The subtle interplay between the I and the me

The exhibition entitled The subtle interplay between the I and the me unfolded in a sequence of eight chapters and brings together works by artists who subject traditional images of the body to critical revision using diverse artistic media in their search for opportunities to evolve novel representations. Such artists arrive at new forms of subjectivity grounded in their own body, throwing hitherto valid concepts out of the window and initiating new artistic criteria. The exhibition takes choreography and dance off the stage into the action space of the museum, in order to bring the most various means of expression into direct contact with each other and make the overriding issues tangible: How can the body be represented? What role do corporeal experiences and memories play in how we perceive the world? Does the body think in a specific manner? What traces of choreographic thinking can be identified in fine art? What role do queer issues play here from a contemporary perspective? How does a work of art address its counterpart and incorporate this person, the viewer, into the setting? What role do institutional regulations and guidelines play?

The eight chapters commence chronologically with works from the 1970s, a time when conceptual strategies and institutional critique prevailed in art, while the human body was increasingly politicized. The first phase is devoted to Heinz Breloh (we are exhibiting his work in its entirety on the occasion of his 80th birthday), Bernhard Leitner, Duane Michals, Richard Tuttle and Hannah Villiger (we have used her quote as the title of the exhibition). The exhibition spans the decades to embrace the most recent works by Esther Kläs, the Office for eyes, nose, tongue, mouth, heart, hand and mask (covering all), (Nicole Baginski, Tanja Geiß, Patrick Henkel, Eva Kot'átková, Susanne Kümpel, Andreas Maus, Michael Müller, Anna Rossa) and the Belgian choreographer and dancer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker. De Keersmaeker and her company Rosas have created their own piece Dark Red especially for the exhibition, which we were able to present last September as an integral part of the show. More special activities will be realized in cooperation with Tanz Köln up to and including the month of August, oscillating between performance and exhibition and bringing the time bound but instantaneous nature of performing arts into contact with fine arts. As so often, our own collection is both the springboard and the central focus of the project, with its monographic positions interlaced with medieval and Baroque works.

The subtle interplay between the I and the me is an experimental venture—like so much in the last few months. The fascinating alternation of close proximity and keeping one’s distance in dance in the most diverse ways is by the same token the shape of our lives since the COVID-19 pandemic started. There is much at stake for performance arts, as these require a venue, the dramatic instant and a communal situation—to create that moment when the audience becomes electrified. This crisis forces artists and all institutions to experiment with new formats in order to maintain their visibility in the public eye and to enter into a dialogue with their audience. The architecture of Kolumba opens up untold opportunities for research, discovery and to confirm one’s presence.

Curators: Barbara von Flüe, Malte Guttek, Hanna Koller, Stefan Kraus, Marc Steinmann, Ulrike Surmann
Financial support from Stadt Köln, Pro Helvetia – Swiss Arts Council and Landis & Gyr Foundation