No Image No Message | Wallpaper

‘No Image No Message’. Art as wallpaper, wallpaper as art.

Dimensions and installation size variable, depending on wall area chosen.

Title: ‘No Image No Message’
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Size: (rolls) 0.53m x 10m
Material: metalic silkscreen on wallpaper
Edition: ‘No Image No Message’, wallpaper

Photo by: Martijn Sandberg

No Image No Message | Wallpaper

‘No Image No Message’. Art as wallpaper, wallpaper as art.

Dimensions and installation size variable, depending on wall area chosen.

Title: ‘No Image No Message’
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Size: (rolls) 0.53m x 10m
Material: fluorescent silkscreen on wallpaper
Edition: ‘No Image No Message’, wallpaper

Photo in daylight and in blacklight.

Photos by: Martijn Sandberg

No Image No Message | Spreads

‘No Image No Message’, eight artist pages in magazine ‘If/Then’, issue no.1, 1999. Publisher: BIS Publishers, Amsterdam.

It takes a second look to affirm what you thought you saw in the first place. They’re letters, or at least that’s what they have been, before they became this rhythm of rectangles that is dynamising the pages.
For these pages Martijn Sandberg has rearranged the elements of an earlier work, which was silkscreened in silver on reflective film mounted on metal – an artwork like a painting, a canvas.
They became a pattern, energetic and decorative, almost to the point of triviality – purely abstract forms repeated to produce an ornamental field. But once you know, or see, that the ornamentation is based on letters, and that the letters form words, then the repetition acquires another quality. The single slogan becomes a chant. Over and over again, a thousand voices shout: No Image No Message!
This thin line between image and message, between meaningful sign and abstract form, is where Martijn Sandberg produces what he calls his ‘Image Messages’.
‘The Song Remains The Same’ is another typographic work by Sandberg. Its title can be read as a motto for his work in general – what changes are the sequences. In this respect he shows a marked affinity for Techno and House music, and more than just in terms of obvious stylistics. It’s not about virtuoso solo performances. What counts is the sound of the entire thing, the complete field of experience, from the nihilistic and punk-like double slogan ‘No Message!’, ‘No Image!’, to the more auspicious combination that can be summarised as ‘there is no image that is not a message’ and vice-versa.
The spreads in this issue can be ‘read’ as a remix of those sample Image Messages: a track with the same structure as an earlier version, but looped in different ways – extended with differently shifting rhythms. In the background, there is still the choir, chanting the recitative, ‘No Image No Message’.

(Excerpts article: ‘Tracks, Max Bruinsma reads between the lines of Martijn Sandberg’s declarations’, text by M. Bruinsma, magazine ‘If/Then’ issue no.1, 1999)

No Image No Message | Lyric Sheet

‘No Image No Message’, metallic silkscreen limited edition. Sing-Along Song. Refrain only. The Lyric sheet says it all.

Title: ‘No Image No Message’
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Material: metallic silkscreen on paper
Size: 65cm x 93cm
Edition: 50, signed and numbered on the reverse side

Photo by: Simon Sandberg

No Image No Message | Refrain Only

‘No Image No Message’, fluorescent silkscreen limited edition. Sing-Along Song. Refrain only. The Lyric sheet says it all.

Title: ‘No Image No Message’
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Material: fluorescent silkscreen on paper
Size: 65cm x 93cm
Edition: 50, signed and numbered on the reverse side

Photo by: Simon Sandberg

No Image No Message | The song that does not end

‘No Image No Message’, the song that does not end. Installation view.

Dimensions and installation size variable, depending on wall area chosen.

Photo (1999) of wallpaper hanger, installing ‘No Image No Message’.

Title: ‘No Image No Message’
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Material: silkscreen on paper
Size: 65cm x 93cm

Photos by: Martijn Sandberg

No Image No Message | Light Verse

‘No Image No Message’ (Light Verse). Installation view.

Dimensions and installation size variable, depending on wall area chosen.

Photos (1999) of blacklight installation ‘No Image No Message’.

Title: ‘No Image No Message’ (Light Verse)
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Material: silkscreen on paper
Size: 65cm x 93cm / 280cm x 455cm

Photos by: Martijn Sandberg

No Image No Message | Metallic paper edition

‘No Image No Message’. Metallic silkscreen on paper.

“During the exhibition there will be nothing to see.” MS

Title: ‘No Image No Message’
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Material: silkscreen on paper
Size: 42cm x 60cm
Edition: 100, signed and numbered on the reverse side

Photo by: Simon Sandberg

No Image No Message | Fluorescent paper edition

‘No Image No Message’. Fluorescent silkscreen on paper.

