Why here is always somewhere else (2008)
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Why here is always somewhere else
3 October–30 November 2008
Badischer Kunstverein, Karlsruhe
Curatorial inserts by Alenka Gregorić, Vít Havránek, Antonia Majaca and Prelom Kolektiv
The group exhibition “Why here is always somewhere else” was dedicated to conceptual and performative art from Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe. This exhibition focused on a selection of works from the Kontakt Collection. For this first-time presentation of the collection in Germany, the curators—Alenka Gregorić from Ljubljana, Antonia Majaca from Zagreb, Vít Havránek from Prague and the Prelom Kolektiv from Belgrade—were asked to integrate contributions taken from their current work.
Why here is always somewhere else presented curatorial practices and a collection concept that referred not only to new developments in art in a certain cultural area or specific epoch, but also investigated these as a continual and parallel process. Based on central works of the 1960s and 1970s, Kontakt follows the development of conceptual strategies leading to the art of the present day. The assembly of the works in “Why here is always somewhere else” made it clear that radical upheavals and changes in art during the 1960s and 1970s happened in many places simultaneously, building up interrelationships while also marking off concrete distinctions.
The conceptual approaches of the artists from Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe distinguish themselves via their multifaceted employment of materials and media. This exhibition bore witness to the great variety of deployed formats, which ranged from performances, video and film works, spatial installations and sculptures, drawings, collages and paintings to postcards, magazines and advertising posters. Everyday objects and acts were taken up and transferred into a discourse on social and political ideologies. Attendant actions and gestures often remained consciously minimal in order to undercut the system in a subtle manner. The search for alternative forms of expression was indeed a universal phenomenon, but could have differing impacts depending on the material, political and economic circumstances within which it took place. Thus the results of the new art are always to be interpreted and distinguished between against the backdrop of locally specific situations of conflict.
The selection of works from the Kontakt Collection was developed in cooperation with Walter Seidl.
The project was supported by the Ministry for Science, Research and Arts, Baden-Wuerttemberg and the Stadtsparkasse Karlsruhe.
Badischer Kunstverein
Waldstraße 3
D-76133 Karlsruhe
3 October–30 November 2008
Badischer Kunstverein, Karlsruhe
Curatorial inserts by Alenka Gregorić, Vít Havránek, Antonia Majaca and Prelom Kolektiv
The group exhibition “Why here is always somewhere else” was dedicated to conceptual and performative art from Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe. This exhibition focused on a selection of works from the Kontakt Collection. For this first-time presentation of the collection in Germany, the curators—Alenka Gregorić from Ljubljana, Antonia Majaca from Zagreb, Vít Havránek from Prague and the Prelom Kolektiv from Belgrade—were asked to integrate contributions taken from their current work.
Why here is always somewhere else presented curatorial practices and a collection concept that referred not only to new developments in art in a certain cultural area or specific epoch, but also investigated these as a continual and parallel process. Based on central works of the 1960s and 1970s, Kontakt follows the development of conceptual strategies leading to the art of the present day. The assembly of the works in “Why here is always somewhere else” made it clear that radical upheavals and changes in art during the 1960s and 1970s happened in many places simultaneously, building up interrelationships while also marking off concrete distinctions.
The conceptual approaches of the artists from Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe distinguish themselves via their multifaceted employment of materials and media. This exhibition bore witness to the great variety of deployed formats, which ranged from performances, video and film works, spatial installations and sculptures, drawings, collages and paintings to postcards, magazines and advertising posters. Everyday objects and acts were taken up and transferred into a discourse on social and political ideologies. Attendant actions and gestures often remained consciously minimal in order to undercut the system in a subtle manner. The search for alternative forms of expression was indeed a universal phenomenon, but could have differing impacts depending on the material, political and economic circumstances within which it took place. Thus the results of the new art are always to be interpreted and distinguished between against the backdrop of locally specific situations of conflict.
The selection of works from the Kontakt Collection was developed in cooperation with Walter Seidl.
The project was supported by the Ministry for Science, Research and Arts, Baden-Wuerttemberg and the Stadtsparkasse Karlsruhe.
Badischer Kunstverein
Waldstraße 3
D-76133 Karlsruhe