Per Hüttner: July 24th – August 4th, 2019

Per Hüttner is a Swedish artist who lives and works in Stockholm and Paris. He was trained at Konsthögskolan, Stockholm and at Hochschule der Künste in Berlin. He has shown extensively in Europe, Australia, Asia, North and South America. Solo exhibitions and major presentations include Zendai Contemporary in Shanghai, Göteborgs konstmuseum and Wellcome Collection in London. Participation in group shows include Museu de Arte Moderna de São Paulo (MAM); Palais de Tokyo in Paris, the Hayward Gallery in London, Moderna Museet in Stockholm, MACBA in Barcelona. He has performed at Tate Britain, Tate Modern, Pinacoteca, Museo Jumex and the Venice Biennial. He is represented at art museums in Sweden, Poland, China and Brazil. Hüttner is the founder and director of the international research network Vision Forum and a member of the Board of ISBA in Besançon France. He is a member of the performance collective 1+1=3 where he has been part of developing the EEGsynth a tool to use brain waves in performance art.

The Project:

The project is a performative investigation into human history and how humans understand nature around them and inside their bodies. The research focuses on works by 19th century painters and sculptors in different museum collections around the world. Each investigation will lead to a performance that will be staged in front of the work in the museum. In the performances the artist(s) will use texts, sound, theatre-lights and objects to highlight different qualities in the painting. The goal is to reflect on our current social and political situation in the world is connected to history locally and globally.

The project takes its starting point in romanticism because of its double relationship to nature. In romantic art there is both a deep fascination as well as alienation in face of the natural landscape. The project aims to create a better understanding about how 19th century ideals have shaped contemporary western understanding of nature and how it can be rethought by introducing ideas from non-western cultures. There is in other words a profound will to embrace the local cultures’ understanding of the world and how these can be used to challenge western thinking.