KunstBewusst: Francis Alÿs: Extase und Melancholie mitten in unserer Comedie humaine mit Dirk Snauwaert

In the organizer's words:

What is it about?

Francis Alÿs, a Mexican artist of Belgian origin, has been active worldwide in recent decades with laconic actions that focus on absurd situations in zones of conflict or social turbulence. At the same time, he creates small-format, melancholy and mysterious paintings and drawings. Recently, Alÿs began documenting all the games that children play with each other across cultures and continents in order to subsequently transform the recordings into immersive video films. On the one hand, the joy of play - being absorbed in the collective action - and on the other, sinking into daydreams: Francis Alÿs juxtaposes these two opposing aspects of immersion and absorption.

Who is our guest?

Dirk Snauwaert (*1963, Tielt, Belgium) has been director of WIELS, the leading center for contemporary art in Brussels, since 2004. Previously, he was co-director of the Institut d'Art Contemporain Villeurbanne/Rhône-Alpes in France, director of the Kunstverein München (1996-2001) and curator of contemporary art at the Center for Fine Arts Bozar in Brussels (1989-1995). As an experienced curator, Snauwaert has organized numerous important solo and group exhibitions, including projects with Luc Tuymans, Francis Alÿs, Rosemarie Trockel, Wolfgang Tillmans and Marcel Broodthaers. His thematic exhibitions include The Absent Museum, Risquons-Tout and Magical Realism. In addition to his curatorial work, he regularly publishes on art and visual culture and is active on several international advisory boards. Snauwaert has also worked for renowned institutions outside WIELS. He has curated Idiolect in Bruges, Atopolis for Mons 2015 - European Capital of Culture and Thomas Hirschhorn's Pixel Collages at the National Museum of Modern Art in Pristina, among others. His work includes projects in Venice, Shanghai, Tourcoing and other international art centers.

Price information:

Free of charge for members of freunde. Guests pay 4 €, students 2 €