der die DADA

In its large-scale exhibition “der die DADA”, the Arp Museum draws attention to the underrated role of women in the Dadaist avant-garde, one of the most subversive artistic movements of the 20^th century. The Dadaists were known for playfully probing the boundaries between art and life, as well as that between the sexes; Dada artists presented sexuality in novel ways and oftentimes as a transitory phenomenon. The project also illustrates how the artistic and social impetus of the Dadaist avant-garde influenced art trends of the 20^th and 21^st century. Contemporary artists are invited to examine historical aspects of Dada and transfer them to our present day.

Dada’s cross-genre art actions were a precursor of Situationist art with its happenings and performances. Although women certainly influenced this trend in various ways and with their radical artworks, today’s art historical discourse remains dominated by Dada’s male protagonists. Works by female artists, for example, Elsa von Freytag-Loringhoven, Emmy Hennings, Sophie Taeuber, Cécile Arnauld, Hannah Höch and many others are rather underrepresented. The exhibition at the Arp Museum shifts the profiles and works of these influential women artists to the fore.

At the same time, the exhibition project offers a broader perspective of Dada, reexamines the diversity and fluidity of sexuality in the avant-garde and presents its relevance in connection to current artistic and social developments. A three-day, international scientific symposium will address the notion of “elasticity” in a material sense with respect to the artistic object, and in a figurative sense, to gender roles.
 

Artistic director: Dr Julia Wallner
Curatorial assistants: Helene von Saldern, Joelle Warmbrunn
Educational programme: Dr Annette Krapp, Heike Henze-Bange
Choreography: Brygida Ochaim

Exhibition: Arp Museum Bahnhof Rolandseck, Remagen: 7 Jul. 2024 –12 Jan. 2025