CFP: The Place of Art. The Re-definition of the Exhibition Format in the ’70s

Critically reflecting on the history of exhibition and the canonization of its formats, this panel aims to investigate the development of the exhibitionary complex as it’s known today.

Political protests in the 70s occupied the whole public sphere, causing an epochal value change across culture, thought and politics. The process of democratization affecting cultural perceptions also impacted the art system. Many demonstrations, often in the form of interventions and performances, occurred as throughout the opening dates of the Venice Biennale.

While changing the functioning of its apparatuses, the exhibitionary complex (Bennet 1982) continued to provide instruments for the moral and cultural regulation. In their ability to mobilize and represent political exigencies of a specific moment in time, exhibitions became more specialised thanks to the adoption of diverse formats like biennials, fairs, temporary museum exhibitions, forums and books.

None of these models were new but, during the 70s, were used to respond to the needs of an expanding cultural sphere. Cologne and Basel’s art fairs, the exhibition choices made by Seth Siegelaub in January 5-31 1969 (New York 1969), and documenta 5, which opened the second wave of biennials (Green and Gardner 2016), are great example of these radical changes in exhibition’s formats.

We invite scholars to submit papers that examine specific exhibition formats which, during the 1970s, underwent a significant redefinition or explored methodological issues related to such topic

Please send a 250-word abstract (Chicago Manual of Style), using the CAA conference proposal form (see CAA, p. 41 of the following .pdf http://www.collegeart.org/pdf/programs/conference/CAA-CFP-2019.pdf ), and a brief 2-page CV by August 6, to cricci@iuav.it / clarissarricci@yahoo.it

Dr. Clarissa Ricci
Iuav University in Venice