The blog of author Dennis Cooper

Galerie Denis Cooper presents … Emma Kunz

 

‘Born into a family of Swiss weavers under poor conditions in 1892, Kunz created mandala-like grids with colored pencil on graph paper that she regularly used as instruments of healing.

‘When Emma Kunz was about 18 she started practicing healing. She claimed to have telepathic and prophetic capabilities. Later, her work made her go looking in the Swiss countryside for materials with healing properties. The search was a success. In the beginning of the 1940s, Kunz discovered a stone that she said was unique. The stone, which she found in a quarry in Würenlos, was named AION A. She was convinced of its power to heal, and felt that it had to be known to the whole of humanity. The cave where the stone was found is called the Emma Kunz Grotto.

‘Between 1923-1939 Kunz worked for the artist and art critic Jacob Friedrich Welti. It was at the end of this period, in 1938, that she started to make her typical square metre sized drawings on graph paper. The artworks were created using graphite and colour pencil, as well as wax crayon. At that point, Kunz was in her mid forties and had no formal art education. Instead, Kunz was posthumously included in art history, and today she is looked upon as a visionary artist.

‘Each of Kunz’s diagrams were drawn in a single sitting, some of which could reportedly last over 24 hours at a time. The drawings were used to help her visualize the invisible realities that exist beyond the tangible, everyday world, and were composed with the aid of a divining pendulum that allowed her to plan the ultimate structure of their geometric configurations.

‘They operated both as documentation of research into and as conduits for patterns of vibrational energy that could be used to realign the psychic imbalances underlying her patients’ medical conditions, and thereby to cure them. She believed that art, nature, and life were all interwoven: drawing allowed her to take part in a world of forces, seize that world and orient it for an energetic sum leading to cosmic consciousness.

‘Her pieces were never meant to be displayed on a museum wall, but to lie on the floor between Kunz and one of her patients to function as diagrams and aid to meditation for the locating of a patient’s lifeline.

‘At the time of her death in 1963, Emma Kunz left behind about 400 works of art. But it wasn’t until the 1970s that her images were beginning to be exhibited in museums. It’s not unlikely that more people will pay attention to her art. This was something Kunz herself prophetically stated: “My art is destined for the 21st Century”.’ — collaged

 

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Further

The Emma Kunz Center
‘Art for the Third Eye’
‘MASTER OF THE MONTH: EMMA KUNZ’
Emma Kunz @ Facebook
AION A
‘EMMA KUNZ PFAD’
‘The time will come when my pictures will be understood’
‘Une artiste visionnaire et spiritualiste : Emma Kunz ou la géométrie thérapeutique’
Emma Kunz’s books

 

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Video

 

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At work

 

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At work

‘In 1942, the financial adviser to the royal family of Lichtenstein asked the artist Emma Kunz if she would attempt to “repolarize” Adolf Hitler from a distance. Citing excessive negative energies, she at first declined. When she later relented, the 63-centimeter metal spring Kunz used as a “transmitter” flew up and began to slash at her body, before wresting itself from her grip and flying across the room. As is often the case, art had failed to make an impact on worldly events.’ — Doug Harvey, LA Weekly

 

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The pavilion

‘Emma Kunz’s work no. 393 served as a model for the transformation into a walk-in three-dimensional wooden pavilion, designed and developed by Hermann Blumer, the Waldstätt wood construction pioneer.’ — appenzellerland

 

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The grotto

‘This special place of power and vitality in the Roman Quarry in Würenlos constitutes the heart of the Emma Kunz Center. It has become a spiritual and energetic meeting point for mankind. The rock Grotto is a large wide space, a place of contemplation with strong and at the same time subtle forces. Emma Kunz visited it repeatedly in order to, as she herself said, “to recharge her batteries”.

‘The fascination that this retreat of stillness and contemplation exercises on people has a quite special reason. Countless biophysical measurements endorse the amazing level of energy, which, originating in the inner mantle of the earth, has been permeating the rocks for millions of years.

‘This pulsing, energetic force is concentrated especially here in the mighty Grotto. It is sought out by visitors in order to utilize the equilibrating and harmonizing effect on body and mind. What effect does a visit to the Emma Kunz Grotto have? Just expose yourself to the experience. Everyone coming here can experience stored biodynamic powers, for the Grotto holds for each of us its own personal language and its own messages.’ — Emma Kunz Museum

 

