A massive panorama of Eastern Europe’s postwar avant-gardes, featuring both canonical and lesser-known artists, this exhibition offers a sweeping survey of experimental art from six Central Eastern European nations—GDR, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Yugoslavia—during the 1960s to 1980s. Artists faced diverse conditions in daily life and art-making, confronting varying degrees of control from state authorities. Embracing conceptual innovation and a spirit of adventurousness, the exhibition highlights how artists refused, circumvented, and subverted official systems, often creating works infused with wit, humor, or irony. While it showcases select canonical figures, it also foregrounds lesser-known practitioners, particularly women artists, artist collectives, and those exploring embodiment through an LGBTQ+ lens. Notable artists include Milan Adamciak, Autoperformationsartisten, AWACS, Lubomír Benes, Sándor Benkö, Geta Bratescu, Zdenka Cechová, Vera Chytilová, Lutz Dammbeck, Jan Dobkowski, Barbara Falender, Stano Filko, Teresa Gierzyńska, Sanja Ivekovic, Károly Hopp-Halász, Dóra Maurer, and many more. This exhibition invites viewers to explore the rich tapestry of artistic expression during a tumultuous period in Eastern European history.
Ivana Bago Knihy
