Duet with Artist. Participation as artistic principle

What is the role of modern-day museums? What possibilities for social participation still exist?

The exhibition Duet with Artist at the 21er Haus puts the public, their active participation and productive collaboration at its heart. Consequently, making visitors aware of their critical thought process via an artwork (e.g. by Joseph Beuys) is just as much part of the show as carrying out an artistic instruction (e.g. by Yoko Ono) or directly cooperating with other visitors in the exhibition space (e.g. in the work of Rirkrit Tiravanija). The relationship between art and life has been the focus of various artistic avant-gardes since the early 20th century. Beginning in the 1950s, the process of artistic production itself became an increasingly fundamental part of
artworks with the advent of actions, happenings and performances. As pivotal art movements, Fluxus and body art bear witness to this development. Proceeding from these trends, the exhibition includes a section with historical documentary works by way of example. Alongside these pieces are contemporary works that are only completed with the addition of performance, creative use, playful cooperation or active participation by the public.

With works by Vito Acconci, Robert Barry, Joseph Beuys, stanley brouwn, Angela Bulloch, John Cage, Claus Föttinger, Rodney Graham, Hans Haacke, Christine Hill, David Horvitz, Pierre Huyghe, Yves Klein, Tomas Kleiner, Krüger & Pardeller, Mischa Kuball, Dieter Meier, Bruce Nauman, Yoko Ono, OPAVIVARÁ!, David Shrigley, Gabriel Sierra, Juergen Staack, Rirkrit Tiravanija, Wolf Vostell, Franz West and Erwin Wurm

A cooperation between the 21er Haus and the Morsbroich Museum in Leverkusen, Germany.

Curated by Axel Köhne