beyond imagination

Celebrating the return of the Stedelijk Museum as the focal point of Amsterdam’s contemporary art scene, "Beyond Imagination", the first temporary exhibition at the new Stedelijk, is a tribute to the art that is made in Amsterdam and the Netherlands. In the tradition of the "Municipal Art Acquisitions", this exhibition gives an international perspective on Dutch art today. "Beyond Imagination" will include new projects and commissioned works by 20 artists, Dutch nationals as well as those born elsewhere, all of who are active today in the Netherlands.

In organizing this year’s exhibition, Stedelijk curator Martijn van Nieuwenhuyzen and guest curator Kathrin Jentjens (former director of the Kölnischer Kunstverein) asked artists to consider the ways in which boundaries are now blurred between reality and imagination, authenticity and role-playing, especially in relation to developments in politics, finance and media. A total of 657 artists proposed responses to this theme. A jury comprising the curators and three other members (Frédérique Bergholtz, Koen Brams and Melvin Moti) made the final selection of 20 artists.

The majority of the artists selected for "Beyond Imagination" are in their twenties and thirties. The youngest was born in 1988 and the oldest in 1932. Their countries of origin are the Netherlands, Bulgaria, Canada, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Lithuania, the United Kingdom and the United States, but all either trained in the Netherlands or have participated in residency programs at Dutch institutions such as the Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten and De Ateliers in Amsterdam and the Jan van Eyck Academy in Maastricht. The artists are James Beckett, Eric Bell and Kristoffer Frick, Rossella Biscotti, Eglé Budvytyté, Jeremiah Day, Christian Friedrich, Sara van der Heide, Suchan Kinoshita, Susanne Kriemann, Matthew Lutz-Kinoy, Snejanka Mihaylova, Rory Pilgrim, Falke Pisano, Julika Rudelius, Fiona Tan, Jennifer Tee, Jan van Toorn, Vincent Vulsma and Andros Zins-Browne. 

Also on view for the opening will be a temporary exhibition organized by Ann Goldstein with Stedelijk curators Leontine Coelewij and Bart Rutten in the largest gallery in the Stedelijk’s new building, which is also the largest column-free, open-plan gallery in the Netherlands. The exhibition will feature sizable works and installations from the permanent collection by Carl Andre, Rodney Graham, Joan Jonas, John Knight, Barbara Kruger, Melvin Moti and Diana Thater, among others.

VIDEO INSTALLATIONS AND PERFORMANCE: BEYOND IMAGINATION
As part of the opening exhibition "Beyond Imagination" a series of performances are organized and also two monumental video installations are programmed at the Stedelijk Auditorium.

PUBLIC PROGRAMS

• Rory Pilgrim, Open, 2012, musical performance with Blikopeners, Nationaal and Vrouwen Jeugdkoor date: Opening ceremony, 22 Sep, 4 p.m.
• Christian Friedrich, "Untitled", 2011, video installation
  location: Teijin Auditorium, dates: 23 Sep–6 Oct
• Sara van der Heide, "Abstract Background with One or Two Figures", 2012, a series of daily performances. location: Throughout the building, various times, dates: 23 Sep–11 Nov
• Falke Pisano, "Disordered Bodies Fractured Minds (Private M., Patient A. & Traveller H.)", 2012, two videos. location: Gallery no. 0.10, dates: 23 Sep–11 Nov
• Suchan Kinoshita, "SUCHKINO", 2012, set for unannounced performances. location: Gallery no. 1.32, dates: 23 Sep–11 Nov
• Jennifer Tee, "Star-Crossed", 2010–2012, dance performance with Marjolein Vogels and MiRi Lee. location: VandenEnde Foundation gallery, dates: 29 Sep; 6, 13, 20, & 28 Oct; 3 Nov, 3 p.m. (except 13 Oct, 2 p.m.)
• Sara van der Heide and Moosje Goosen, "Art History and the Museum of Western Folklore: A Commemorative Speech", narrated by Mark Bellamy. location: Teijin Auditorium, date: 7 Oct, 3 p.m. Reservations are mandatory. Please send an email to reservations@stedelijk.nl, stating your full name, email address, and telephone number, and the title and date of the event for which you would like to make a reservation.
• Snejanka Mihaylova, "Practical Training in Thinking", seminar in dialogue with Mladen Dolar. location: Teijin Auditorium, date: 9 Oct, 11 a.m, language: English. Reservations are mandatory. Please send an email to reservations@stedelijk.nl, stating your full name, email address, and telephone number, and the title and date of the event for which you would like to make a reservation.
• Matthew Lutz-Kinoy, "Stars!" 2012, performance with Isabel Lewis, Calla Henkel and Max Pitegoff, Travis Boyer, and Sophie Knapp. location: Central staircase of the historic building, date: 11 Oct, 8 p.m. Reservations are mandatory. Please send an email to reservations@stedelijk.nl, stating your full name, email address, and telephone number, and the title and date of the event for which you would like to make a reservation.
• Jeremiah Day,  "The Frank Church – River of No Return Wilderness", 2012, performance. location: Teijin Auditorium. date: 13 Oct, 3 p.m, language: English
  Reservations are mandatory. Please send an email to reservations@stedelijk.nl, stating your full name, email address, and telephone number, and the title and date of the event for which you would like to make a reservation.
• Eric Bell & Kristoffer Frick, "Hunting in Heaven", 2012, video installation. location: Teijin Auditorium, duration: 17 Oct–3 Nov
• Andros Zins-Browne - wpZimmer, "Welcome to the Jungle", 2012, performative installation. location: Teijin auditorium, dates: 10–11 Nov, 11 a.m.–1 p.m. & 3–5 p.m.

bookstore

Snejanka Mihaylova, "Practical Training in Thinking", artist book, designed by Philip Baber, published by The Last Books, 80 pages, b/w, edition of 500, ISBN 978-954-92943-1-6

Tickets

Visitors pay entrance to the museum only (special discounts apply).