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Current

01.09.19 – 05.01.20

MASK

In Present-Day Art

Masks make us think of Carnival, of the rituals of African tribes, of death masks, theatre, film and fashion, as well as of role play, disguise and protection. Masks are an ancient, often controversial object of human cultural history. And masks also have a long tradition in the visual arts. But how is the subject being addressed in contemporary art?

The international group exhibition at the Aargauer Kunsthaus looks into this matter. Interest in masks among contemporary artists focuses not just on the mask as an object but also, and in particular, on its social, cultural and political implications. Between the opposite poles of showing and hiding and in a society in which skilful self-presentation is regarded as an indicator of personal success, the mask is highly topical. This motivates many artists to take up the  subject and diagnose and reassess both the concept and the object from a contemporary point of view.

Artists
Kader Attia (b. 1970, FR), Silvia Bächli (b. 1956, CH) & Eric Hattan (b. 1955, CH), Sabian Baumann (b. 1962, CH), Nathalie Bissig (b. 1981, CH), Olaf Breuning (b. 1970, CH), Edson Chagas (b. 1977, AO), Hélène Delprat (b. 1957, FR), Cecilia Edefalk (b. 1954, SE), Nicole Eisenman (b. 1965, FR), Theaster Gates (b. 1973, USA), Gauri Gill (b. 1970, IN), Douglas Gordon (b. 1966, UK), Aneta Grzeszykowska (b. 1974, PL), Christoph Hefti (b. 1967, CH), Judith Hopf (b. 1969, DE), Cameron Jamie (b. 1969, USA), Laura Lima (b. 1971, BR), Christian Marclay (b. 1955, CH), Mélodie Mousset (b. 1981, FR/CH), Mike Nelson (b. 1967, UK), Elodie Pong (b. 1966, USA/CH), Pope.L (b. 1955, USA), Ugo Rondinone (b. 1964, CH), Amanda Ross-Ho (b. 1975, USA), Markus Schinwald (b. 1973, AT), Cindy Sherman (b. 1954, USA), Francisco Sierra (b. 1977, CH), Simon Starling (b. 1967, UK), John Stezaker (b. 1949, UK), Rosemarie Trockel (b. 1952, DE), Paloma Varga Weisz (b. 1966, DE), Gillian Wearing (b. 1963, UK), Susanne Weirich (b. 1962, DE), Pedro Wirz (b. 1981, BR/CH), Sislej Xhafa (b. 1970, KO)

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