t very clear as to what is going on. I think that they mostly convey the emotions of the artist and so they’re very abstract. This ties back to the negative capability of these artworks, the abstractness of the artworks tests the viewer’s negative capability to see and enjoy the art as it is and not have to reach to a conclusion as to who, what, where the artwork is referring to.

As for the piece that I liked the most, I would say the painting/print (it was untitled) of what looks like a birthday party. It had a group of kids playing, there was a puppet show, some kind of play/performance in the back and it was quite colorful. It was one of the few that made me feel happy and reminiscent of my own childhood. It reminded me of the times where I would go to my friend’s parties and eat cakes, play games, and have fun. I think that all the pieces in the exhibition is quite unique and interesting, I definitely enjoyed the trip!

Kai Althoff’s exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art was certainly thought-provoking. I found it chaotic and often confusing with its scenes of glamour and beauty, but also violence and destruction. Perhaps this juxtaposition serves as a commentary of the instability of life. I noticed a recurring theme of fertility and motherhood throughout the exhibit. I took note of at least five pieces that included eggs, which often symbolize fertility. One long display box contained many feminine objects that one might find on a vanity. This display, however, contained multiple egg ornaments as well. It seems as though Althoff finds fertility and child-bearing to play an important role in femininity.  I also noticed multiple images of pregnancy and motherhood.

One piece that stuck out to me in particular was a sculpture of a woman dangling a baby by its foot. The sculpture contained no color other than browns and neutrals and the woman’s face was emotionless and cold. The woman was not even looking at the baby, but instead staring off into the distance. The sculpture evoked sorrow with its suggestions of neglect and child abuse. Perhaps the woman represents an inadequate mother. She is holding on to the child to keep it from falling to its death, but barely. It reminded me of a disinterested mother who does the bare minimum to provide for her child. The woman also appears to be pregnant and her other hand is placed on her pregnant stomach. It seems strange that this mother would be having another child when she clearly has no interest in her first. I found this extremely significant because it suggests a female duty to have children. This is pertinent to the earlier part of the century when women were societally constrained to marrying and having children, but also to today. Although women have more independence and responsibility now, this pressure to have children still remains.

During Kai Atlhoff’s exhibition, I noticed a silver, metal-like board on the far-right of the gallery. I don’t remember what the title of the board was, but it was something close to “Gack (or Gauk) Alternativ Show.” Some of the illustrations on the board referred to ideas and terms of Nazism and Germany, such as Wiking-Jugend and bundesbürger. I understood why he would portray such ideas in his illustrations because the artist is of German-origin and it serves as a reminder of how he came to know his country’s dark past. In addition, there were caricatures that were along the lines of anti-normal, most likely referring to Atlhoff’s experiences and lifestyle. For example, I remember on the bottom-left of the board, there were a few words written that referred to different types of substances, such as nicotine, alcohol, and some sort of psychoactive drug. He could be talking about how his usage of these substances had a deep impact on his artwork, or maybe it referred to how he abused these substances throughout his life. Overall, I felt that the board was portraying the different influences and experiences that Atlhoff was exposed to, considering the dark past of Germany and the different stages of his growth.

I don’t know why I was so drawn to this particular work. However, I was particularly fascinated by the caricatures because it reminded me of the children books I used to read and the types of pictures I would usually draw back then. For Althoff, he incorporated his own personal experiences, such as substance abuse, to Germany’s dark past, such as fascism and Nazism.It gave me the feeling of nostalgia, but at the same time, a dark reflection of one’s personal experiences to the world.

When i first entered Kia exhibit I didn’t know what to expect or how to react. At first I couldn’t make sense of what Althoff was trying to accomplish with pieces of toys, clothes, and other various nick knacks laid about in the front of the room. That confusion only persisted as I moved further into the exhibit seeing the distorted imagery and various mannequin displays.

It was only through going through the exhibit several more times I began to take notice and piece together the various pieces and ideas that Althoff was creating. I believe he was trying to show us pieces of his life. at the start of the exhibit we only really see are various items that give no real individual meaning. Yet like the fragmented memories of the child are distinct enough to carry on through his memories.  Yet like all memories are distorted and twisted by our detail of the recollection, emotion of the memory, and our viewpoint through the memory.

It is only when we reach what appears to be a destroyed coal town that these images become much more in-depth and detailed. It is also where we learn the Kia Althoff has had a life filled with challenge and adversity from constantly moving as one picture in the exhibit showed, the homelessness that is given to us in the form of a squatters den immediately following the burned town, or any of the other images and paintings that depict various struggles whether it be physical, emotional, or mental.

All in all, Kia Althoff has exhibited and interesting look into his life. One that only can be truly appreciated after seeing it the exhibit more than once. Where all of the small details that where missed the first few times becomes apparent.

