4. documenta
The 4th documenta international exhibition took place from June 27 to October 6, 1968 in Kassel , for the last time under the direction of Arnold Bode . The focus was on the works of the youngest art avant-garde, rather than the respected masters of the middle and older generation. For the first time, the documenta was perceived as the "most important European art exhibition of the decade" (Time Magazine)
organization
The form of organization had been fundamentally changed compared to the previous documents . A 23-member documenta council voted, after a preliminary decision by working committees, on the final participation of artists. Arnold Bode was a member of all working committees. For the first time, the selection process was largely democratically structured.
In the year of upheaval and unrest in 1968 , the IV. Documenta was not spared the social events and controversial debates. The press conference of the opening event was massively disrupted. Artists such as Wolf Vostell and Jörg Immendorff took part in this protest event , who missed art movements such as Fluxus , Happening , action art and politically critical contributions in the exhibition concept.
The pleasing Pop Art and Op Art dominated the IV. Documenta. These styles, which were in line with the tastes of the time, contributed greatly to the popularization of the exhibition, which was also documented by a new visitor record of 207,000 interested people.
The 4th documenta was the “youngest” of the documenten at the time, as almost only works of art were selected that had been created in the last four years. Only five exhibiting artists had already died, including Yves Klein , Morris Louis and Josef Albers . At the same time, this documenta went down in history as the “ documenta americana ”, because the Americans, with 57 participating artists, made the largest national contingent in front of Germany.
Bazon Brock organized his visitor school for the first time , which was supposed to introduce those interested in art viewing and art reception. The visitor school was officially held two more times at documenta 5 and documenta 6 .
financing
Overall, the budget was set at 2 million German marks , of which the state of Hesse and the city of Kassel first paid 700,000 marks, and later an additional 400,000 marks. However, this budget soon appeared to be unrealistic in relation to the planning, so that the program was cut. An organizing committee had to intervene in the decisions of the Documenta Council. Two council members, the Düsseldorf museum director Werner Schmalenbach and the Kassel painter Fritz Winter therefore left the council in protest. Insurance and transportation made up a large item of expenditure.
It was only through a donation of pictures by the Documenta artists that the base and spotlights for the sculpture exhibition in the park could be financed. Some artists looked for patrons, who in some cases also bought the works of art later.
An architecture exhibition as part of the documenta was canceled for reasons of cost.
Exhibition locations
Again, the exhibition took place in the rooms of the Museum Fridericianum , the ruins of the orangery with open-air area (Karlswiese der Karlsaue ) and in the gallery at Schönen Aussicht, today's New Gallery .
Works of art
The colorful contributions by Pop Art, especially by the American artists who dominated the exhibition, were formative for the IV. Documenta. Andy Warhol's popular “Marilyn”, created after Marilyn Monroe's death, was featured in 10 parts and will not be forgotten in the exhibition. Here the worship of idols as well as the reproducibility of art were addressed at the same time. Another representative of Pop Art was Allen Jones , who presented his triptych Perfect Match .
Further art movements and forms of expression represented at the IV. Documenta were Op-Art , Kinetic Art , Environment and Minimalism .
5600 cubic meter package
Christo was represented with two works of art, a shop front with empty shop windows and the "5600 cubic meter package" - an 85 meter high cylindrical, air-filled package, the work of art was financed with 300,000 marks by a patron from the USA. The work of art had to be registered with the Kassel regional president as a "stationary aircraft" and, according to official regulations, had to be put down immediately if there was a wind force of six or a strong thunderstorm.
A helium-filled polyethylene sleeve from the USA was used in the first and second attempts to erect the work of art . Then a thicker-walled Trevira shell was pulled up with a 70 m high crane; it was only erected after the fourth attempt. The attempts have attracted so much attention that it is often claimed that the unsuccessful attempts made the largest part of the popularity of the "giant sausage".
Participating artists
A total of 151 artists took part in the exhibition:
Counter events and free riders
Dieter Ruckhaberle organized an alternative exhibition of politically active art during the documenta time. Wolf Vostell made an "Anti-Documenta Hearing". Its supporters poured honey on the conference table at a meeting of the Documenta Council, while some council members and participants kissed on the cheeks “out of aggressiveness in their spirit”.
Bazon Brock announced that it would open a "visitor school" in which interested parties could "familiarize themselves with acquisition techniques and reception practices". However, this event was integrated into the documenta concept.
Sources and literature
- Exhibition catalog for the IV. Documenta: IV. Documenta. International exhibition ; Catalog: Volume 1: (Painting and Sculpture); Volume 2: (Graphics / Objects); Kassel 1968
- Dieter Westecker u. a. (Ed.): Documenta documents: 1955–1968 - Four international exhibitions of modern art - texts and photographs. Kassel 1972, ISBN 3-87013-007-5
- Manfred Schneckenburger (Ed.): Documenta - Idea and Institution: Tendencies, Concepts, Materials. Munich 1983, ISBN 3-7654-1902-8
- Harald Kimpel: documenta, myth and reality. Cologne 1997, ISBN 3-7701-4182-2
- Dirk Schwarze: Milestones: 50 years of documenta. Kassel 2005, ISBN 3-9369-6223-5
- Michael Glasmeier and Karin Stengel (eds.): 50 Jahre / Years documenta 1955–2005. 2 volumes: Discrete Energies / archive in motion. Kassel 2005, ISBN 3-86521-146-1
- Cultural Office of the City of Kassel / documenta archive (ed.) / CIS GmbH (prod.); CD: Documenta 1–9 - A focus on four decades of exhibition history / Profiling four decades of exhibition history - 1955–1992. Kassel / Würzburg 1997, ISBN 3-8932-2934-5
- Harald Kimpel and Karin Stengel: documenta IV 1968 international exhibition - A photographic reconstruction (series of publications from the documenta archive); Bremen 2007, ISBN 978-3-86108-524-9
Web links
- Brief overview of the 4th documenta in the documenta archive
- http://www.fotogemeinschaft.de/v/fotografen/Klaus-Baum/documenta-4/
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c DOCUMENTA: Kissed aggressively . In: Der Spiegel . No. 27 , 1968 ( online ).
- ↑ CHRISTO: Empty shop . In: Der Spiegel . No. 33 , 1968 ( online ).
documenta 1955 | II. Documenta 1959 | documenta III 1964 | 4th documenta 1968 | documenta 5 1972 | documenta 6 1977 | documenta 7 1982 | documenta 8 1987 | DOCUMENTA IX 1992 | documenta X 1997 | Documenta11 2002 | documenta 12 2007 | dOCUMENTA (13) 2012 | documenta 14 2017 | documenta 15 2022