“During the exhibition there will be nothing to see.” MS

Title: ‘No Image No Message’
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Material: silkscreen on paper
Size: 42cm x 60cm
Edition: 100, signed and numbered on the reverse side

Photo by: Simon Sandberg

No Image No Message | Multiple edition

‘No Image No Message’, 1998. Metallic silkscreen on cardboard.

Title: ‘No Image No Message’
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Material: silkscreen on cardboard
Size: 42cm x 42cm
Edition: 100, signed and numbered on the reverse side
Edition: 20 AP, 5 (I-V) AP (Artist Proof)

Photos by: Martijn Sandberg

Pretty Vacant | Multiple edition

‘Pretty Vacant’ by Martijn Sandberg consists of a light greenish phosphorescent figuration on white cardboard. The text ‘We’re Pretty Vacant’ refers to a Sex Pistols song.
After illumination, the loaded sentence glows in the dark and then slowly fades until it is ‘empty’ again; zero content.

Title: ‘Pretty Vacant’
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Material: silkscreen on cardboard
Size: 42cm x 42cm
Edition: 100, signed and numbered on the reverse side

Photo 1: in daylight.
Photo 2: glowing in the dark.
Photo 3: fading out.

Photos by: Martijn Sandberg

Wenn Alle Künste Untergehen | Multiple edition

‘Wenn Alle Künste Untergehen’ (‘If All Arts Are Lost’), woven kitchen towel, multiple edition, 65cm x 65cm.

In the woven pattern a figuration becomes legible, it appears and disappears in the block motif, depending on the angle and distance from which the kitchen towel is seen: ‘Wenn Alle Künste Untergehen Die Edle Kochkunst Bleibt Bestehen’ (‘If All Arts Are Lost The Noble Art of Cooking Remains’).

Multiple edition by the artist, woven kitchen towel, in colour blue, orange, violet.

Title: ‘Wenn Alle Künste Untergehen’ (‘If All Arts Are Lost’)
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Year: 2015
Multiple: woven tea towel edition (blue, orange, violet)
Measurements: 65cm x 65cm
Material: textile, 100% organic cotton
Manufactured at: Textiellab, Tilburg/ NL

Photos by: Martijn Sandberg

My Last Penny | Multiple edition

‘My Last Penny’ by Martijn Sandberg is available in a multiple edition, issued by the Vereniging voor Penningkunst VPK/ Dutch Art Medal Society.

‘My Last Penny’ in the outstretched hand of the artist. Donation or plea? Benefaction or begging? Charity or fast-change trick? A true confession or sham poverty?

Click here to see a full description in English, as pdf.
Click here to see a full description in Dutch, as pdf.

Related: ‘We’re Only In It For The Money‘, coin edition, 2000

Title: ‘My Last Penny’
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Material: brass, perforated
Size: diameter 62mm, thickness 3mm
Concept and figuration: 2009
Release: 2010
Publisher: Vereniging voor Penningkunst VPK/ Dutch Art Medal Society
Production: Koninklijke Begeer, Zeist/ NL

Photos by: Tom Haartsen

We’re Only In It For The Money | Coin edition

Nickel coin edition. Portrait of the artist as Mint Master and Money Maker.

The Art of Making Money

‘We’re Only In It For The Money’ is the relief text on the coin produced by Martijn Sandberg well before the date that the Euro entered circulation. The nickel coin was first issued in the year 2000, in an edition as multiples.
A transaction takes place when the coin is bought or sold. One currency is exchanged for another at the going rate, which rises or falls depending on both the exchange rate and the level of interest in the art market.
Is the coin a work of art that behaves like money, or money that behaves like art? The question is a circular one which will repeat itself endlessly, and it is up to the investor to answer it.

Click here for text in Dutch, as PDF.

Title: ‘We’re Only In It For The Money’
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Material: coin, cupro-nickel, circulation quality
Coin edition: 1000
Size: diameter 30mm, thickness 1.75mm
Release: 2000
Publisher: Martijn Sandberg
Production: Royal Dutch Mint, Utrecht/ NL

Photo by: Tom Haartsen

I Am Still Alive | Gold Verse & Old Verse

An ode to life and art. – MS: ‘’Anyone may read and uncover the figuration every day anew: ‘I Am Still Alive’. As well as celebrating life, the artwork offers a tribute to Art. The artwork itself declares: ‘I Am Still Alive’. Long live Art!’’

Martijn Sandberg has realised ‘I Am Still Alive’ as a perforated work in shiny gold aluminium, the ‘Gold Verse’, and in a rusty version in steel, the ‘Old Verse’. The version in perforated steel was rusted after exposure to the elements of air and water. In this way he created a ‘new’ work that is also ‘old’.
At the same time, this personal ‘memo’ is a nod to the telegrams with the same text that the conceptual artist On Kawara sent to his friends and colleagues from 1970 onwards.

