Verletze Diva exhibition
Key word: hysteria. When all you associate with this term are eccentric women and screaming girls at a Backstreet Boys concert, maybe it’s time to take a second look. The exhibition Die verletzte Diva (The Wounded Diva) examines this central, yet neglected topic via art of the 20th century: hysteria as both a symptom of rapid global progress and an experimental creative formula employed by artists confronted with an ever-changing world. In dealing with such issues as technological advancement and the crumbling of traditional gender roles, the female body has often been presented — sometimes in wildly distorted forms — as the embodiment of these drastic changes and their destructive effects. But Surrealist, Expressionist and Dadaist artists also hailed hysteria as an unleashed erotic power and the hysterical woman as their creative muse. At three exhibition venues in Munich, the complex show explores different historical approaches. Futurism and Surrealism will be styles covered at the Kunstbau Lenbachhaus, including works by Dalí, Magritte and Duchamp. Photography, performance and video art from the last three decades will be on display at the Kunstverein, and contemporary media art will fill the Rotunda of the Siemens Kulturprogramm. The exhibition runs until May 7 and is accompanied by a film series at the Filmmuseum of the Stadtmuseum (April 7-19). For more info visit www.siemenskulturprogramm.de and www.muenchen.de/lenbachhaus.