The flag by Yann Freichels is a drawing entitled Trotz Alledem [In spite of it all]. It is based on a photograph of Karl Liebknecht, a prominent German socialist and anti-militarist, taken after his assassination. The flag in the drawing transitions from dark (almost black) at the top to light at the bottom, resembling a washed-out mourning flag—a visual metaphor for the fading hopes and the heavy mourning that followed the violent suppression of the German Revolution in 1919. Rosa Luxemburg, a comrade of Liebknecht’s, ended her final text with the words “I was, I am, I will be,” a testament to her enduring spirit and commitment to revolutionary ideals. Karl Liebknecht began his with Trotz Alledem, underscoring his defiance in the face of imminent death. For Freichels, the work asks: Where am I—in which version of my present? A double longing that drowns out the clamor of revolt and war. Something that nullifies the truth of the present.
Yann Freichels (*1996) lives and works in Grüfflingen, Belgium. He completed his training in painting at the École Supérieure des Arts de la Ville de Liège (ESAVL) in 2020. His works have been presented in solo exhibitions at LLS Paleis in Antwerpen, Belgium; Espace 251 Nord in Liège, Belgium; Saarländische Galerie in Berlin, Germany; and IKOB in Eupen, Belgium. His group exhibitions include New Horizons in Painting at ISELP, Brussels, Belgium; Boum, Boum, Bang at Abattoirs de Bomel, Namur, Belgium; and Private Views, curated by Yves Randaxhe at La Boverie, Liège, Belgium.
http://yannfreichels.com/
Yann Freichels
Title: Trotz alledem! (2024)
IKOB, Eupen