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Contents

   



(Top)
 


1 Early life  





2 Career  



2.1  Kunst-Werke Institute for Contemporary Art  





2.2  MoMA, and MOMA PS1  





2.3  MOCA  





2.4  Neue Nationalgalerie  







3 Other activities  





4 Recognition  





5 Exhibitions  



5.1  Exhibitions organized and co-organized by Biesenbach at KW Institute for Contemporary Art  





5.2  Exhibitions organized and co-organized by Biesenbach at MoMA PS1  





5.3  Exhibitions organized and co-organized by Biesenbach at MoMA  





5.4  Exhibitions organized and co-organized by Biesenbach at Neue Nationalgalerie  





5.5  Additional solo and group exhibitions organized and co-organized by Biesenbach  







6 Publications  



6.1  Selected digital content for MOCA  



6.1.1  Season 1  





6.1.2  Season 2  







6.2  Selected publications  



6.2.1  2021  





6.2.2  2019  





6.2.3  2015  





6.2.4  2014  





6.2.5  2013  





6.2.6  2010  





6.2.7  2009  





6.2.8  2008  





6.2.9  2007  





6.2.10  2006  





6.2.11  2005  





6.2.12  2004  





6.2.13  2003  





6.2.14  2001  





6.2.15  1997  





6.2.16  1996  





6.2.17  1994  





6.2.18  1992  







6.3  Selected recent contributions  



6.3.1  2018  





6.3.2  2016  









7 References  














Klaus Biesenbach






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Klaus Biesenbach
Biesenbach in 2023
Born1966 (age 57–58)
Occupation(s)Curator, museum director
EmployerNeue Nationalgalerie

Klaus Biesenbach (born 1966)[1] is a German-American curator and museum director. He is the Director of the Neue Nationalgalerie,[2] with Berggruen Museum and Scharf-Gerstenberg Collection, as well as the Berlin Museum of Modern Art under construction, Museum des 20. Jahrhunderts.

Previously, Biesenbach had been serving as the director of The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (MOCA), from 2018 to 2021. He is also a former Chief Curator at Large at The Museum of Modern Art in New York City[3] and former director of MoMA PS1. He is also the founding director of Kunst-Werke Institute for Contemporary Art (KW) in Berlin,[4] and the Berlin Biennale.[5]

Early life

[edit]

Biesenbach was born in 1966,[1]inBergisch Gladbach, West Germany. From 1987, he began studying medicine in Munich. He moved to Berlin in the mid-1990s,[6] where he shared an apartment with artist Andrea Zittel at one point.[7]

Career

[edit]

Kunst-Werke Institute for Contemporary Art

[edit]

Biesenbach founded Kunst-Werke Institute for Contemporary Art (KW)[4] in Berlin in 1991, as well as the Berlin Biennale in 1996, and remains Founding Director of both entities. Under his artistic and executive directorship, KW and the Berlin Biennale were started as self-inventive initiatives and are now federally and state funded institutions.[8]

MoMA, and MOMA PS1

[edit]

Biesenbach joined MoMA PS1 as a curator in 1996; the museum's director Alanna Heiss had hired him part-time while allowing him to maintain his directorship in Berlin.[1] Working with Heiss, he created the "Warm Up" outdoor summer series of live music and helped found the "Greater New York" exhibition series, which showcases emerging talent in the metropolitan area.[9]

In 2004, Biesenbach was appointed as a curator in the MoMA's "Department of Film and Media". He was named Chief Curator of MoMA's newly formed Department of Media, in 2006; it was the first new curatorial department since photography, in 1940.[1] By 2009, it was subsequently broadened to the Department of Media and Performance Art to reflect the Museum's increased focus on collecting, preserving, and exhibiting performance art.[1] As Chief Curator of the department, Biesenbach led a range of pioneering initiatives, including the launch of a new performance art exhibition series; an ongoing series of workshops for artists and curators; acquisitions of media and performance art; and the Museum's presentation in 2010 of a major retrospective of the work of Marina Abramović.[10]

In 2012, Biesenbach turned MoMA P.S. 1 into a temporary day shelter for displaced residents after Hurricane Sandy. He drafted an open letter to the then New York City Mayor, Michael R. Bloomberg and fellow New Yorkers that called for help in the Rockaways – where he had purchased a house in early 2012 –,[11] signed by celebrities including Lady Gaga, Madonna, James Franco, Gwyneth Paltrow and Patti Smith.[12]

In addition to his role at MoMA, Biesenbach served as member of the International Jury at the Venice Biennale (1997) and as co-curator of the Berlin Biennale (1998) and 2002 Shanghai Biennale (2002).

