Exhibition # 3
Wander, Labyrinthine Variations
12 September 2011–5 March 2012
1, parvis des Droits-de-l’Homme
CS 90490
57020 Metz Cedex 1
France
T +33 (0)3 87 15 39 39
contact [at] centrepompidou-metz.fr
www.centrepompidou-metz.fr
Opening Hours:
Mon, Wed 11am–6pm; Thur, Fri 11am–8pm; Sat 10am–8pm, Sun 10am–6pm
Wander, Labyrinthine Variations is an international group exhibition, which takes its cue from the model of the labyrinth, tackling the notions of straying, loss and wandering as well as their various representations in contemporary art.
Mystical, archaic forms, labyrinths and mazes are examined here as metaphors. They form complex figures that associate the image of non-linear progression through bends, curves, repentance and returns… whether architectural, mental, economic or structural in nature. The show itself is organised thematically according to a sinusoidal principle that follows the detours and polysemy of the subject itself, offering a loss of reference both figuratively as well as formally. It veers from an architectural maze to thoughtful meandering, from global political-economic chaos to disorientated contemporary urbanism, from bodily spatial confinement to maieutics, from exploded narration in cinema or literature to geometric abstraction as an eye-catcher.
The exhibition is presented in eight themed parts, which develop the subject from an angle that is both conceptual and sensory.
Painting, architecture, penetrable works, sculptures, films, maps and archaeological artefacts offer as many different perspectives on, and immersions in, these curious and surprising worlds.
Beyond its historical references, Wander, Labyrinthine Variations sets out to represent certain contemporary aesthetic, political and intellectual trends of our era. It addresses the history of forms and ideas by challenging a strictly linear model or progressive vision. Instead, it multiplies possibilities, draws the visitor into zones of confusion, multiple choices and lays obstacles to our apprehending of what is real, with all that this implies in terms of adventurous speculation and uncertainty.
Unfolded on 2,000 square metres across two of the gallery spaces at Centre Pompidou-Metz, the exhibition shows different generations of French and international artists, alongside major works from the Centre Pompidou, Musée national d’art moderne in Paris and important international collections. There will also be specific commissions by Matt Mullican, Public Space With a Roof and re-enacted pieces by Gianni Colombo, Gianni Pettena and Julio Le Parc.
Wander, Labyrinthine Variations is also a game in the form of an enigma—The labyrinth in a valise—proposed by the independent curator Jean de Loisy.
Curators:
Hélène Guenin, Head of Department – Curator of Exhibitions and Performance Arts, Centre Pompidou-Metz
Guillaume Désanges, Independent Curator and Art Critic
Artists:
Vito Acconci
Bas Jan Ader
Jacques Fabien Gautier d’Agoty
Francis Alÿs
Carl Andre
Art & Language : Michael Baldwin & Mel Ramsden
Saul Bass
Didier Beaufort
Christophe Berdaguer & Marie Péjus
Lee Bontecou
Ian Breakwell
Santiago Ramón y Cajal
Vija Celmins
Paul Citroën
Henri-Georges Clouzot
Guy de Cointet
Gianni Colombo
Constant (Constant Anton Nieuwenhuys, dit)
Coop Himmelb(l)au : Wolf D. Prix & Helmut Swiczinsky
Guy Debord
Agnes Denes
Maya Deren & Alexander Hammid
Julien Discrit
Gino de Dominicis
Marcel Duchamp
Viking Eggeling
David-Georges Emmerich
Harun Farocki
León Ferrari
Michel François & François Curlet
Yona Friedman
Gego (Gertrud Goldschmidt,dite)
Joseph Grigely
Richard Hamilton
Mona Hatoum
Thomas Hirschhorn & Marcus Steinweg
Isidore Isou (Jean-Isidore Isou Goldstein, dit)
Mike Kelley
Toba Khedoori
Abbas Kiarostami
Frederick Kiesler
Bela Kolárová
Rem Koolhaas & Madelon Vriesendorp
Zoe Zenghelis
Elia Zenghelis
Svetlana & Igor Kopystiansky
Kisho Kurokawa
Andreas Laurentius
Julio Le Parc
Augustin Lesage
Barry Le Va
Mark Lombardi
Richard Long
Kasimir Malevitch
Corey McCorkle
Henri Michaux
Vera Molnár
Robert Morris
Nicolas Moulin
Matt Mullican
Rosalind Nashashibi
Gianni Pettena
Piranèse (Giovanni Battista Piranese, dit)
Public Space With a Roof: Tamuna Chabashvili, Adi Hollander & Vesna Madzoski
Jean Renaudie
Alexandre Rodtchenko
Nicolas Schöffer
Robert Smithson
Frank Stella
Günther Uecker
Isidoro Valcárcel Medina
Aldo Van Eyck
Raphaël Zarka
Media contacts:
Centre Pompidou-Metz
Louise Moreau
+33 (0)3 87 15 39 63
louise.moreau@centrepompidou-metz.fr
Claudine Colin Communication
Constance Gounod / Valentine Dolla
+33 (0)1 42 72 60 01
centrepompidoumetz@claudinecolin.com
