The Bass Museum of Art is pleased to announce Human Rites, their new exhibition examining ritual through art currently on display. From mundane human activities to sacred practices, from the past through the present, rites and rituals have been pervasive subjects in artistic practice. Human Rites will present works such as 15th century devotional polychrome statues of Mary and 16th century altarpieces alongside works by renowned contemporary artists. This juxtaposition of works circumscribes the timelessness of rituals, expressed historically and anthropologically in religious, as well as other contexts.
Works of art in this exhibition also reflect both the subconscious and premeditated human need for rituals in our every day lives.Votive works by Marina Abramović and Shirin Neshat survey the ceremonial aspects of womanhood; Rirkrit Tiravanija’s Buddha figurines describe the devotional offerings that people manufacture for their gods; collected items by artists Mark Dion, John Beech and César Trasobares investigate form, the found object and performative aspects; Allan McCollum’s repetitive series reflect the construction of objects as substitutes for the real object. Ai Wei Wei uses the bicycle as both symbol and found object in the construction of a monumental totem form. Additional artists in the exhibition include El Anatsui, Bernd and Hilla Becher, Christian Boltanski, Sophie Calle, Paolo Canevari, Emilio Chapela, Anna Chu, Subodh Gupta, Thomas Hirshhorn, Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, Kelly Mark, Roberto Marossi, Priscilla Monge, Jonathan Monk, Massimo Vitali, Erwin Wurm, and selections from the Collection of the Bass Museum or Art. This exhibition is the second of three exhibitions in The Endless Renaissance series at the Bass Museum that began with the exhibition The Endless Renaissance in 2009 and will conclude with a publication in 2012/2013.
Also on view in the cabinet is Kolkoz. Kolkoz is a French art collective consisting of Samuel Boutruche and Benamin Moreau. The two artists both live and work in Paris under the Kolkoz moniker. They create art in a diverse range of mediums that spans from video to sculpture and installation. For the Bass Museum, Kolkoz will present a continuing series that turns the idea of framing art on its head. While the luxurious gold frame is a common sight in most museums around the world, the collective has chosen to create sculptural forms using just the frame. On view will be two works which consist of multiple frames within a frame. Ornate gold borders are assembled together in an Escher-like optical illusion with no image at all. This exhibition runs through August 8, 2010.
The Bass Museum of Art is located at 2121 Park Ave., Miami Beach; Call 305.673.7530 or visit http://www.bassmuseum.org/ for more information.
