Hans Hartung at Musée d’art moderne, Paris
Among the highlights of the modern and contemporary art in the capital, the MAM has chosen, after a year of works, to end 2019 with a new look that makes visiting it even more enjoyable. As an inaugural gesture for this new stage, a retrospective by Hans Hartung: a success not to be missed.
“As for me, I want to stay free. In mind, thought, and action. Not to let myself shut in, by others or myself. It is this stubborn permanence that, throughout my life, has allowed me to continue, to pursue my path. Not to betray myself or my ideas...” This manifesto could be expressed by everyone, so striking is its relevance and its anchoring in the truest aspects of existence. Applied to the artistic task, it takes on an even stronger dimension, as it questions the identity, place and role of the creator. A major artist of the twentieth century and a precursor of abstraction, the German artist Hans Hartung (1904-1989) lived through the disturbances of the century with the fierce will to explore the twists and turns of his discipline, as evidenced by the multiplicity of mediums exhibited and the rich archival apparatus. No retrospective had been devoted to him in France since 1969. This is therefore a key opportunity to observe some 300 works, from French and international, public and private collections. This is especially the case as the museum’s jewel has been given a facelift, with the renovation of its lobby. This space is thus able to be (re)-discovered through a new display of the collections: a century of art history featuring major works. This considerable work has been accomplished under the auspices of director Fabrice Hergott, who has thus raised the stakes of Paris’s museums for a wide range of audiences.
“Hans Hartung, la fabrique du geste”, October 11, 2019-March 1st, 2020, Musée d’art moderne, Paris.