In 2004 Thomas Hirschhorn, on invitation of the Laboratories d' Aubervilliers, Hirschhorn created a temporary museum, which ran from April through June. Built in front of a public housing complex, Cité Albinet, with the help of his neighbors in Aubervilliers (where the artist lives and works), the project included the exhibition of artworks by Marcel Duchamp, Kasmir Malevic, Piet Mondrian, Salvador Dalí, Joseph Beuys, Le Corbusier, Andy Warhol and Fernand Léger. The work of each artist - on loan from the collections of the Centre Pompidou, Musée National d'Art Moderne, and the Fonds National d'Art Contemporain - were exhibited for one week. A variety of activities including: an opening reception, conferences, debates, workshops for children and for adults, common meals once a week, a library of books about each artist and a snack bar, were all organized with in collaboration with the community.
Hirschhorn steers away from the all too familiar condescending matrix under which most art for community projects operate "I hate volunteerism in the art world. . . Bataille Monument [the project done at Documenta 11 - just prior to the Musée Précaire Albinet] was an art project and not a social project or a social artwork. I wanted to build the monument with the residents. . . I could not complete the work on my own. Throughout the entire project it was clear to me that I am an artist, not a social worker. The question was not 'Can I help you? [or] What can I do for you?' it was rather 'Can you, and do you want to help me?'
text from Tema Celeste #105 Sept/Oct 2004 pg 66/68
Posted by delpesco at October 14, 2004 09:29 AM