BODY CHECK
February 3–May 6, 2018
Piazza Piero Siena, 1
39100 Bolzano
Italy
In 2018 Museion celebrates its tenth anniversary in the new venue designed by the KSV architecture firm of Berlin. This year’s programme reflects the museum’s multifaceted identity and the themes it has tackled over the years: explorations of the collection, a focus on the languages of sculpture, and on challenging the traditional frameworks of art history and conventional exhibition formats, regularly calling on the external perspective of guest curators.
Opening the season is BODY CHECK. Martin Kippenberger – Maria Lassnig, curated by Veit Loers, guest curator for 2018. Museion’s invitation to the German art historian aims to be a significant opportunity to revisit the work of Martin Kippenberger, an artist who is part of the museum’s history: his work Zuerst die Füße was exhibited in Museion’s opening show (2008). BODY CHECK takes a fresh look at the work of Maria Lassnig (1919, Kappel am Krappfeld–2014, Vienna) and Martin Kippenberger (1953, Dortmund–1997, Vienna) revealing hitherto unexplored connections between these two illustrious artists. Though they never met, and belonged to different generations, in an era dominated by abstract painting both chose to place the human body firmly at the centre of their work. Their art explores the human body as a tormented expression of the self and the world: a fragmented, deconstructed entity that is a metaphor for social and psychological conflicts. It also embraces the theatrical, performative element—the body’s propensity for slipping into different roles in way that is ironic, sometimes even tragic. These are the connections that emerge from more than 60 works spanning two decades—from the 1990s to the 2000s—including paintings, drawings and videos. Several of the pieces rarely appear in public, while others are being exhibited in Italy for the very first time. As well as the points of connection between the two artists, the show also highlights the differences in their approach to the theme: Lassnig takes a more obsessive, introverted view, with feminist overtones, while Kippenberger’s work embraces the grotesque, with a darkly humorous vein. The show also draws attention to the artists’ milieu in terms of art history, culture and psychoanalytical elements: all factors which shaped their unique approaches to the human body. The exhibition layout has been designed by Marco Palmieri.
To accompany the exhibition there will be a catalogue (German/Italian/English) with texts by Kirsty Bell, Anna Fricke, Veit Loers and Peter Pakesch. Published by SNOECK.
Museion would like to thank the lenders of the works in the exhibition and in particular the Estate of Martin Kippenberger, Galerie Gisela Capitain, Cologne and the Maria Lassnig Stiftung / Foundation.
Related events
Talk with Veit Loers and Peter Pakesch (President, Maria Lassnig-Stiftung)
March 1, 7pm
Tour with Veit Loers
March 22, 7pm
Conference with Susanne Kippenberger
April 19, 7pm
Save the Date #10YearsOn
Olaf Nicolai, Carillon
Special Project
May 5, 11am
Finissage
September 30
In collaboration with Rinderzuchtverband Südtirol and Festival Transart
Conference with Lisa Le Feuvre, director Holt-Smithson Foundation, Santa Fe, and Andrew Renton, professor at Goldsmiths, University of London
May 23, 7pm
Somatechnics
Transparent travelers and obscure nobodies
May 25–September 2, 2018
Opening: May 24
curated by Simone Frangi
Artists: Pauline Boudry and Renate Lorenz, Danilo Correale, Patrizio Di Massimo, Adelita Husni-Bey, Ursula Mayer, Sophie Utikal
Performance and public program: Mercedes Azpilicueta, Muna Mussie, Marissa Lôbo
Further exhibitions
John Armleder
September 22, 2018–January 13, 2019
Opening: September 21
In collaboration with MADRE-Museo d’arte contemporanea Donnaregina of Naples
Tutto. Perspectives on Italian Art
October 13, 2018–March 24, 2019
Opening: October 12
In collaboration with Sammlung Goetz
Curated by Ingvild Goetz, Leo Lencsés, Karsten Löckemann, Letizia Ragaglia and Elena Re
Study Collection
Irma Blank. Paperworks from the Museion Collection
Until September 23, 2018
Curated by Andreas Hapkemeyer
Media Façade
Curated by Frida Carazzato
Fabrizio Favale - Zimmerfrei
A co-production Museion - Bolzano Danza Tanz Bozen
Screenings: July 12, 19, 26: 10–11:30pm
June & October
Screenings of works from the Museion and Sammlung Goetz collections
CUBO GARUTTI / Piccolo Museion
Liliana Moro, site specific project
Via Sassari 17b Bolzano
October 26–December, 2018
Artworks from the Museion Collection by Gabriela Oberkofler, Isa Genzken, Judith Hopf, Rosemarie Trockel
Februray 12–October 15, 2018
Studio House
GAP Glurns Art Point
March 29–November 4, 2018
