Discover Hannes Böck's Exhibition at Secession: Sculptures Exploring Archaeology and Art History

This exhibition features five sculptures from the Egyptian sanctuaries in the Museo del Sannio, Benevento, created by artist Hannes Böck. The work delves into the complex relationship between archaeology, art history, photography, and their associated visual languages, examining post-colonial perspectives and historical narratives.

Hannes Böck's exhibition at the Secession presents five sculptures originating from the Egyptian sanctuaries within the Museo del Sannio in Benevento: a seated baboon, a falcon, and an Apis bull, all crafted from diorite or amphibolite. These pieces, originally serving cultic purposes in an ancient Roman Isis temple, are extracted from their typical museum display context and presented individually against a black backdrop, illuminated with strong contrast. Böck employs five distinct camera angles—total, semi-total, profile, side-rear, and detail—to explore the complex relationship between archaeology, art history, photography, and their visual representations. The artist critically engages with the historical tendency to downplay Egyptian culture's influence on Western civilization in favor of a purely Greco-Roman origin myth. Böck highlights the ambivalent role of photography in disseminating art historical knowledge and the exclusionary mechanisms that construct a linear historical narrative. Aesthetically, the film plays with the interplay between photography and film, emphasizing static shots, slow editing, and the absence of sound to draw attention to the visual plane, creating a hypnotic experience that invites active viewer participation in deciphering the artwork. This exhibition continues Böck's long-standing interest in the economic, political, and cultural connections between Europe and non-European cultures, as seen in his previous works such as 'Las Encantadas' (2012), 'Niches Cut into Bedrock at Sacsayhuamán, Cusco and Inca Stone Quarry at Cachicata, Ollantaytambo' (2011), and 'New Hefei' (2007/2008), which explore themes of cultural identity, emancipation, and post-colonial archaeology.

Information and tickets can be found via the provided links. The Secession is open Tuesday to Sunday, 10 AM to 6 PM. The exhibition dates are September 19 to November 10, 2013.