When I first walked into the exhibit, I felt as if I was walking into someone else’s mind/life. I felt as if the artist,Kai Althoff, wanted me to be him for the day. Honestly, I believed that the set up was beautiful and pinpoints every part of Kai Althoff’s brain. He pointed out every part of his life – from early childhood until the present. You can tell this artist was very troubled growing up. The exhibit itself was very emotional for me, but the one piece that stayed with me the most was the burnt down community.

When you walk towards the back, there is a black, burnt down town on display. The town was clearly attacked and I feel like this was symbolism for a lost of innocence or a war in his mind. Whether this be a real event in his life (which I believe this must be, considering the era he was born in), it was clearly a pivoting movement he had to endure. For me, the viewing of the town burnt down made me feel numb and destroyed. The house was destroyed, the church, everything. I was in shock – but if you look clearly into the rooms and other surroundings, not all have been destroyed. Jesus Christ was still intact within the church, as well as the white flag (which was only slightly burnt). I believe for this to be a sign that not all hope was lost – but this was still a beginning of what was to come.

After leaving that section of the exhibit, you walk into the back of a whole different setting. I feel as if Kai Althoff suffered from PTSD from such a traumatic event in his life. Everything was really messy and unkempt once you stepped passed the burning house. You can tell he lived a difficult life (and most likely a lonely one) with the way everything was set (hoarded, items all over the place, his makeshift bed). There was even a burnt large doll with a little doll hanging from the hand. I felt as if that was his mother and him, struggling to hold on, especially after the traumatic event.

Overall, the exhibit was beautiful to me. I loved it so much and you can clearly see his heart and an array of emotions went into making this. The music as well pinpointed every emotion he had, not just the physical items itself. I would love to go see this again.

Kai Althoff’s exhibit was very interesting. From the moment I stepped foot in the exhibit I already felt awkward. The first thing I noticed when I entered was the color of the whole exhibit. It was all painted in white, everything was white, from the ceiling to the last wooden piece of floor. When I first walked in it felt like I was walking into a mental institution. When I first walked around the right side of the exhibit, I was trying to analyze and connect all of the art pieces together. The only thing that could come to mind was Is he trying to show us the disaster of life. The first few pieces on the right side of the exhibit I believe spoke to his childhood.

Along the right side of the exhibit there was a lot of maternal pieces. The first item that caught my eye and I was just amazed by was the birthing chair. It was a clear, what looked like plastic, birthing chair. The chair is also covered by drips of blood. It was very interesting because the birthing chair was complimented by other child items. For example, there were dolls in that section as through out the exhibition.

I was really intrigued as why the right side of the exhibition was so impactful to me. That side was more impactful to be than any other items of the exhibition. When I was thinking about it the reason why it was so impactful on me was because maybe when I was younger, and still today, I was surrounded by kids, there was always kids and dolls around me. Looking back I start to think that Kai Althoff was surrounded by kids and dolls, but maybe it was not such a great time for how disastrous the exhibit looks.

The room where all the artworks were shown was not as big as I thought it would be. I heard random music and I smelt wood the moment I stepped into the room. The white lighting and the music had produced an unsecured atmosphere and made the visitors wanting to leave as soon as possible.

There were different kinds of artworks in the room, most of them were seemed to be violent, but there did have some that tried to portrait beauty. The artwork that left the strongest impression to me was the one where a mother with no legs was holding onto her child’s leg, meanwhile the child was hanging upside down in the air. The expressions on both the mother and the child’s faces seemed to be very creepy to me, and they were hard for me to interpret–was the mother being jealous of her kid who has legs and she does not? Right next to that work was a painting of a pregnant woman–and I was not sure whether that painting was related to the work. I did not see beauty within this work, which indeed did left me in this emotion of “negative capability,” where I was dragged into uncertainty.

I am glad that I went to visit the artworks. That was the first time my mood was actually changed due to the given surroundings. I understood what the author was trying to show and indeed looking at the artworks was an interesting experience.

Kai Altoff’s exhibition in MoMa is a well-executed portal into the artist’s life. Altoff designed the exhibition as a fully immersed experience, stimulating our sight, scent, and hearing. Although not in chronological order, it tells the story of his life. Full of dark emotions, he explores the definition of masculinity of post-war Germany. Perhaps the most intriguing displays were of the glass-covered mattress and the record label with a man’s face in black and white.

The destroyed mattress covered in shattered glass symbolizes all the pain and agony that have taken away the comfort in his life. The mattress represents comfort, a place of assuagement after a long day. Yet when laid down upon, the glass scattered over it causes sharp pain.

The man’s face, perhaps Kai’s, is black and white. However, it is wrapped in a yellow scarf and covered in an orange hat. . We see here how Kai struggles with the identity of masculinity. Men serving in WWI and WWII are usually pictured covered soot, blood, and sweat. Moving forward to the post-war era, Kai wants to bring in new life, consisting of sharper contrast and brighter hues. The image symbolizes the transition between the masculine figures during wartime to the post-war masculine figure.