MOCA

[edit]

In 2018, Biesenbach was appointed director of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles.[9]

During his time as director, Biesenbach introduced free admission to the museum with a $10 million gift from Carolyn Clark Powers,[13][14] founded the first Environmental Council at any American museum[15] and started the Performance Space Wonmi's Warehouse Programs[16] while commissioning Larry Bell's, Bill and Coo and UntitledbyBarbara Kruger as public art projects.[17]

As director, Biesenbach diversified the collection and exhibition program by supporting exhibitions with artists like Xu Zhen, Jennifer Packer, Pipilotti Rist, Henry Taylor, Tala Madani, Judy Baca, Annika Yi, Garrett Bradley, Cao Fei, and Simone Forti.

During the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, Biesenbach pivoted the museum programs online to virtual MOCA where he conducted twenty-five studio visits[18] with international artists that were distributed on the museum's website, social media, and YouTube.[19] In addition, he fundraised with artists' designed facemasks[20]byYoko Ono, Catherine Opie, Pipilotti Rist,Mark Grotjahn, Barbara Kruger, Hank Willis Thomas, Virgil Abloh, Alex Israel and sold them internationally in collaboration with the Warhol Foundation, the Qatar Museums and the K11 Hongkong.

As part of a 2021 reorganization, Biesenbach was later named artistic director, with a mandate to focus on setting the artistic vision for the museum, overseeing exhibitions and collections. Shortly after, Johanna Burton was appointed as executive director.[21]

Neue Nationalgalerie

[edit]

In September 2021, Biesenbach was appointed as new director of both the Neue Nationalgalerie with Berggruen Museum and Scharf-Gerstenberg Collection and the future Museum of the 20th Century.[22][23][24]

Other activities

[edit]

Recognition

[edit]

Biesenbach is the recipient of the following awards and honorary degrees:

In addition, Biesenbach received the International Association of Art Critics (AICA) award for the exhibitions Marina Abramović: The Artist Is Present, Pipilotti Rist: Pour Your Body Out (7354 Cubic Meters), and Fassbinder: Berlin Alexanderplatz. He also received AICA awards for co-curating the exhibitions Kenneth Anger, 100 Years (version #2, ps1, nov 2009), and Roth Time: A Dieter Roth Retrospective and 100 Years (version #2 PS1, Nov 2009) at MoMA PS1 and MoMA QNS, as well as Kenneth Anger (2009) at MoMA PS1 and 100 Years (version #2 PS1, Nov 2009) at MoMA PS1 and MoMA QNS, as well as Kenneth Anger (2009) at MoMA PS1.

Exhibitions

[edit]

Exhibitions organized and co-organized by Biesenbach at KW Institute for Contemporary Art

[edit]

Exhibitions organized and co-organized by Biesenbach at MoMA PS1

[edit]

Exhibitions organized and co-organized by Biesenbach at MoMA

[edit]

Exhibitions organized and co-organized by Biesenbach at Neue Nationalgalerie

[edit]

Additional solo and group exhibitions organized and co-organized by Biesenbach

[edit]

Publications

[edit]

Selected digital content for MOCA

[edit]

25 Virtual Studio Visits [18]

Season 1

[edit]

Season 2

[edit]

Selected publications

[edit]

2021

[edit]

2019

[edit]

2015

[edit]

2014

[edit]

2013

[edit]

2010

[edit]

2009

[edit]

2008

[edit]

2007

[edit]

2006

[edit]

2005

[edit]

2004

[edit]

2003

[edit]

2001

[edit]

1997

[edit]

1996

[edit]

1994

[edit]

1992

[edit]

Selected recent contributions

[edit]

2018

[edit]

2016

[edit]