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Work

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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p.s. Hey. ** lotuseatermachine, I tried to avoid bouncing breasts as it seemed a little too on-the-nose, but I failed. Happily, it seems. My pleasure on the appropriate gifs. I still read quite a bit of poetry, but, yeah, I can’t seem to organise my ideas into those tight housings. ** Alice, Hey, Alice. Sure, David Berman, very understandable. Extremely weirdly, I still haven’t watched ‘Twin Peaks 3’. I think I’m a little intimidated by it or something, and there’s my of late knee-jerk avoidance of series in general, but it’s getting ridiculous. ** _Black_Acrylic, I’ll tune in. Everyone, Mr. _Acrylic has a sound-based add to yesterday’s show for you: ‘Vengaboys – Up & Down was a big Euro hit back in the late 90s and I’m sorry to have to share it with you. If ever anyone insists on getting nostalgic about that time and place then a few seconds of this tune ought to put them right.’ ** Adem Berbic, I would think an unbouncy train would be rather fortunate. Okay, check in and we’ll sort it. ‘Babyfucker’ is terrific. And short. Read it, don’t hesitate. ** Mari, Most of the truly good things are never super popular. Strange, that. I have many file folders full of many gifs that I collected when I was making my gif novels, so I both search through those folders and search for new ones too. The ‘TMS’ cover that has Clementi looking directly at the viewer was on the galley of the novel that was sent out to reviewers and so on. Clementi’s son owned that photo and refused to let us use it, so the publisher found another photo (of him looking to the side) that could be used, so the cover was changed for the final version. I don’t know if ‘God Jr.’ is o.o.p. It’s possible. There’s a graphic novel version of ‘God Jr.’ in the works, so, if it is o.o.p., maybe Grove will reprint it when that happens? Happy the concert was so good. I know Cursive, if it’s same Cursive, and I remember liking them. Luck learning the html coding. A site by you would be very cool. Likewise, if I don’t see you pre-trip, have an amazing and problem-free time. xoxo. ** Dominik, Hi!!! The action/strike yesterday didn’t seem to be as big as expected. I saw no effect around where I live at all. Swifties are so resilient! You can tell love that the first Halloween post will be the first post I launch upon returning from the upcoming short blog vacation, so on Monday, the 29th. Not a second too soon. Love wishing he knew how to put two fingers in his mouth and whistle very loudly, G. ** Minet, I got the email. I’ll try opening the doc today, and I’ll let you know if there are any problems. New book! In English! Fireworks! ** Conor Hultman, Hi, Conor! It’s great to meet you. And thanks for the good words. I would definitely like to read your book, yes! I’ll email you my coordinates today. Thanks! Really looking forward to it. ** Steeqhen, Congrats on arriving safely. Enjoy the place. The few times I’ve been there, it was very hospitable. ** Hugo, Hi. I’m no Lady Gaga fan, but I wouldn’t class her down with TS by any means. Happy to facilitate your happiness. I’m not finding myself capable of feeling any loss whatsoever about the assassinated MAGA guy. Ugly, ugly days, these, though. Onwards and upwards, sir. ** Steve, Things are a mess here, but it’s not close to being the beyond hell on earth that the US is these days. I wouldn’t know how to begin addressing what’s going on in an instrumental. The subject of a documentary co-directing the documentary, … hm. ** jay, Thanks, pal. Me too re: that video game-based joy. The ‘Resident Evil 4’ remake was so good. Amazing how long that franchise has stayed topnotch. Hit your day like the ribbon stretched across a finish line. ** HaRpEr //, I never threw away any writing of mine that I thought was a failure. And, sure enough, I’ll still sometimes find a sentence or phase in that shit that’s worth relocating. Terrible places emotionally can be a real boon for the writing. Letting it have that much power. I mean, I was pretty fucked up when I wore ‘I Wished’, and that helped me do things I wouldn’t have even thought of doing. Cool about the Substack update. Everyone, Here’s HaRpEr // with a great tip: ‘My new Substack piece is out. I was trying out things I haven’t explored too much and tried to see if my voice or whatever still remains. For anyone interested follow the link.’ Exploit your nightmare, for sure, it sounds like. ** Darbz🌼, Hi! My functioning laptop and I both congratulate you if not even jump for joy. I just wish these killings would make a difference, but they won’t, except in the worsening way, it seems safe to say. I would kill or at least ‘kill’ for a good old pure hit of Ecstacy right now. How was the book club? High hopes. I can’t remember about the exploded hospital. Oh, wait, I did see that video somewhere. I thought it was just one of the millions of AI fakes. Wow. Cool to have a context for ‘Ollies’. Well, there are a lot of cars and drivers in LA, so I guess there must be many crashes, probably so many that they don’t get reported. But, actually, LA drivers are the best drivers I’ve ever been around. Anti-California stuff is so boring. ** Uday, Thanks! I keep forgetting how long Kylie Minogue has been around doing her thing. Wow, time, wow. Thank you for creating the occasion for a deservedly kind email, sir. ** Sarah. Hey! I’ve got your novella, or the first one, on my desktop now, so yay for me. Excellent about the reading! Yeah, excited for you! ** Okay. Enter my galerie and consider the works of the ambitious Emma Kunz if you feel so inclined. See you tomorrow.

