ZEIGEN. An Audiotour through the Collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, 2018, 143 audio contributions by 143 artists from the collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, audio guides, headphones, wall lettering with the names of the participants
Photo © Studio Karin Sander

ZEIGEN. An Audiotour through the Collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, 2018, 143 audio contributions by 143 artists from the collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, audio guides, headphones, wall lettering with the names of the participants
Photo © Studio Karin Sander

ZEIGEN. An Audiotour through the Collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, 2018, 143 audio contributions by 143 artists from the collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, audio guides, headphones, wall lettering with the names of the participants
Photo © Studio Karin Sander

ZEIGEN. An Audiotour through the Collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, 2018, 143 audio contributions by 143 artists from the collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, audio guides, headphones, wall lettering with the names of the participants
Photo © Studio Karin Sander

ZEIGEN. An Audiotour through the Collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, 2018, 143 audio contributions by 143 artists from the collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, audio guides, headphones, wall lettering with the names of the participants
Photo © Studio Karin Sander

ZEIGEN. An Audiotour through the Collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, 2018, 143 audio contributions by 143 artists from the collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, audio guides, headphones, wall lettering with the names of the participants
Photo © Studio Karin Sander

ZEIGEN. An Audiotour through the Collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, 2018, 143 audio contributions by 143 artists from the collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, audio guides, headphones, wall lettering with the names of the participants
Photo © Studio Karin Sander

ZEIGEN. An Audiotour through the Collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, 2018, 143 audio contributions by 143 artists from the collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, audio guides, headphones, wall lettering with the names of the participants
Photo © Studio Karin Sander

ZEIGEN. An Audiotour through the Collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, 2018, 143 audio contributions by 143 artists from the collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, audio guides, headphones, wall lettering with the names of the participants
Photo © Studio Karin Sander

ZEIGEN. An Audiotour through the Collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, 2018, 143 audio contributions by 143 artists from the collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, audio guides, headphones, wall lettering with the names of the participants
Photo © Studio Karin Sander

ZEIGEN. An Audiotour through the Collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, 2018, 143 audio contributions by 143 artists from the collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, audio guides, headphones, wall lettering with the names of the participants
Photo © Studio Karin Sander

ZEIGEN. An Audiotour through the Collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, 2018, 143 audio contributions by 143 artists from the collection of The National Museum of Art, Osaka, audio guides, headphones, wall lettering with the names of the participants
Photo © Studio Karin Sander

Travelers: Stepping into the Unknown
ZEIGEN. An Audiotour through the Collection of The National Museum of Art Osaka

21.01.2018 – 06.05.2018
Group Exhibition

National Museum of Art, Osaka
Japan

Imaginary works belong to the traditional stock of conceptual art from Yves Klein to Lawrence Weiner to Andreas Slominski or Karin Sander. To show imaginary works by artists from the collection when this institution is celebrating a 40th anniversary makes sense: first, because in this way one can accommodate a great many artists in the rooms. Then, because the museum also consists of the history of its collection, which is committed to conceptual art. Karin Sander's exhibition project "ZEIGEN" for the National Museum of Art, Osaka combines the aspects of the museum's collection, history and program with the finding that images are created in the mind.
Entering the exhibition space, one first enters a room with blank white walls in front of which visitors linger and listen intently to their audio guide. The names of the artists are affixed to the walls with numbers that can be used to call up the contributions via audio guide. On the right, above the lettering, there would be plenty of space on the wall for a work. But the works are not on the wall, but in the minds of the visitors.
For her work "Zeigen" (Show), Karin Sander has asked the still living artists represented in the collection of the National Museum of Art in Osaka to provide works for this exhibition, which, however, will not be accessible to the visitors physically, but through a description via audio guide. So you will be able to see a poetic installation in the National Museum of Art in Osaka, where people with headphones on their ears stand in front of white walls and develop imaginary images of art that is not visible, which in no way means that it is not there.

Imaginäre Arbeiten gehören zum Traditionsbestand konzeptueller Kunst von Yves Klein über Lawrence Weiner bis hin zu Andreas Slominski oder Karin Sander. Imaginäre Arbeiten von Künstlerinnen und Künstlern der Sammlung zu zeigen, wenn diese Institution ein 40 jähriges Jubiläum feiert, macht Sinn: zunächst, weil man auf diese Weise sehr viele Künstler in den Räumen unterbringen kann. Dann, weil das Museum auch aus der Geschichte seiner Sammlung besteht, die konzeptueller Kunst verpflichtet ist. Karin Sander schließt mit ihrem Ausstellungsprojekt "ZEIGEN" für das National Museum of Art, Osaka die Aspekte der Sammlung, der Geschichte und des Programms des Museums zusammen mit dem Befund, dass die Bilder im Kopf entstehen.
Betritt man den Ausstellungsraum, gelangt man zunächst in einen Raum mit leeren weißen Wänden, vor denen Besucher verweilen und konzentriert ihrem Audioguide lauschen. Auf den Wänden sind die Namen der Künstlerinnen und Künstler mit Nummern befestigt, mit denen man die Beiträge per Audioguide abrufen kann. Rechts über dem Schriftzug wäre auf der Wand viel Platz für ein Werk. Aber die Werke befinden sich nicht auf der Wand, sondern in den Köpfen der Besucher.
Für ihr Werk "Zeigen" hat Karin Sander die noch lebenden Künstlerinnen und Künstler, die in der Sammlung des National Museum of Art in Osaka vertreten sind, aufgefordert, Arbeiten für diese Ausstellung zur Verfügung zu stellen, die den Besuchern aber nicht physisch, sondern über eine Beschreibung per Audioguide zugänglich werden. Man wird also in dem National Museum of Art in Osaka eine poetische Installation sehen können, in der Menschen mit Kopfhörern auf den Ohren vor weißen Wänden stehen und Vorstellungsbilder von Kunst entwickeln, die nicht sichtbar ist, was keineswegs heißt, dass sie nicht da ist.

Harald Welzer

Represented works

Zeigen