Room text Xanti Schawinsky
Play, Life, Illusion - a retrospective
The exhibition provides the first comprehensive overview of the work of the Swiss-American artist Alexander ‘Xanti’ Schawinsky (1904, Basel – 1979, Locarno) outside Switzerland.
Schawinsky’s work is characterised by its multimedia diversity and love of experimentation. He studied at the Bauhaus in Germany in the 1920s and later taught at Black Mountain College in the USA. During his six-decade career, he worked on productions, stage sets, photography, graphic design, painting and typography.
His work reflects the most important art movements of the 20th century – from the period before the Second World War to far beyond. Like many other artists with a Jewish background, the political situation in the world forced him to move between Europe and America. The resulting artistic exchange had a lasting influence on the history of art, and Schawinsky’s work can be attributed a significant role in this.
The exhibition covers Schawinsky’s most important creative phases: from his first works, in which he explored issues relating to stage space and the relationship between man and machine, to his graphic works and his experiments in the field of theatre. In addition, his pictorial works developed from the 1940s onwards, with which he gradually opened up to process-based art and performance, are also given space. His pioneering role in the field of performance is echoed in many areas of contemporary art.
An installation by British artist Monster Chetwynd (*1973, London) can be seen in the entrance hall. She was inspired by Schawinsky’s work and created her own artistic response to it.
Guest curator
Raphael Gygax
The exhibition is organised by the Kunsthalle Bielefeld and the Mudam Luxembourg – Musée d’Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean in collaboration with the estate of Xanti Schawinsky.
Unless otherwise stated, all exhibited works are by Xanti Schawinsky and made available by the Xanti Schawinsky estate.
With support by
