Like a Stranger in Moscow
Jul 02, 2011 - Jul 30, 2011
As differing as the backgrounds of Felipe Mujica (born 1974, Santiago de Chile), Michael H枚pfner (born 1972, Krems), Nigel Bennett (born 1975, Welwyn GB) and Viktoria Binschtok (born 1972, Moscow) may be, they do have one essential thing in common; all four of them don鈥檛 live and work in the city they were born in. It may be a coincidence, yet it reflects a basic feeling of their artistic practice: alienation.
Schopenhauer and Adorno state that cogitation originates from our feeling estranged, when we are not at home, in an unknown environment. One is inclined to project this concept onto contemporary art as well. It presumably was no coincidence that the last Documenta鈥檚 topical coherence was closely connected to the term 鈥渁lienation鈥�. On the macro level, globalisation and migration influence the discourse in contemporary art, and many artists deal with these topics very openly.
On a different level, in a very private sector, something affects the nucleus of the artistic perception. The focus shifts slightly and hardly noticeably; a diffuse feeling of estrangement from the usual practice in the arts is to be detected and at the same time challenged. A melancholic, pending suspiciousness seems to be the basic feeling that incites the reflections of many young artists.
Like a Stranger in Moscow tries to decipher this slight discomfort and to make it visible. The protagonist of Albert Camus鈥� grand novel The Stranger only realizes in prison what 鈥渢he gentle indifference of the world鈥� might be; and that鈥檚 how he finds his way back to his sensations. To be strange without being indifferent is no easy task and yet many artists meet with it in their daily practice.
Schopenhauer and Adorno state that cogitation originates from our feeling estranged, when we are not at home, in an unknown environment. One is inclined to project this concept onto contemporary art as well. It presumably was no coincidence that the last Documenta鈥檚 topical coherence was closely connected to the term 鈥渁lienation鈥�. On the macro level, globalisation and migration influence the discourse in contemporary art, and many artists deal with these topics very openly.
On a different level, in a very private sector, something affects the nucleus of the artistic perception. The focus shifts slightly and hardly noticeably; a diffuse feeling of estrangement from the usual practice in the arts is to be detected and at the same time challenged. A melancholic, pending suspiciousness seems to be the basic feeling that incites the reflections of many young artists.
Like a Stranger in Moscow tries to decipher this slight discomfort and to make it visible. The protagonist of Albert Camus鈥� grand novel The Stranger only realizes in prison what 鈥渢he gentle indifference of the world鈥� might be; and that鈥檚 how he finds his way back to his sensations. To be strange without being indifferent is no easy task and yet many artists meet with it in their daily practice.
As differing as the backgrounds of Felipe Mujica (born 1974, Santiago de Chile), Michael H枚pfner (born 1972, Krems), Nigel Bennett (born 1975, Welwyn GB) and Viktoria Binschtok (born 1972, Moscow) may be, they do have one essential thing in common; all four of them don鈥檛 live and work in the city they were born in. It may be a coincidence, yet it reflects a basic feeling of their artistic practice: alienation.
Schopenhauer and Adorno state that cogitation originates from our feeling estranged, when we are not at home, in an unknown environment. One is inclined to project this concept onto contemporary art as well. It presumably was no coincidence that the last Documenta鈥檚 topical coherence was closely connected to the term 鈥渁lienation鈥�. On the macro level, globalisation and migration influence the discourse in contemporary art, and many artists deal with these topics very openly.
On a different level, in a very private sector, something affects the nucleus of the artistic perception. The focus shifts slightly and hardly noticeably; a diffuse feeling of estrangement from the usual practice in the arts is to be detected and at the same time challenged. A melancholic, pending suspiciousness seems to be the basic feeling that incites the reflections of many young artists.
Like a Stranger in Moscow tries to decipher this slight discomfort and to make it visible. The protagonist of Albert Camus鈥� grand novel The Stranger only realizes in prison what 鈥渢he gentle indifference of the world鈥� might be; and that鈥檚 how he finds his way back to his sensations. To be strange without being indifferent is no easy task and yet many artists meet with it in their daily practice.
Schopenhauer and Adorno state that cogitation originates from our feeling estranged, when we are not at home, in an unknown environment. One is inclined to project this concept onto contemporary art as well. It presumably was no coincidence that the last Documenta鈥檚 topical coherence was closely connected to the term 鈥渁lienation鈥�. On the macro level, globalisation and migration influence the discourse in contemporary art, and many artists deal with these topics very openly.
On a different level, in a very private sector, something affects the nucleus of the artistic perception. The focus shifts slightly and hardly noticeably; a diffuse feeling of estrangement from the usual practice in the arts is to be detected and at the same time challenged. A melancholic, pending suspiciousness seems to be the basic feeling that incites the reflections of many young artists.
Like a Stranger in Moscow tries to decipher this slight discomfort and to make it visible. The protagonist of Albert Camus鈥� grand novel The Stranger only realizes in prison what 鈥渢he gentle indifference of the world鈥� might be; and that鈥檚 how he finds his way back to his sensations. To be strange without being indifferent is no easy task and yet many artists meet with it in their daily practice.
Artists on show
Contact details
Wednesday - Friday
12:00 - 6:00 PM
Saturday
11:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Ankerstrasse 24 Zürich, Switzerland 8004
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