Mythos Volume 2

The Greek word mythos means "story" or "legend." This exhibition catalogue gathers together work by three major living artists who have very much used myth in their creative processes--and referenced it in their resulting artworks--alongside work by the greatest myth-maker of them all, the late German sculptor and performance artist, Joseph Beuys, who created a new story of origin for himself and championed the healing power of art and universal creativity. With ample illustrations, scholarly essays, biographies and bibliographies, this volume will shed new light on the work of Douglas Gordon, Matthew Barney and Cy Twombly in the context of Beuys.

Featuring Gerhard Merz, Damien Hirst, and Jeff Koons, “Re-Object” presents a number of current positions that are characterized by a strategy of expression for which the object is both starting-point and focus. Historically, this approach is rooted in the work of Marcel Duchamp, who will also be represented in the show with several pieces. In “Mythos”, which constitutes a contrary and at the same time related position, works by Douglas Gordon, Matthew Barney, and Cy Twombly will be shown in conjunction with those of Joseph Beuys. Each catalogue contains two essays introducing the subject, one treating it from a historical perspective, the other examining it from the point of view of contemporary developments in the arts. In addition, various noted authorities will contribute essays on each of the four artists. Each of these books, richly illustrated with photos of the artists’ work as well as large-format images of many of the installations at the Kunsthaus Bregenz, documents how the selected artists fall under the themes of “object” or “myth.” Biographies and lists of exhibitions and bibliographies round off this survey of two major trends in twentieth-century art.
Edited and with foreword by Eckhard Schneider. Text by Uwe M. Schneede, David Joselit.