16 Jun 2013

Künstlerhaus Büchsenhausen presents COLLECTIVITY MATTERS

COLLECTIVITY MATTERS

with
J. K. BERGSTRAND-DOLEY, DOMINIQUE HURTH, MARCEL UND ANNA (MAC), DAVID RYCH

curated by
ANDREI SICLODI

June 14 - July 27, 2013
KUNSTPAVILLON, Innsbruck, Austria


The exhibition Collectivity Matters focuses on the current potential of collective practices in art with respect to their manifestation as indicators of social conditions.

Collectives in art are often imaginary constellations that serve an artistic idea; under certain circumstances they reflect real-political conditions. A dialectic visualization of one's own activity often lies behind the label 'collective' – by appearing as a 'collective' or as a corporate form, it is possible to secure both visibility and 'criticality' credibility in the art field. But does this really have anything to do with critical practice?

What can collective action signify in the art context when, like art theorist Pamela M. Lee, we assume that we live in the era of the 'consumer sovereign', whose activity consists primarily in selecting from what is on offer (when he has – supposedly – determined this in the first place)? In an epoch when such selection is equated with 'freedom' and thus with a free market that functions in its turn as confirmation of the illusion of free human activity?

Finally, the question of collectivity in art is connected decisively to the issue of the organisational forms of art's production and mediation. What forms of authorship are being claimed here, from whom and to what degree? What impact do other participants – curators, technicians, producers – have on the artistic production process and beyond this on the institutionalization of a collective artistic practice?

The intention of the exhibition Collectivity Matters is to handle such issues in an unorthodox and (possibly) contradictory manner; at the same time it thematizes current forms of exhibition display.

Collectivity Matters is the outcome of an investigation into the projects, artistic ideas and working methods of the participants in the International Fellowship Program for Art and Theory at Künstlerhaus Büchsenhausen 2012–2013. Their artistic approaches, fields of investigation and themes formed the starting point. The artistic practice of Marcel Hiller and Magicgruppe Kulturobjekt, which he initiated, Kevin Dooley's interest in work in self-organized contexts, David Rych's project-oriented production of art, which often implies the collaboration of a large number of participants, and Dominique Hurth's insistence on the importance of individual artistic positions provided the initial motives for addressing the topic of 'collectivity.' The curatorial concept was developed in a step-by-step mode, partly with direct reference to the participating artists' projects and partly on the basis of a number of individual and joint discussions with the fellows. These discussions resulted in the creation of two artistic figures: the fictitious collective Marcel and Anna (Mac), and the fictitious individual J. K. Bergstrand-Doley. Both figures take part in the exhibition, presenting own art projects, while David Rych and Dominique Hurth participate in their own names.

For more information on the presented works please visit the website buchsenhausen.at.