UTOPICS Art in urban space

JACQUELINE BURCKHARDT

FORWORD

UTOPICS - SYSTEMS AND LANDMARKS

History shows: in 1954 Monsieur Marcel Joray, the enthusiastic initiator of the Schweizer Plastikausstellung (SPA—Swiss Sculpture Exhibition) in Biel/Bienne, a natural scientist, art lover and publisher with an obvious inclination for building bridges between disciplines, had thought out the concept of his project well and farsightedly. He wanted to offer the public, consisting of a mixture of interested visitors and chance passers-by, a representative cross-section of the diversity of current Swiss sculpture in the open air. To be sure, didactic criteria counted in the selection of the works; but for Joray the question of the esthetic emotion that the energy of the works of art was able to trigger in him was the primary consideration.

At that time the exhibition was held in the park of Rittermatte School, outside the protected environment of an art institution: Until the opening of the Centre PasquArt in 1990 there was no such thing in Biel/Bienne. Thus a virtue was made out of necessity, and an important step was taken in the history of art in public space in our country. In keeping with his curiosity, Joray also immediately envisaged reproducing the summer exhibition at intervals every few years, and he himself curated the whole thing five times. Now, in 2009, it is time for the eleventh edition of the SPA, this time under the aegis of the Genevan curator Simon Lamunière, also known as the curator of the “Art Unlimited” exhibition which has accompanied the Art Basel art fair every year since 2000.

In accordance with socio-political situations and the changing cultural tendencies, the series of SPA exhibitions reflects the relevant transformation in artistic positions and practices as well as curatorial perspectives. As far back as 1966 the exhibition wanted to “offer a framework for experiments and confrontations" and thereby promote the breaking down and expansion of cultural boundaries. Furthermore, seen from the standpoint of culture that is based on increasingly global networking, it became natural to make the selection of artists internationally, but still including a considerable number of Swiss nationals. Since 1991 the exhibitions have been designed according to themes: Tabula Rasa (1991), Transfert (2000) and now Utopics (2009). The artistic interventions are deliberately devised with these themes in mind. Often they now infiltrate far into the everyday life of the town, entering into a surprising referential interplay with inspiring locations, subverting visual habits, and sounding out new creative possibilities. In doing so they do not always manifest themselves as art unequivocally, or even at the top of their voices. Standing in front of the works, you frequently gain more if you do not consciously ask: “What really lies behind this work?”, but in the spirit of Joray wonder: “What is happening between me and the work, what thoughts and feelings can the work of art trigger in me?”

The choice of the theme Utopics is symptomatic of the phenomenon that in recent times the utopian concept has recurred strikingly frequently and prominently in art. Artists concern themselves critically with the state of the world, and in their practice want to use their resources and methods to charge new realities with utopian or often even dystopian energy.

Jacqueline Burckhardt is member of the committee of honor of SPA 2009 and co-publisher of the art-magazine PARKETT.




  • Ohne Titel, O.N.S. - die neue zeit, expo 2009
    Ohne Titel
  • Les envahisseurs, Steiner Gerda & Lenzlinger Jörg, expo 2009
    Les envahisseurs
  • 13'720 cm3 du territoire de la république géniale, Filliou Robert, expo 2009
    13'720 cm3 du territoire de la république géniale
  • 14 Vorlesungen, L'école de Stéphanie, expo 2009
    14 Vorlesungen
  • Fitiero cultural SL, de Barros Fabiana, expo 2009
    Fitiero cultural SL
  • The money square, Superflex, expo 2009
    The money square
  • 4 unterschiedliche Tischsetes , Parsifal, expo 2009
    4 unterschiedliche Tischsetes
  • Dispatches from the Crystal Frontier, Perret Mai-Thu, expo 2009
    Dispatches from the Crystal Frontier
  • Notturno, Golinski Andreas / La Rada, expo 2009
    Notturno
  • Small Liberties, Zittel Andrea, expo 2009
    Small Liberties
  • Test tube, General Idea, expo 2009
    Test tube
  • Umwälzen, Schenker Katja, expo 2009
    Umwälzen
  • Tanzperformance, Eurythmie Zuccoli, expo 2009
    Tanzperformance
  • Les Barbus, Zorro & Bernardo, expo 2009
    Les Barbus
  • 47°8'12.24, ECAL, Students project of the Visual Art Department of ECAL directed by Fabrice Gygi. Students: Yana Dubosson, Justine Dufour, Émilie Guenat, Alexandra Haddad Martinez, Anne Hildbrand, Sarah Margnetti, Natalia Nosova, Cathia Rocha, Orianne Zanone, Al, expo 2009
    47°8'12.24
  • Pneuma Somnabule, Seiler Kerim, expo 2009
    Pneuma Somnabule
  • The Reading Sculpture, Rittener Didier / Demierre Carla / Martini Federica, expo 2009
    The Reading Sculpture
  • ohne Titel, Trouvé Tatiana, expo 2009
    ohne Titel
  • For a referundum against referundum, Solakov Nedko, expo 2009
    For a referundum against referundum
  • Panarchistische Verfassungstelle, Beutler Martin, expo 2009
    Panarchistische Verfassungstelle
  • Kommunikation der Stadt, Holmkvist Saskia + Thal Andrea, expo 2009
    Kommunikation der Stadt
  • Vermisste Kunst, von Wedemeyer Clemens, expo 2009
    Vermisste Kunst
  • Upside down Goggles, Höller Carsten, expo 2009
    Upside down Goggles
  • Les mèches en lignes, Fries Holger + Jas Mona, expo 2009
    Les mèches en lignes
  • Education Tool, Mullican Matt, expo 2009
    Education Tool
  • 28., République du Saugeais, expo 2009
    28.
  • WIPO Corporate Flower Logo, Coffin Peter, expo 2009
    WIPO Corporate Flower Logo
  • Ohne Titel, Group Bélier, expo 2009
    Ohne Titel
  • Zeichnungen, Egli René, expo 2009
    Zeichnungen
  • Fahnen am Strandboden / Drapeaux au bord du lac, Micronations, expo 2009
    Fahnen am Strandboden / Drapeaux au bord du lac
  • Didactease, Gander Ryan, expo 2009
    Didactease
  • Words from Africa, NSK State / IRWIN, expo 2009
    Words from Africa
  • Wir sind alle gewöhnliche Einzelwesen, Claire Fontaine, expo 2009
    Wir sind alle gewöhnliche Einzelwesen
  • Toninstallation, 360°, expo 2009
    Toninstallation
  • Ideally, w+w, Wu Annie + Wojtyra Tonik, expo 2009
    Ideally
  • Battlefield No 47, Leuba Jérôme, expo 2009
    Battlefield No 47
  • Annex the space between all languages, The Kingdom of Elgaland-Vargaland / KREV, expo 2009
    Annex the space between all languages
  • SOS Gates - Territorial Phantom, State of Sabotage (SoS), expo 2009
    SOS Gates - Territorial Phantom
  • Beautiful Steps No 2, L/B, Lang Sabina + Baumann Daniel, expo 2009
    Beautiful Steps No 2
  • Reality Hacking No 272, Regli Peter, expo 2009
    Reality Hacking No 272
  • Modul Lokal.int, Zäch René, expo 2009
    Modul Lokal.int
  • The Fence Shed, Poloni Marco, expo 2009
    The Fence Shed
  • Drapeau, Gygi Fabrice, expo 2009
    Drapeau
  • RMB City, Fei Cao, expo 2009
    RMB City