2014–2021: Independent Curatorial Projects (Selection)
WHERE ARE WE NOW?
10/6/2016—3/7/2016
WHERE ARE WE NOW?
Spatial Production, Territorial Borders, Migration, and Transnational Movements of Flight in Contemporary Art
Where are democratic societies headed today? What does the concept of space and territory mean when the politics of fences and borders increasingly inscribe themselves into everyday life? Is a grotesque not emerging when efforts toward economic globalization and expansion coincide with growing tendencies toward isolation?
The exhibition WHERE ARE WE NOW? addresses some of the most pressing issues of our time. Its concept arose in the context of escalating humanitarian and political questions, particularly in response to the challenges posed by asylum seekers and increasing global migration movements. However, the exhibition—featuring internationally renowned artists—was not created in reaction to a specific event; rather, it stems from a multi-year research project.
Artists of different generations from the Russian Federation, France, Sweden, Austria, and Ukraine engage in diverse ways with questions concerning the current status quo. Newly developed works created specifically for this exhibition are juxtaposed with historical pieces.
In her site-specific installation "I want to live where I сould be free", Russian artist Masha Poluetkova commemorates the ever-growing number of deaths along migration routes. Strikingly relevant to today’s reality is Peter Weibel’s piece "Europa(t)raum" from 1983. Europe is shown only on the screen of a video monitor, while in real space the work consists of enormous knife blades coated in blood-red paint.
Artist Gabriele Sturm continues a project situated at the intersection of cultural history and economics, portraying exotic birds as trade goods through various media. Her new photographic works—produced along the national border in the Spielfeld area—are also on view.
The thematic range of the exhibited works includes the notion of state formation in visual art as an emancipatory, utopian idea, as seen in "Elgaland-Vagarland" by Swedish musicians Carl Michael von Hausswolff and Leif Elggren, and extends into performance with a work by Mongolian artist Quin Ga. In critical reference to Mao Zedong’s Long March, the artist had Mao’s route permanently tattooed onto his back and retraced it. A video and a series of photographs document this act.
Several artists work within the realm of digital art or use online image sources, such as Ruth Schnell, whose socially critical explorations focus on the Mexican border.
WHERE ARE WE NOW? fundamentally understands the exhibition space as a site of knowledge production and critical engagement. However, the project does not propose a single overarching thesis. Instead, it brings together visually compelling and often divergent artistic approaches—many developed over long periods—that explore the visual representation of social and geographic spaces.
Artists:
Kader Attia (F)
Hubert Blanz (A)
Ramesch Daha (A)
Leif Elggren (SE)
Peter Fend (US)
Quin Ga (CHN)
Dariusz Kowalski (POL)
Carl Michael von Hausswolff (SE)
Masha Poluetkova (RU)
Gabriele Sturm (A)
Ruth Schnell (A)
Peter Weibel (A)
Kateryna Zavaloka
Dmytro Fedorenko (UA)
Curator: Roland Schöny
Poduction: Peter Hofstätter
Production assistant: Matthias Alexander Makowsky
Spatial Production, Territorial Borders, Migration, and Transnational Movements of Flight in Contemporary Art
Where are democratic societies headed today? What does the concept of space and territory mean when the politics of fences and borders increasingly inscribe themselves into everyday life? Is a grotesque not emerging when efforts toward economic globalization and expansion coincide with growing tendencies toward isolation?
The exhibition WHERE ARE WE NOW? addresses some of the most pressing issues of our time. Its concept arose in the context of escalating humanitarian and political questions, particularly in response to the challenges posed by asylum seekers and increasing global migration movements. However, the exhibition—featuring internationally renowned artists—was not created in reaction to a specific event; rather, it stems from a multi-year research project.
Artists of different generations from the Russian Federation, France, Sweden, Austria, and Ukraine engage in diverse ways with questions concerning the current status quo. Newly developed works created specifically for this exhibition are juxtaposed with historical pieces.
In her site-specific installation "I want to live where I сould be free", Russian artist Masha Poluetkova commemorates the ever-growing number of deaths along migration routes. Strikingly relevant to today’s reality is Peter Weibel’s piece "Europa(t)raum" from 1983. Europe is shown only on the screen of a video monitor, while in real space the work consists of enormous knife blades coated in blood-red paint.
Artist Gabriele Sturm continues a project situated at the intersection of cultural history and economics, portraying exotic birds as trade goods through various media. Her new photographic works—produced along the national border in the Spielfeld area—are also on view.
The thematic range of the exhibited works includes the notion of state formation in visual art as an emancipatory, utopian idea, as seen in "Elgaland-Vagarland" by Swedish musicians Carl Michael von Hausswolff and Leif Elggren, and extends into performance with a work by Mongolian artist Quin Ga. In critical reference to Mao Zedong’s Long March, the artist had Mao’s route permanently tattooed onto his back and retraced it. A video and a series of photographs document this act.
Several artists work within the realm of digital art or use online image sources, such as Ruth Schnell, whose socially critical explorations focus on the Mexican border.
WHERE ARE WE NOW? fundamentally understands the exhibition space as a site of knowledge production and critical engagement. However, the project does not propose a single overarching thesis. Instead, it brings together visually compelling and often divergent artistic approaches—many developed over long periods—that explore the visual representation of social and geographic spaces.
Artists:
Kader Attia (F)
Hubert Blanz (A)
Ramesch Daha (A)
Leif Elggren (SE)
Peter Fend (US)
Quin Ga (CHN)
Dariusz Kowalski (POL)
Carl Michael von Hausswolff (SE)
Masha Poluetkova (RU)
Gabriele Sturm (A)
Ruth Schnell (A)
Peter Weibel (A)
Kateryna Zavaloka
Dmytro Fedorenko (UA)
Curator: Roland Schöny
Poduction: Peter Hofstätter
Production assistant: Matthias Alexander Makowsky