Maria Eichhorn: Zwölf Arbeiten / Twelve Works (1988–2018)

Reduction, the hallmark of the oeuvre of the artist Maria Eichhorn (b. Bamberg, Germany, 1962), is also the defining characteristic of her exhibition at the Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst. It is evident in the number of works selected for the show—12, dating from the past 30 years—and their specific formal idiom. The presentation pointedly disrupts habits of seeing and makes room for fresh thinking. Eichhorn’s practice prompts critical scrutiny of entrenched norms that regiment everyday life and art, with a particular focus on socioeconomic processes. The issues she raises spotlight questions of value, time, property, and ownership, categories whose agency the artist deliberately undermines. Based on wide-ranging research, her art charts new forms of political action. Several of the works on display, including the seminal 72 Paintings (1992/93), are in the Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst’s collection. Eichhorn rose to international renown with contributions to numerous biennials, including the Venice Biennale (1993, 2001, and 2015), Documenta11 (2002), and documenta 14 (2017).

The exhibition was curated by Dr. Raphael Gygax (curator, Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst). The accompanying publication Building As Unowned Property will be released in 2019.