IT’S ABOUT TIME brings internationally acclaimed conceptual artist Koen Vanmechelen’s art to Serlachius Museum Gösta and its surrounding park. His first solo exhibition in the Nordic countries gathers a selection of iconic and new works, including painting, photography, video, bio-installations and sculptures. It will offer an in-depth retrospective overview into the unique territory Vanmechelen’s art occupies on the edges of art and nature; presenting striking and monumental artworks inside the Serlachius main exhibition space, with his famous breeding program for chickens and pigs outside across the grounds of the park. One of Belgium’s most famous contemporary artists, Vanmechelen has exhibited in Documenta 13, Kassel, 2012 and Venice Biennial 2017, as well as in Miami, London, Cape Town, Detroit, Vienna, Brussels and more.
Key concepts in Vanmechelen’s art are diversity, fertility, identity, domestication, de-domestication and human rights. A deeply ethical artist, his work is concerned about the state of the Earth and a sustainable future for all species. He seeks both symbolically and concretely to open perspectives into a future where people do not exploit nature or each other but live in a state of balance. As an artist he is motivated by the desire to change the world, not by the power to possess it.
Curated by Timo Valjakka
In collaboration with jsvcPROJECTS/London
19 May–16 September 2018
more on www.serlachius.fi