7 Comments

  1. lotuseatermachine

    hi dennis!

    thanks again for the gifs!

    the only kind of poetry that seems to hold my attention is either the short ones (like haiku) or the more beige prosey ones (like charles bukowski) or both. i can’t stand purple prose in poetry (or prose for that matter). i find it such a struggle to read and i’m not sure why.

    i also struggle with organising my ideas into coherent genres/formats. the three pieces i’ve done for scab magazine so far are all different genres/formats (respectively a q&a style transcript, a series of haiku, and my upcoming piece is done as a real-time stream-of-consciousness monologue). i find it hard to stick to one genre/format, not just in regards to writing but even in regards to other mediums (i’m interested in working in pretty much all mediums in some way or another). i suppose it allows for a diversity of styles but i also find it really frustrating to actually make stuff as a result because it always feels like every piece (regardless of genre/format/style/medium etc) has infinite possibilities and i’m never sure which one to take or which one would be better/more effective etc. because of this (among other reasons) i find creating art very unsatisfying.

  2. _Black_Acrylic

    I like this work and it does remind me of Hilma af Klint quite a bit. Don’t think those guys knew each other but there must have been something in the air around that time? Their early abstract painting seems to have been informed by mystical thinking that has majorly fallen out of favour in recent times.

  3. Steeqhen

    Hey Dennis,

    Sat in some cafe called Sexy Coffee; my friend went back to their place for food + a bit of alone time, and I’ve been looking in any random shop I see. We went to one of the necropolises in Glasgow this morning, and we’re going to another tomorrow. It was interesting seeing some of the incredibly old fashioned and upperclass names associated with some of the graves. Flora is a name I decided I really like, Alder too.

    It’s funny you mentioned that Vengaboys song Up n Down. Whilst it is very much the lowest of the 90s bubblegum pop, I could totally see it working in a mix of PC Music artists like Sophie, AG Cook, Hannah Diamond, GFOTY; remixed and merged into a bunch of other sounds to create a cacophony of bubblegum. A bit like what would happen to all living creatures in that movie (and book) Annihilation.

    As a visitor to Glasgow — a tourist eating out and buying things — it is ‘expensive’, but frankly it is altogether cheaper than it is just having a day out in Cork or god forbid Dublin. I’m trying to find a gift for my friend while I’m on my own here, though it’s hard to find something. For a while I was hoping to just see them fawn over an item and then buy it for them there and then. I almost did it with a Criterion Collection edition of Midnight Cowboy but they don’t even have anything to play DVDs, nevermind Blu-ray.

    Kunz work is hard to look away from. I get the whole healing shtick because I feel a weird sense of peace staring into them. Like I just want to spend the day engrossed in what is going on with it.

  4. sam jenks

    DC DC DC – incanting to call out to your horror self. following the wtf craziness of dif mega:zine we’re going for a quick and dirty hallozeen to come out, well, before 31st oct , and to mark our taking hostage of 1st nov now to be known as day of the dif. in our last zine, after requesting that work offered be their own, a zen buddhist queer warrior made it onto page 3 with their cum mail …’I’m sending you my cum, which is all my own cum.’ dif kinda means difference… and throws misfit gay lit and other queer shit in the general direction of the public. DC DC DC can you gift us one – two or three or more words for our hallozeen? and DC DC DC as dif is now based in the queer utopia of islington mill where one of your plays was once performed (we think) how do we get to show your films here to our peer organised and anarchically delivered art academy IMAA ? loving the kunz and the up down days.

  5. Dominik

    Hi!!

    Well, then – I guess the few articles I skimmed about the strike weren’t very informative.

    I can’t wait – the first Halloween post, I mean!

    I’m joining love there. I’d love to know how to do that, too. Love wishing he could share something exciting, but he spent the whole day editing a book on retirement plans, and he feels like his head is filled with cotton, Od.

  6. Bill

    What an odd life and body of work, Dennis. I do feel better looking at them, after a long day which finally brought me to Berlin. I had some vague ambition of going to gigs that friends of mine are playing at, but I fear my energy might be flagging. Maybe looking at Kunz’s work again will help.

    Bill

  7. Justin D

    Hey, Dennis!! My bf is feeling a bit under the weather today, so I plan on showing him some of Emma’s work and really put her healing philosophy to the test. Thanks for the timely post! On first glance, her work reminds me of Hilma af Klint, but less abstract, and more mathematical. How have you been doing? It’s finally starting to feel a bit like autumn here, which is much appreciated! xoxo

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