Issue 02

Institution as medium - towards a critical architecture of institutions

In recent years, there is a growing interest in the forms and formats of presentation and exhibitions. In artistic production as well as in theoretical and historical reflection, the attention increasingly shifts towards how artistic practices are conferred with meaning through their presentation (from aspects of interior design or labeling, to questions of accessibility) and mediation, and not only through the works themselves. Especially through examples of exhibitions or museum collections, historical research analyzes the interplay of artistic works and their mediation, which ultimately aims to connect art and its contextualization within a political sphere. For many artists working today, consideration of the presentation form is a fundamental aspect of their work, which is often based on and reflected upon through references to historical examples of exhibition design.

"Institution as Medium – Towards a Critical Architecture of Institutions" is the second part of a cooperation between the Postgraduate Program in Curating, ICS Institute Cultural Studies, Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK) and Kuenstlerhaus Stuttgart, following a conference in Stuttgart in May 2008.