In the summer issue of Metropolis M, we hear from the respective curators of the most important exhibitions of the season: Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev on Documenta 13 and Cuauhtémoc Medina on Manifesta 9. In addition, we evaluate the resurgent importance of colour amongst young artists and give special attention to Jimmie Durham and his exhibition in Antwerp, his largest solo show for some time.
Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev interviewed by Bik Van der Pol
The artistic director of Documenta 13 discusses the principles underlying the exhibition, the trauma of war, reconstruction, and the resonance that Kassel holds elsewhere in the world.
Living History
In the ninth edition of Manifesta, cultural heritage plays a prominent role. For the first time, a significant number of historical artworks are included. Curator Cuauhtémoc Medina speaks at length about The Deep of the Modern. Plus (in Dutch only): a brief history of Manifesta 1 through 9.
3 x Jimmie Durham
This artist and activist is now presenting his largest retrospective exhibition in years at the M HKA, Antwerp’s contemporary art museum. Bart De Baere, Michael Connor, and Valerie Smith all write about their favourite Jimmie Durham works.
Conceptual Sex
Colour is receiving a great deal of attention from a young generation of artists, not as a means of expression, but as an artistic and social idea. Maxine Kopsa explains that modernism has come of age.
Man as Colour Spectrum
With a broad and often surprising assortment of materials, the Swiss artist Pamela Rosenkranz investigates our relationship with reality. In an interview, she speaks about the role that speculative theory plays in her work.
Scouting
For this issue’s Scouting feature, the selection falls on the major talents of the countries hosting this year’s European Soccer Championships: Milena Korolczuk of Poland and the SOSka group of Ukraine.
Column: Tirdad Zolghadr
Why do discussions about institutional memory always get entangled in the equally thorny question of institutional responsibility? Tirdad Zolghadr looks into this issue ‘in a grandiose and sweeping manner.’ Read it here.
And further (Dutch only)
Art magazines on the iPad; an interview with the Amsterdam music label NON Records; speculative realism; reviews of the exhibitions Ursula Mayer in Amsterdam, Christoph Schlingensief in Utrecht, SuperBodies in Hasselt (BE), Daan van Golden in Brussels, Demonstrations in Frankfurt; and much more.
More from Metropolis M
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Metropolis M is a bimonthly, bilingual magazine on contemporary art (NL/EN) based in the Netherlands. Metropolis M is available at shops and museums across Europe and can be purchased at our online store.