Klaus Biesenbach has also contributed texts to exhibition catalogs as well as edited volumes, and he has published articles in art journals, including Art & Australia, Artforum International, and Flash Art International. He wrote the monthly column "Erdkunde" for the German art magazine Monopol.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e Erica Orden (December 26, 2009), Herr Zeitgeist New York Magazine.
  • ^ Hickley, Catherine (10 September 2021). "Klaus Biesenbach named director of Berlin's Neue Nationalgalerie". The Art Newspaper. Retrieved 17 June 2022.
  • ^ "P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center: News: Klaus Biesenbach Appointed Director of P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center". Archived from the original on 29 October 2009.
  • ^ a b "Veranstaltungen". KW Institute for Contemporary Art.
  • ^ "History - Berlin Biennale". blog.berlinbiennale.de. Archived from the original on 10 June 2016. Retrieved 14 April 2017.
  • ^ Dorit Marschall (April 9, 2008), Klaus Biesenbach: Beschleunigtes Leben Handelsblatt.
  • ^ Jori Finkel (April 22, 2021), Inside Klaus Biesenbach's Unique Los Angeles Home W
  • ^ "P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center: News: Klaus Biesenbach Appointed Director of P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center". Archived from the original on 29 October 2009.
  • ^ a b Robin Pogrebin (July 31, 2018), MOCA Chooses MoMA PS1 Director to Lead Museum New York Times.
  • ^ Nicholas Boston, "MoMA Gets Biesenbached In Euro-Curator Stampede," The New York Observer, February 11, 2007.
  • ^ David Colman (2 May 2014), Shelter From the Storm T: The New York Times Style Magazine.
  • ^ Julia Chaplin (November 14, 2012), Curating a Relief Effort on the Beach New York Times.
  • ^ Robin Pogrebin (May 2, 2021), Amid Signs of Trouble, Can MOCA Find Its Footing? New York Times.
  • ^ "LA MOCA TO OFFER FREE ADMISSION STARTING JANUARY 11, 2020". artforum.com. 20 November 2019.
  • ^ "Environmental Council". www.moca.org. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  • ^ "LA MoCA to Launch Program Focused on Performance at Geffen Contemporary". www.artforum.com.
  • ^ "Barbara Kruger installs politically charged murals across Los Angeles". The Architect's Newspaper. 18 February 2020.
  • ^ a b "Publications". Klaus Biesenbach. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  • ^ "Virtual MOCA". www.moca.org. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  • ^ "MOCA Masks". MOCA Store. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  • ^ Adam Nagourney (September 3, 2021), The Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles Names a Co-Leader New York Times.
  • ^ Klaus Biesenbach is appointed as Director of Neue Nationalgalerie and the Museum of the 20th Century Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, press release of September 10, 2021.
  • ^ Adam Nagourney and Robin Pogrebin (September 10, 2021), Klaus Biesenbach Leaving Los Angeles Museum for Post in Berlin New York Times.
  • ^ Alex Greenberger (September 10, 2021), MOCA Los Angeles's Klaus Biesenbach Named Director of Berlin's Neue Nationalgalerie ARTnews.
  • ^ Board of Trustees American Academy in Berlin.
  • ^ Team: Advisory Board Berlin Biennale.
  • ^ Board KW Institute for Contemporary Art.
  • ^ Art In Ruins, auf archiv.steirischerherbst.at
  • ^ KW Institute for Contemporary Art, auf berlin.de
  • ^ Joseph Kosuth Berliner Chronik, 1994, auf kw-berlin.de
  • ^ Gunda Förster, auf gunda-foerster.de
  • ^ Dan Graham Glass Pavillion realized by Johanne Nalbach 1999, auf www.cafe-bravo.de
  • ^ Mick O`Shea Your Industry, My World/My Industry, Your World, auf kw-berlin.de
  • ^ Erik Steinbrecher Couch-Park, auf kw-berlin.de
  • ^ Generation Z, auf moma.org
  • ^ Hard Light, auf moma.org
  • ^ 100 Years, auf moma.org
  • ^ Feng Mengbo, auf moma.org
  • ^ Jeremy Shaw: Best Minds, auf moma.org
  • ^ Ryan Trecartin: Any Ever, auf moma.org
  • ^ Ferhat Özgür: I Can Sing, auf moma.org
  • ^ Cyprien Gaillard: The Crystal World, auf moma.org
  • ^ Zero Tolerance, auf moma.org, retrieved 18 August 2021.
  • ^ Björk's Stonemilker by Andrew Thomas Huang, auf moma.org, retrieved 18 August 2021.
  • ^ Wael Shawky: Cabaret Crusades, auf moma.org, retrieved 18 August 2021.
