Bert Theis
Lives and works in Luxembourg and Milan. Bert Theis belongs
to that generation of artists who emerged at the beginning of the 90's, who
approached public space in both an unmonumental and emergent zone with
possibilities. He anchors his works to social contexts and relational
modalities, without, however, denouncing them as works of art. The works of
Bert Theis are always conceived to be put directly into the outdoor spaces of a
city, even if the Luxembourg
artist has become famous for his participation in many important
international expositions, from the Venice Biennale, Manifesta 2, to 'Skulptur.
Projekte in Münster 1997', and Gwangju Biennale
2002 in South Korea. The
assumption of a hyperactive society driven by excessive consumption informs the
common background of Bert Theis' works. His works attempt to get people to turn
inward, towards the spaces, places of rest and platforms for relaxation,
capable of temporarily forming small communities of people with explicit
reference to idyllic islands, to the utopia of unspoiled land. In Theis' work,
the opening towards this vital life assumes a rigorous intellectual utopian
condition, and at the same time, that which is more extraordinary than daily
existence, and subtly, an irony in the experience.
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