Renaissance of Modernity: Duchamp, Leonardo, Beuys

Conference
8th and 9th September 2017, Gallery of Old & New Masters Schwerin

The Art History Department of the University of Hamburg and the Staatliches Museum Schwerin/Ludwigslust/Güstrow are jointly organising the Renaissance of Modernity: Duchamp, Leonardo, Beuys conference in Schwerin.

Both Marcel Duchamp and Joseph Beuys focused intensively on the works of Leonardo da Vinci and the concepts of the world view of the Renaissance. These ‘new’ Renaissances which Duchamp and Beuys established had utterly different motivations and were concerned with reclaiming or re-establishing a holistic concept of humanity, which combined the forces of art with the precision and achievements of modern science. The symbiosis of art and science that each realised became a constant source of inspiration and brought forth new schools of thought that are still influential today.

The event combines the expertise and quality of research and teaching that distinguish the Art History Department of the University of Hamburg with the researches of Schwerin Museum relating to the work of Marcel Duchamp, drawing heavily on the collection and its pieces. The Images of Nature research unit at Hamburg is dedicated to the common pictorial history of art, science, natural philosophy and technology and is contributing its expertise on the works of Leonardo da Vinci.

Founded in 2009, the Duchamp Research Center at the Staatliches Museum Schwerin is constantly engaged in research involving its important collection of 90 works by the artist. As well as planning and realising exhibitions, the Research Center also regularly awards a scholarship for junior academics with the support of the Freunde des Staatlichen Museums Schwerin e.V., it also publishes the Poiesis and Lecture notes series.

Input from the conference will be used in the preparation for the exhibition at the Staatliches Museum Schwerin, which will present original works by the three artists together for the first time and is due to take place in 2018, the 50^th anniversary of the death of Marcel Duchamp and only one year before the 500^th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci.

Patron of the conference is Mathias Brodkorb, finance minister of the country Mecklenburg-West Pomerania.

Concept of the conference:
Prof. Dr. Frank Fehrenbach, Dr. Gerhard Graulich, Dr. Kornelia Röder, Dr. Deborah Bürgel

Admission to the conference is free.
To register to attend please contact
Johanna Müller by 5^th September 2017:
Telephone +49-385-5958-170 / e-mail j.mueller_08@museum-schwerin.de
or Sylvia Struck:
Telephone +49-385-5958-237 / e-mail s.struck@museum-schwerin.de

We would like to thank the Fritz Thyssen Stiftung für Wissenschaftsförderung, Cologne, for its generous support.

Our warm thanks also to the Freunde des Staatlichen Museums Schwerin e.V. who consistently support the work of the museum and the Duchamp Research Center with purchases, publications, lectures, events and the Duchamp research scholarship. We are extremely grateful for their kind support for this conference as well.

Advance notice:
Renaissance of Modernity: Duchamp, Leonardo, Beuys exhibition
6^th July to 7^th October 2018 / Gallery of Old & New Masters Schwerin

Abstracts and biographies of the speakers Program (only in German)