This month we travel to spectacular land installations in the steep Himalayan mountains of India, wash up to the shores of Spanish island Menorca, home to Hauser & Wirth’s new scenic gallery compound, and follow street artist Banksy’s record-breaking exhibition as it tours across the world. Meanwhile, New York beckons the arrival of the first World’s UnFair, a Queens-based public art project promoting indigenous art and decolonization, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art announces the city’s first recent survey of Harlem Renaissance art to open in February.
The Himalayan Highlands of Ladakh Hosts Asia’s Highest-Altitude Land Art Exhibition
Sā Ladakh is an innovative art project in Leh’s Ladakhi highlands in the Indian Himalayas, uniting artists and communities to promote sustainable tourism through land art. Conceived by Tenzing Jamyang, Raki Nikahetiya, and Sagardeep Singh in partnership with the Austrian Cultural Forum’s Michael Pal, the venture aims to cultivate environmental resilience and a climate-positive outlook. The exhibition showcases site-specific art installations made from discarded materials, augmented reality works, and workshops on sustainability. It involves local and international artists, like Philipp Frank and Ladakhi creators. The project’s goal is to spark conversations about climate issues while celebrating Ladakh’s artistic contributions and fragile Himalayan environment.
Indigenous Collective’s ‘World’s UnFair’ in New York Imagines a Decolonised Future
New Red Order, in collaboration with Creative Time, launches The World’s UnFair, a public art project challenging the unfair treatment of Indigenous peoples. Held in a Long Island City empty lot, it reimagines the World’s Fair format, featuring sculptures, videos, animatronics, and gatherings. The collective’s mission, led by core facilitators from Indigenous backgrounds, examines colonization’s impact and advocates for voluntary land return. The installation incorporates tribal flags, videos on colonization evidence and land rematriation, and animatronics. It highlights Indigenous sovereignty, and interspecies survival, and envisions a decolonized future, striving for awareness, dialogue, and the return of land to Indigenous communities.
Image Courtesy of Creative Time New Red Order
Banksy’s Blockbuster Show in Glasgow Attracted Record Crowds—and the Artist Wants You to Decide Where It Should Travel Next
Banksy’s solo show Cut and Run at Glasgow’s Gallery of Modern Art (GoMA) drew 180,000 visitors in 10 weeks, breaking attendance records. Despite a no-photographs rule, enthusiasm was high, including visits from Johnny Depp and Jarvis Cocker. The retrospective featured stencils, a replica of Banksy’s workstation, and insights into his notorious work Love is in the Bin. GoMA implemented late-night hours to meet demand. The show was the first to charge admission. Banksy seeks suggestions for the exhibition’s next location via email. The exhibition doesn’t reveal Banksy’s identity but celebrates his 25-year career.
The Metropolitan Museum plans a major Harlem Renaissance exhibition
Courtesy Clark Atlanta University Art Museum
The Metropolitan Museum of Art will host The Harlem Renaissance and Transatlantic Modernism from February to July 2024, marking the first New York exhibition on the movement since 1987. Featuring 160 works, the show emphasizes Black artists’ portrayal of life in post-Great Migration “new Black cities” like Harlem and Chicago. The exhibition positions the Harlem Renaissance as the “first African American-led movement of international Modern art,” highlighting its influence on global Modernism. The show covers painting, sculpture, film, and illustrations, addressing past exclusions. The display underscores the transatlantic significance of the movement, featuring artists like Aaron Douglas and Augusta Savage.
Hauser & Wirth’s Menorca Gallery Is a Feast for the Eyes, the Palate, and the Mind
Hauser & Wirth’s Spanish outpost on Isla del Rey, an island near Menorca, features an 18th-century naval hospital turned gallery, displaying works amidst Piet Oudolf’s Mediterranean-adapted gardens. The gallery is managed alongside the nonprofit Fundació Hospital de l’Illa del Rei, and access requires a boat journey and sculpture trail. The current exhibition, titled After the Mediterranean, addresses ecological challenges in the region, showcasing works produced in collaboration with locals. Artist Christina Quarles also presents her first solo show in Spain, exploring entangled bodies in ambiguous interactions. The Menorca space also offers an Education Lab to facilitate dialogues and workshops.
©2023 PAUL MCCARTHY/PHOTO DANIEL SCHÄFER/COURTESY HAUSER & WIRTH
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