The thesis aims to chart the generation, evolution, and the status quo of the “irrational space” ... more The thesis aims to chart the generation, evolution, and the status quo of the “irrational space” in modern and contemporary art and curatorial practice. The “irrational space” is defined as an adversary to the “rational space” of traditional museums in which knowledge is produced in an orderly manner and experiences are manipulated.
The thesis proposes a theoretical structure of the fate of “irrational space” from the late 1930s through today. It starts with the analysis on how the traditional museum as “rational space” works and how it reflects the symptoms of modern rationality. It then puts forward the concept of “irrational space” by drawing on examples of early Surrealist exhibitions, which took place between the two world wars when people’s belief on rationality was in crisis and researches on dream and insanity gained considerable importance. Then, it examines how the legacy of the Surrealist “irrational space” was creatively inherited by post-war American artists by means of Environments and Happenings, and how it was rationalized in major museum shows of Installation Art in the United States after the 1970s. In the end, the thesis discusses how the spirit of the “irrational space” resonates in the international biennials nowadays and how the 2013 Venice Biennale “The Encyclopedic Palace” suggests a new type of “irrational space” that solves the crisis of contemporary art through activating the traditional exhibition space with eccentric exhibition arrangements.
The thesis aims to chart the generation, evolution, and the status quo of the “irrational space” ... more The thesis aims to chart the generation, evolution, and the status quo of the “irrational space” in modern and contemporary art and curatorial practice. The “irrational space” is defined as an adversary to the “rational space” of traditional museums in which knowledge is produced in an orderly manner and experiences are manipulated.
The thesis proposes a theoretical structure of the fate of “irrational space” from the late 1930s through today. It starts with the analysis on how the traditional museum as “rational space” works and how it reflects the symptoms of modern rationality. It then puts forward the concept of “irrational space” by drawing on examples of early Surrealist exhibitions, which took place between the two world wars when people’s belief on rationality was in crisis and researches on dream and insanity gained considerable importance. Then, it examines how the legacy of the Surrealist “irrational space” was creatively inherited by post-war American artists by means of Environments and Happenings, and how it was rationalized in major museum shows of Installation Art in the United States after the 1970s. In the end, the thesis discusses how the spirit of the “irrational space” resonates in the international biennials nowadays and how the 2013 Venice Biennale “The Encyclopedic Palace” suggests a new type of “irrational space” that solves the crisis of contemporary art through activating the traditional exhibition space with eccentric exhibition arrangements.
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Papers by Boliang Shen
The thesis proposes a theoretical structure of the fate of “irrational space” from the late 1930s through today. It starts with the analysis on how the traditional museum as “rational space” works and how it reflects the symptoms of modern rationality. It then puts forward the concept of “irrational space” by drawing on examples of early Surrealist exhibitions, which took place between the two world wars when people’s belief on rationality was in crisis and researches on dream and insanity gained considerable importance. Then, it examines how the legacy of the Surrealist “irrational space” was creatively inherited by post-war American artists by means of Environments and Happenings, and how it was rationalized in major museum shows of Installation Art in the United States after the 1970s. In the end, the thesis discusses how the spirit of the “irrational space” resonates in the international biennials nowadays and how the 2013 Venice Biennale “The Encyclopedic Palace” suggests a new type of “irrational space” that solves the crisis of contemporary art through activating the traditional exhibition space with eccentric exhibition arrangements.
The thesis proposes a theoretical structure of the fate of “irrational space” from the late 1930s through today. It starts with the analysis on how the traditional museum as “rational space” works and how it reflects the symptoms of modern rationality. It then puts forward the concept of “irrational space” by drawing on examples of early Surrealist exhibitions, which took place between the two world wars when people’s belief on rationality was in crisis and researches on dream and insanity gained considerable importance. Then, it examines how the legacy of the Surrealist “irrational space” was creatively inherited by post-war American artists by means of Environments and Happenings, and how it was rationalized in major museum shows of Installation Art in the United States after the 1970s. In the end, the thesis discusses how the spirit of the “irrational space” resonates in the international biennials nowadays and how the 2013 Venice Biennale “The Encyclopedic Palace” suggests a new type of “irrational space” that solves the crisis of contemporary art through activating the traditional exhibition space with eccentric exhibition arrangements.