Born in 1974, Merlin Bauer has lived and worked in Cologne since
1999. Over the past 25 years, through projects such as the social
sculpture Liebe deine Stadt – Architecture & Democracy, he has
developed methods that stimulate a vibrant public debate on how
to handle evolved urban planning, architectural and culturalpolitical
structures. His works form a key focus, among others, of
the collection at the Kolumba Museum, Cologne.
‘The Grand Tour is considered the origin of tourism and, since the
Renaissance, has taken young aristocrats on a journey through
Europe: a journey of self-discovery! When photographer and
conceptual artist Merlin Bauer now presents a series of works
under this title, he travels through our European cities and
landscapes with a sober eye. What state have we left them in?
How does the new relate to the existing? Bauer’s works examine
these installations: fences, billboards and skyscrapers; asphalt
roads; box-shaped residential clusters resembling standardized
caves; staked-out building volumes; and artifi cial rocks. They also
explore the boundaries between order and uncontrolled growth,
along with their structures and surfaces. In the tradition of the
Grand Tour, they thus stimulate curiosity and invite exploration.’
– Dr Jörg Biesler (Deutschlandfunk / WDR)