‘I Am Still Alive’ by Martijn Sandberg is also available as a golden metallic silkscreen print on paper, printed by Krijger Zeefdruk, Amsterdam, format 20cm x 20cm, in a signed and numbered edition. The silkscreen print ‘I Am Still Alive’ can be ordered. For purchase and further details, please contact the artist by sending an email.

Title: ‘I Am Still Alive’ (Gold Verse)
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Material: perforated aluminium
Size: 100cm x 100cm

Title: ‘I Am Still Alive’ (Old Verse)
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Material: perforated steel
Size: 100cm x 100cm

Photos by: Allard van der Hoek

I Am Still Alive | Multiple edition

An ode to life and art. – MS: ‘’Anyone may read and uncover the figuration every day anew: ‘I Am Still Alive’. As well as celebrating life, the artwork offers a tribute to Art. The artwork itself declares: ‘I Am Still Alive’. Long live Art!’’

‘I Am Still Alive’ by Martijn Sandberg is available as a golden metallic silkscreen print on paper, printed by Krijger Zeefdruk, Amsterdam, format 20cm x 20cm, in a signed and numbered edition. The silkscreen print ‘I Am Still Alive’ can be ordered. For purchase and further details, please contact the artist by sending an email.

Besides the silkscreen edition, Martijn Sandberg has realised ‘I Am Still Alive’ as a perforated work in shiny gold aluminium, the ‘Gold Verse’, and in a rusty version in steel, the ‘Old Verse’. The version in perforated steel was rusted after exposure to the elements of air and water. In this way he created a ‘new’ work that is also ‘old’.
At the same time, this personal ‘memo’ is a nod to the telegrams with the same text that the conceptual artist On Kawara sent to his friends and colleagues from 1970 onwards.

Title: ‘I Am Still Alive’
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Material: metallic silkscreen on paper
Size: 20cm x 20cm
Edition: 500, signed and numbered on the reverse side
Printed by: Krijger Zeefdruk, Amsterdam

Photos by: Martijn Sandberg

I Want More Space | An omen on the wall

The artwork ‘I Want More Space’ is an omen on the wall. The work functions as image-language or an ‘image message’, where perforations in the aluminium panel form the image and the message.
The more distance to the work, the sharper the letters may be perceived. The work thus claims more physical space than it actually occupies, entering into a direct relationship with its environment. This effect is reinforced in that the letters fill the entire surface of the work and seem to bump against the square frame. In that sense, the work of art takes itself literally: I Want More Space!
The artist is here taking advantage of the creation of space. The statement touches on aspects of life itself, everyone’s need for more space. At the same time the work is also a statement on the visual arts. The work of art functions as available space for the translation of the artist’s personal vision.

Title: ‘I Want More Space’
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Size: 100cm x 100cm x 1,5cm
Material: perforated  aluminium

Het kunstwerk ‘I Want More Space’ is een teken aan de wand. Het werk functioneert als taal-beeld, ofwel ‘image message’, waarbij het beeld en de boodschap worden gevormd door perforaties in de beelddrager.
Hoe meer afstand tot het werk, hoe beter de letters kunnen worden waargenomen. Hierdoor eist het werk in feite meer fysieke ruimte op dan het zelf inneemt, en gaat het een directe relatie aan met de omgeving.
Dit effect wordt versterkt doordat de letters het gehele oppervlak van het werk beslaan en schijnbaar tegen het vierkante kader stoten. Het kunstwerk neemt zichzelf in die zin letterlijk: I Want More Space!
Hiermee speelt de kunstenaar in op de schepping van ruimte. De uitspraak raakt aan aspecten van het leven zelf, de behoefte van eenieder aan meer ruimte. Tegelijk is het werk ook een statement over de beeldende kunst. Het kunstwerk functioneert als beschikbare ruimte voor de vertaling van de persoonlijke visie van de kunstenaar.

Photos by: Allard van der Hoek

Whatever | Spread

Black & white spread ‘Whatever’, artist’s contribution in DAMn° Magazine, issue no. 4, November/ December 2005.

Title: ‘Whatever’
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Size: 44cm x 28cm
Print: offset, pages 158-159
Published in: DAMn Magazine issue no. 4, November/ December 2005

Photo by: Allard van der Hoek

Neo Age Now | Wallpaper

‘Neo Age Now’, from 1995. A neon wallpaper for centuries, throughout the ages.

Dimensions and installation size variable, depending on wall area chosen.

Title: ‘Neo Age Now’
Artist: Martijn Sandberg
Size: (rolls) 0.53m x 10m
Material: fluorescent silkscreen on wallpaper
Edition: ‘No Image No Message’, wallpaper

Photo in daylight and in blacklight.

Photos by: Martijn Sandberg