Conceptualized as a “living organism,” the Fondation Beyeler’s Cloud Chronicles summer group show will evolve over the course of its three-month staging. Organized in partnership with LUMA Foundation, the exhibition features paintings, sculptures, films, installations, and performances, some of which are site-specific to the Fondation Beyeler.
This dynamic show marks the first time in the fondation’s history that the entire museum and sculpture park will present contemporary art of over 30 artists across geographies and subjects.
Tino Sehgal’s display of the Fondation Beyeler’s permanent collection recalls 19th
century salon style presentation, featuring artworks hung in close proximity to one another. According to Sehgal, the display changes several times a day, recalling the show’s conception as an evolving and dynamic “living organism.” Through this crowded way of hanging the artworks, Sehgal seeks to illuminate the interconnectivity of the artworks in the collection. Born in 1976 in London, Sehgal is a German and Indian artist currently based in Berlin.
Precious Okoyomon (b.1993) is a Nigerian-American artist based in New York City.
Okoyomon’s installation at the Fondation Beyeler is titled The Sun Eats Her Children and features a large teddy bear trapped in a greenhouse filled with vibrant flowers poisonous to humans. Okoyomon calls the work a “fairytale nightmare,” as it centers themes of abduction and dreams.
Carsten Höller and Adam Haar’s collaborative project, Hotel Room 1: Dreaming of
Flying with Flying Fly Agarics (2024) features an animatronic bed which visitors can book to sleep in overnight. The bed is equipped with sensors that detect the sleep cycle of the visitor, which in turn controls the movements and shapes of a mushroom flying above the guest’s pillow. Höller and Haar designed the bed with the goal to make the visitor dream of flying through use of movement, sound, and light.
Carsten Höller (b. 1961) is a German artist based in Stockholm, Sweden. Adam Haar
recently completed his postdoctoral at MIT studying dreams and nightmares.
Adrián Villar Rojas created two new sculptures for the Fondation’s Summer Show,
entitled The End of Imagination VI and The End of Imagination VII. These commissioned artworks are part of the artist’s series The End of Imagination, which he began in 2022. His series explores the relationships between technology and biology, and machines and nature, featuring an amalgamation of everyday objects and machines. “These pieces are not merely sculptures; they are living, buzzing ecosystems that challenge our understanding of time and existence.” —Adrián Villar Rojas
Cyprien Gaillard’s Retinal Rivalry (2024) continues the artist’s exploration into
stereoscopic video work. Gaillard’s interest in stereoscopic video stems from their sculptural and spectral qualities.