  • ^ Cao Fei, auf moma.org, retrieved 18 August 2021.
  • ^ Stanya Kahn: Stand in the Stream, auf moma.org, retrieved 18 August 2021.
  • ^ Alvaro Barrington, auf moma.org, retrieved 18 August 2021.
  • ^ Michael E. Smith, auf moma.org, retrieved 18 August 2021.
  • ^ Land: Zhang Huan and Li Binyuan, auf moma.org, retrieved 18 August 2021.
  • ^ Reza Abdoh, auf moma.org, retrieved 18 August 2021.
  • ^ Walter Price, auf moma.org, retrieved 18 August 2021.
  • ^ Elle Pérez Diablo, auf moma.org, retrieved 18 August 2021.
  • ^ Rockaway! 2018 Narcissus Garden by Yayoi Kusama, auf moma.org, retrieved 18 August 2021.
  • ^ Douglas Gordon: Timeline, auf moma.org
  • ^ http://www.moma.org/interactives/exhibitions/2007/aitken/flash.html
  • ^ "日帰りバスツアーでマイナスイオン".
  • ^ "Uncluttered". The New Yorker. 21 April 2008.
  • ^ Rosenberg, Karen (21 November 2008). "Tiptoe by the Tulips (Or Stretch by the Apples)". The New York Times.
  • ^ http://www.moma.org/visit/calendar/exhibitions/322
  • ^ William Kentridge: Five Themes, auf moma.org
  • ^ Abramović: The Artist Is Present, auf moma.org
  • ^ "Andy Warhol: Motion Pictures | MoMA".
  • ^ "Francis Alÿs: A Story of Deception | MoMA".
  • ^ "Kraftwerk – Retrospective 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 | MoMA".
  • ^ http://momaps1.org/calendar/view/323
  • ^ Björk, auf moma.org
  • ^ "Yoko Ono: One Woman Show, 1960–1971 | MoMA".
  • ^ "Nan Goldin: The Ballad of Sexual Dependency | MoMA".
  • ^ "Teiji Furuhashi: Lovers | MoMA".
  • ^ Unfinished Conversations: New Work from the Collection, auf moma.org
  • ^ The Modern Window Firelei Báez, auf moma.org
  • ^ Berlin, Staatliche Museen zu. "Our Space to Help: Fundraiser at the Neue Nationalgalerie". www.smb.museum. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  • ^ Berlin, Staatliche Museen zu. "Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker | Rosas. Dark Red". www.smb.museum (in German). Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  • ^ Berlin, Staatliche Museen zu. "Performance "254'". www.smb.museum (in German). Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  • ^ "Barbara Kruger: Bitte lachen / Please cry". berlin.de (in German). Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  • ^ Redaktion, CQS- (26 July 2022). "Sound in the Garden - Neue Nationalgalerie | DEEDS NEWS". DEEDS.NEWS. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  • ^ "A Day in Greenery: A New Perspective on the Kulturforum". www.preussischer-kulturbesitz.de. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  • ^ Berlin, Staatliche Museen zu. "Simone Forti". www.smb.museum (in German). Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  • ^ "Allora & Calzadilla: Stop, Repair, Prepare: Variations on "Ode to Joy" for a Prepared Piano - Announcements - e-flux". www.e-flux.com. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  • ^ Berlin, Staatliche Museen zu. "Monica Bonvicini". www.smb.museum (in German). Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  • ^ l.lautenschläger, rolf (12 March 1992). "Keine halbtote Lebendigkeit". Die Tageszeitung: taz (in German). p. 24. ISSN 0931-9085. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  • ^ Castellanos, Ilia. ""Mauer im Kopf", Veranstaltungsreihe" (in German). Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  • ^ 11 Rooms – Group Show, auf manchesterartgallery.org
  • ^ 12 Rooms Live Art / Group Show 17 – 26 August 2012, auf museum-folkwang.de
  • ^ PROJECT 27 13 ROOMS, auf kaldorartprojects.org.au
  • ^ 14 Rooms, auf e-flux.com
  • ^ 15 Rooms, auf thelongmuseum.org
  • ^ "30 Jahre KW in Bildern". KW Institute for Contemporary Art (in German).
  • ^ Biesenbach, Klaus (7 June 2018). "'We Had to Create Something New': Klaus Biesenbach on Inventing the Berlin Biennale". ARTnews.com.
  • ^ Biesenbach, Klaus; Gregory, Christopher; Mclaughlin, Ariana (25 January 2018). "In Puerto Rico, Artists Rebuild and Reach Out". The New York Times.
  • ^ Biesenbach, Klaus (25 November 2016). "Klaus Biesenbach Recalls the Founding of KW in Berlin 25 Years ago, a Moment of 'Radical Change and Freedom'". ARTnews.com.

  • Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Klaus_Biesenbach&oldid=1235860483"

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