At the sixth art KARLSRUHE in spring 2009 the ARTIMA art meeting presented itself in the fresh new form of a dialogue forum. "An enormous success," said Karlheinz Schmid, chief editor of KUNSTZEITUNG and host at the event sponsored by Mannheimer Versicherungen, "All the seats in Foyer Ost were taken during the talks of 20 minutes each; many guests stopped by and remained standing just to listen in. A complete success." This traditional information forum for the art fair is now entering its second round in its new form for the seventh art KARLSRUHE as well. The event promises to be no less attention-grabbing than before for the dialogue partners and listeners with well-known artists such as Jürgen Klauke, Cornelia Schleime, and Timm Ulrichs along with dedicated agents such as Helmut Friedel, Axel Hecht, and Friedhelm Mennekes airing their views on art and the art business in one-on-one conversations. The aspect of diversity served as a guideline in selecting the participants. Profession, experience, and temperament were the criteria for an invitation.

ART FOR ALL:
The fi rst round (4 March 2010, 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.) revolves around fi nding out what conditions must exist for contemporary art to arise and how it fi nds its way to the people. Special consideration is given to the medium of the edition. Klaus Staeck, for example, born in 1938, has been planting politico-artistic statements in the form of posters and postcards not only in the art system since 1960, and continues to reach a huge audience in doing so. There can be hardly anyone who hasn‘t seen these prints. How does the performance and photographic artist Jürgen Klauke judge the subject of editions? And what do gallery owners think about production printing, what role do they play for a publication, such as the magazine "art" founded by Axel Hecht?

ART ABOVE ALL:
The following day (5 March 2010, 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.) looks at "art above all" and aims to answer the question of art‘s anchoring within society. The focus is on art itself, which, says Karlheinz Schmid, "needs even more communication work, precisely in view of the current, often confusingly diverse artistic output". That might sound strange initially, for never before in the history of art has there been a phase in which contemporary fi ne art has experienced a boom of this magnitude and enjoyed such enormously broad popularity.

Museums have been registering record numbers of visitors for years and are constantly increasing the scope of what they offer. Growing numbers of magazines are delving deep into the subject matter. Art criticism correspondingly no longer needs to defend the avant-garde. Its accomplished proponents can meanwhile be found even in the highest levels of politics. No time to take a rest nonetheless, believes Schmid. A whole row of signs are indicative of a continuing intensive and growing commitment to the cause. The host quizzes his guests pointedly on painting and sculpture within the scope of art KARLSRUHE‘s central issues, for it is precisely the traditional art forms that prove not just how alive but also how questionable contemporary art is.

On both days of the art fair, visitors are warmly invited to follow the discussions. The podium in Foyer Ost provides ample space for a comfortable sojourn between the exhibition halls: whether only to lend an ear to individual dialogues or take in the whole programme. In 2010, too, the ARTIMA art meeting promises dynamic, spirited as well as varied and instructive stimuli for thinking further forward.