Harald Szeemann – with by through because towards despite

1. Front Matter

   Pages 1-12

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2. with by through because towards despite

   • Harald Szeemann

   Pages 13-32

3. Harald Szeemann Catalogue of all Exhibitions 1957–2005

   Pages 33-704

4. Back Matter

   Pages 705-759

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by Tobia Bezzola and Roman Kurzmeyer This catalogue of all Harald Szeemann's exhibitions is a compendium of materi­ als and sources relating to the work of the most celebrated independent organ­ iser of exhibitions in the latter part of the 20th century. Harald Szeemann's death on 18 February 2005 marked the end of an era. Through the many exhibi­ tions he staged all over the world from 1957 onward, at first in Switzerland and later as an internationally sought-after freelance curator, he not only changed the way people beheve modern and contemporary art should be displayed, but also opened up a debate on the museum as institution. A new presence, untram­ melled by history or fashion, a metteur en scene, simply a presenter, or what in the seventies came to be called an "exhibition-maker," stepped up alongside the historically moulded conservator and the aesthetically formed critic. Virtually alone, Harald Szeemann promoted in theory and practice this redefined voca­ tion of the organiser of exhibitions of modern and contemporary art in the sec­ ond half of the twentieth century. Step by step in accord with the artists of his generation he devised new forms of presentation, at the same time expanding the notion of art. The new art of the first twenty years after World War II focused on the question of presenting and experiencing space. One thinks of Pollock, Newman, Kaprow, Serra, Beuys, Nauman, De Maria, Flavin or Judd.

• Art
• Ausstellungswesen
• Exhibition
• History of Art
• Kunst
• Kunstgeschichte

• Zürich

  Tobia Bezzola

• Basel

  Roman Kurzmeyer

Harald Szeemann. 1933-2005. 1961-1969 director of the Kunsthalle Berne. 1972 director of the ""documenta 5"". Since 1998 director for Visual Arts, Biennale de Venezia. Curated since 1957 over 200 exhibitions, among others: When Attitudes Become Form (1969), Bachelor Machines (1975), Monte Veritá - Mountain of Truth (1978), In Search of Total Art Work (1983), Cy Twombly (1987), Josef Beuys (1993/94), Bruce Nauman (1995).

Policies and ethics