My Last Will

Artistic legacy has always been a major topic of historiography. The exhibition “My Last Will” explores this theme in the future perfect tense. In preparation for Chemnitz’s celebration as the European Capital of Culture in 2025, the project invites around 30 international contemporary artists from several continents to examine their own potential legacy in the digital and globalised era and to ask themselves: What will they leave behind? Which works will be regarded as paradigmatic of their oeuvre? For example, how will posterity judge Piero Manzoni’s “Merda d’artista”, James Lee Byar’s enactment of his own death, Louise Bourgeois’ gigantic spider sculptures on display around the world, or Christoph Schlingensief’s examination of his own illness and his legacy of an opera house in Burkina Faso?

Many contemporary artists are in the habit of cultivating an online presence in digital media which consequently makes them all the more attuned to the ephemerality and fragility of their own work. For this exhibition, they ask themselves how their own legacy could be presented in the future. The exhibition format is comprised of five thematic focuses, each of which is highlighted by a spatial installation or performative project which they will specifically develop for the presentation. The catalogue, jointly created by one of the artists, will document and supplement the featured artworks.

Artistic directors: M+M (Marc Weis / Martin De Mattia)
Artists: Loukia Alavanou, Lara Almarcegui, Ivàn Argote, Carlos Amorales, John Bock, Chicks on Speed; Clément Cogitore, Keren Cytter,  Marcel Dzama, Hanakam/Schuller, Mire Lee, Erik van Lieshout, Renzo Martens, Masbedo; Christodoulos Panayiotou, Cesare Pietroiusti, Agnieszka Polska,  L.A. Raeven, PPKK (Sarah Schönfeld + Louis-Philippe Scoufaras), Santiago Sierra, Su Hui-Yu, Simon Wachsmuth, Raphaela Vogel, Clemens von Wedemeyer, Tobias Zielony, Thomas Zipp a. o.

International Events: Exhibition at Casino Luxembourg – Forum d’art contemporain: Summer 2024
Exhibition at Kunstsammlungen Chemnitz: 2 Jun–10 Okt 2023