DANIEL BUREN

PRESS RELEASE

With his deliberate anonymity and impersonality, Daniel Buren has, in his own reverse manner, questioned perceptions of the essence of art for over twenty years. By operating within the structures of the art world and its institutional frameworks, Buren has sought to expose the social and material forces that influence the production and reception of art. Through his “participation,” he has most effectively maintained his outsider status, and by exploiting the system, he has succeeded in working on his own terms. Buren’s role as a reformer of contemporary art is indisputable.

Buren has not conformed to the traditional role of the artist. As a conscious anti-artist – using his neutral, simple fundamental element of the 8.7 cm wide stripe – he has created numerous works around the world, both in museums and galleries as well as in public spaces. These works – essentially always “the same,” yet always new, depending on context and space – cannot be bought or preserved as permanent artifacts tied to the cult of the artist. They exist solely as art – for as long as they last.

In an era characterized by the “art boom” and the commodification of art in the art market, Daniel Buren’s perspective is more radical and relevant than ever. He himself stated in his essay “The Limits of Culture” (1970):

“Whatever art may be, it is entirely political. One must analyze the formal and cultural limits (both, not just one or the other) within which art exists and struggles. These limits are numerous and vary in strength. Even though the prevailing ideology and the artists who serve it do everything possible to mask those limits, and although it is still too early to shatter them – as the conditions for doing so are not yet in place – the time has come to strip away their mask.”

Daniel Buren was last featured at the Pori Art Museum in the 1986 “By the River” exhibition “Contacts/Contrasts”. Since then, he has realized numerous projects, including his controversial installation in the courtyard of the Palais Royal in Paris and the award-winning French Pavilion at the previous Venice Biennale.

Returning now to Pori, Buren will create a site-specific installation in the museum’s large exhibition hall.

Translated by ChatGPT