Conceptual Art From California
November 12 – November 23, 2008
Opening: Tuesday, November 11, 7pm
Chausseestraße 128-129
10115 Berlin , Germany
Conceptual Art From California
Max Almy, Ant Farm, John Baldessari, Aristarkh Chernyshov / Vladislav Efimov, Timothy Collins, Lowell Darling, Christoph Draeger / Martin Frei, Terry Fox, Ingo Gerken, Lucy Gunning, Doug Hall, Mel Henderson, Gary Hill, David Irelands House, Joanne Kelly, Ned Khan, Marlene Kos, Paul Kos, Tony Labat, Paula Levine, Chip Lord, Mary Lucier, Tom Marioni, Paul McCarthy, Bruce Nauman, Nicole Raufeisen / Ryan Witt, John Roloff, Darryl Sapien, Ira Schneider, Corinna Schnitt, Ilene Segalove, Richard Serra / Nancy Holt, Bonnie Sherk, Survival Research Laboratories, Mark Thompson, Bill Viola
Curated by Kathrin Becker
In the 1960s California was the centre of the counterculture and the Mecca of the hippie movement. Grappling with questions of how to define the artwork gave rise to new forms of expression such as performances, happenings and video art. A focus on the conceptual, process-based and ephemeral aspects of art took the place of “retinal” art forms such as painting and sculpture. Studies of phenomenological matters such as space, light and sounds, explorations of identity and gender politics, along with the relationship between artwork and viewer became dominant themes in art.
The Californian art scene played a significant part in ensuring that the neo-avant-garde gained ground. However, nowadays relatively little attention is paid to the major developments in Californian conceptual art – with the exception of a few central artists such as Bruce Nauman, Garry Hill and Bill Viola. The exhibition project Conceptual Art From California turns its gaze on this scene and presents work from the n.b.k. Video Forum’s collection along with selected works from other sources. One of the core elements in this presentation is the video programme curated by Constance Lewallen for the exhibition Facing Eden: 100 Years of Bay Area Landscape at M.H. de Young Museum, San Francisco, 1995. This brings together numerous artists examining topics such as ecology and human alienation from nature, along with socio-political issues such as migration and security policy. The exhibition is complemented by a series of works by non-Californian artists, which either relate to specific pieces by artists such as Bruce Nauman or Chris Burden, or reference the Californian situation in general.
Programme
Thursday, November 13, 7pm
Artist/Politician: A California Statewide Artists Collaboration, 1978
A lecture by Lowell Darling (artist) in English language
Thursday, November 20, 7pm
Guided tour with Silke Wittig (n.b.k. Video-Forum)
Sunday, November 23, 8pm
STUPID GREEN (Jochen Arbeit / Vania Rovisco)
Music-Performance
Opening hours Exhibition
Tuesday-Sunday, 12-6pm
Thursday, 12-8pm
Opening hours Video-Forum/Artothek
Tuesday/Thursday, 2-8pm
Wednesday/Friday, 2-6pm
Contact
Neuer Berliner Kunstverein n.b.k. // Chausseestraße 128-129 // 10115 Berlin // Germany
T +49 30 2807020 // F +49 30 2807019 // E nbk@nbk.org
Supported by
