Jennifer Houdrouge

Lecture by arts entrepreneur Jennifer Houdrouge, Co-Director and Co-Founder of the Chimney, to Aliza Shvarts\u27s class in the Contemporary Art Master\u27s Program, 2021. Part 5 of the Global Perspectives Lecture Series.https://digitalcommons.sia.edu/speaker/1025/thumbnail.jp

The paper aims to analyze the work and life of Adolf Wolfli through the philosophical concepts of Friedrich Nietzsche. Adolf Wolfli, one of the first artists to be associated with Art Brut and Outsider art has developed an impressive number of works, writings and musical compositions while incarcerated at the Waldau asylum from 1907 to 1930. In his works, Wolfli's visual language and systems evoke a desire for order, metamorphosis and transcendence of his current condition. The articulation of 'Dionysian' and Apollonian forces, the transvaluation of values, the principle of the 'eternal return' are Nietzschean notions that can be found in Adolf Wolfli's works. The paper suggests that Wolfli utilized his mental illness as a source for creation and in this way, liberated himself from his psychic condition.

The 21st century has witnessed a resurgence of performance art, causing a corresponding change in art institutional practices, and unprecedented curatorial discussions of the institutionalization and commercialization of this art form. In recent years, there has been a steep increase in the number of artists working with performance, broadening its definition to other disciplines such as dance, theater and music, and characterized by an emphasis for action within institutions and a total inclusion of the audience. By examining closely the artistic practice of artists such as Tino Sehgal and Marina Abramovic, the thesis will underline the main elements that enable museums, biennials and galleries to collect, conserve and sell contemporary performance. Precisely, this study will explore how contemporary artists have incorporated the notion of reproducibility within their works, which supports their institutionalization. In addition, it will investigate how the shifting role of institutions from places of contemplation to sites for active physical engagement has led to fundamental structural changes, and will demonstrate how the new performance format emerging in the 21st century fully embraces its institutionalization. By focusing on museums, biennials and galleries, this study will cover the three major types of art institution, and I will analyze their developing practices and strategies in relation to performance art.