Corinna Häußler and Nils Bonk are a one-of-a-kind team
Anyone who, at the age of 20, knows that the artistic path is the one that brings fulfilment, contentment and happiness must be pretty sure of their choice. Anyone who, in their mid-40s, can look back on 26 years of self-employment across a range of different art forms can rightly claim to have done everything right. And if, on top of that, they’re both heading in the same direction, they ought to be bursting with joy. Fortunately, they don’t – otherwise Menden would miss out on the work that Corinna Häußler and Nils Bonk, alias EinZ-Design, carry out from their home in Menden-Mitte. And it’s not just about colourfully designed electricity sub-stations commissioned by the municipal utilities.
The Dortmund-based Soundgarden, a nightclub that, until the mid-2000s, offered different genres of music in different rooms, became the meeting point for the two life paths that had led them here from Iserlohn and Gütersloh. “In 1994, I applied for a placement year at the Paul-Gerhardt Nursery on the Platte Heide,” says Nils Bonk, explaining his first connections with Menden. Corinna Häußler, who was still living in Gütersloh at the time, was training to become a design assistant and was working as a barmaid in the ‘club’ at Dortmund’s Soundgarden. The appeal of the ‘alternative music’ played at the Soundgarden back then drew them both in. Corinna and Nils became EinZ.
It was at the Soundgarden that Conny also landed her first major commission. “I was given the chance to give the ‘Club’ and parts of the ‘Techno Halle’ their own style,” recalls Conny. Nils worked there too, first as a lighting technician, then as a DJ. “And somehow we were suddenly able to start organising parties and concerts.”
At the same time, the pair were touring the country’s stages together for the first time with Nils’s band at the time, The A.C. System, and were able to get a taste of the music business, which ultimately led to the decision to set up their own recording studio,” explains Nils. Around the year 2000, things started to get tougher for large-scale nightclubs.
“But somehow, we just kept going,” they say, looking back, and moved from job to job in good spirits and with an unwavering thirst for knowledge and curiosity. Always driven by artistic passion – and brimming with talent. They use music, various painting techniques and the countless opportunities for digital creativity in their productions.
Unique and connected
Their shared experiences in the entertainment industry led to them embarking on self-employment together in Menden. EinZ, however, is not simply a combination of two people, but emphasises uniqueness. “Every being is unique. At the same time, we are all connected,” says Nils Bonk, whilst Corinna Häußler emphasises that the internet has made global networking clear and straightforward. NiCo (as the pair call themselves on Facebook) make the most of connections in all directions. And with every new commission and every new challenge, they have built up a broad foundation of cross-media skills: “Given the rapid pace of media developments today, continuous professional development has become a matter of course for us.”
Alongside their busy lives in the digital world, NiCo are just as active in ‘real’ life. Especially when artistic flair is required, they step in and bring all their talents to bear. Menden has now become their home and is therefore very important to them. “We feel at home here and are therefore fully committed to the community.”
Their involvement with KUK mal hier, the initiative campaigning for more active climate protection and a region free of further motorways, combines a global sense of responsibility – including environmental protection – with local action. “We’ve worked with Janine Bauer many times before. We agreed to support the eight-part series of events without the slightest hesitation. Not least because the whole initiative steers clear of party politics.” Like all the other participants, the artist couple Corinna Häußler and Nils Bonk volunteer their time for KUK mal hier, editing moving images and captured moments, original commentary and music, and providing the KUK mal hier Facebook page with extensive material.
A global sense of responsibility, local commitment
The pair are often passionately involved in important local initiatives, such as ‘augen auf für menden’, the annual hackathons, the KunstFest PASSAGEN or the KUK campaigns. “If you want to change the world, you have to start where you live and make a difference,” they say, explaining their commitment, “and ultimately with yourself as well.”
Before the pandemic, the pair also enthusiastically shared their knowledge at the VHS/Junge Kunstschule and regularly lectured on half-yearly projects at secondary schools on topics such as ‘Global Learning’ or ‘Looking Behind the “Beautiful Facade”’, to raise young people’s awareness of the challenges facing our future.
Nils Bonk: “Over the years, it’s been wonderful to see how a growing sense of responsibility for the planet is developing among younger people. We’re seeing just how intensely the kids are thinking about the future, discussing it and seeking solutions. They aren’t stuck in the familiar. Many young people today are coming up with concrete ideas and aren’t afraid at all to break new ground. They’re learning much faster than we adults are today that ‘working together’ – especially from a global perspective – is becoming increasingly important. And this also involves raising awareness that we ourselves are part of nature and should start living up to our responsibilities.”
Interview No. 6/8 MRS DROLSHAGEN ASKS