Art on Display 1949-69: Albini, Bo Bardi, Scarpa, Smithsons, Van Eyck
5 february 2019Art on Display 1949-69 investigates the relation between art, architecture and public by focusing on art exhibitions designed by architects, and is curated by Penelope Curtis (Gulbenkian Museum) and Dirk van den Heuvel (Jaap Bakema Study Centre).
In the postwar period, the small scale and interior qualities of museum contexts provided ample possibilities for architectural experimentation. This lead the British architect couple Alison and Peter Smithson to characterize exhibition design as ‘staging the possible’. Other architects from this period such as Aldo van Eyck, Lina Bo Bardi, Carlo Scarpa and Franco Albini were also explicitly probing the relation between art and architecture as a source of innovation. This attitude resulted in many different exhibition designs for permanent collections and contemporary avant-garde art shows. Moreover, Albini advised the Gulbenkian Museum on the construction of their museum building in 1969, which turns 50 years old this year.
1:1 reconstructions
Het Nieuwe Instituut will host an event at the Gulbenkian Museum that will deal will the museological and museographical aspects of contemporary exhibition making and HNI’s own exhibition practice. This event is part of the 2019 Lisbon Architecture Triennale partner programme.