When in doubt, go to a museum
Exhibition Catalogue
Through its textual component, the publication explores several problematic aspects of the issue of collecting, while at the same time offering a more detailed insight into the workings of the five collections presented in the exhibition. The visual design of the publication, created by Novi kolektivizem, follows the course of the exhibition in the spaces of the City Museum of Ljubljana, guiding us – also after visiting the physical exhibition – once again through the exhibition and through the artists’ reflections on the relationship between art and society.
Only a few left (1)
In his text, Tevž Logar outlines the historical development of collecting practices and articulates the conceptual foundations of the exhibition he curated. He emphasises in particular that the creation of an art collection is a complex process in which collectors shape their own guiding principles. Each collection thus possesses its own internal logic, defined not only by the artworks themselves, but also by the motives for including specific artists and their works. Within a collection, artworks are therefore shaped by broader intellectual processes that transcend an understanding of art merely as a commodity.
One of the key purposes of (contemporary) art is to draw attention to social, political, and other transformations of the present moment; through this thematic and conceptual charge, collections also acquire their own intellectual expression. In his essay, Logar explains the motivations behind the selection of the collections and the individual artworks that define them. At the same time, his narrative of the differing motivations of the five European collections is interwoven with the responses of their founders to prevailing circumstances, including those shaped by the current situation defined by the pandemic.
Logar further develops his reflections in the catalogue through a conversation with Nataša Petrešin-Bachelez, an independent curator living and working in Paris. Their dialogue focuses on the reciprocal processes within the triad of artist–gallery–collection. They address questions concerning the importance of distribution and visibility for enhancing the value of artworks and collections, the collaboration between private collections and public spaces, and the emergence of private museums of contemporary art – along with the crucial issue of the impact collections have on artistic production.
This is followed by presentations of all five collections featured in the exhibition. Authors representing Collection Laurent Fiévet, Lah Contemporary, the Ovidiu Șandor Collection, Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, and Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary (TBA21) offer authentic accounts of the desires, passions, and professional arguments that shape the narratives of their respective collections.
The catalogue is conceived as a journey through the specific exhibition space of the City Museum of Ljubljana. The designers from Novi kolektivizem sought to ensure that, alongside all the exhibited works, the curatorial concept and exhibition layout were also embedded in the publication. Individual works are therefore presented in relation to one another, mirroring the way visitors encounter and experience them within the physical exhibition space. In this way, the artworks, the idea, and the spirit of the exhibition are visually recorded for future generations who did not have the opportunity to see the exhibition themselves.
Format: 19 × 25 cm, softcover
Number of pages: 148
Language: Slovene, English
colour photographs
Published by: Museum and Galleries of Ljubljana
Editor: Blaž Vurnik
2021
ISBN: 978-961-6509-67-1