Book Launch and Talk: Hans Ulrich Obrist and Joan Jonas on Gustav Metzger

More about ‘Gustav Metzger. Interviews with Hans Ulrich Obrist’
In this richly illustrated book, edited by Karen Marta, Metzger tells the story of his life and work in a series of interviews with the curator Hans Ulrich Obrist. He recounts his Orthodox Jewish childhood in 1930s Nuremberg and his arrival in England as part of the Kindertransport before shedding light on his development as an artist, including his early contributions to computer art, his leading role in the Destruction in Art Symposium of 1966, and his call for an ‘art strike’ from 1977–80. 

The book is being launched in conjunction with the exhibition ‘Gustav Metzger. And Then Came the Environment’ at Hauser & Wirth Downtown Los Angeles, 13 September 2024 – 5 January 2025. 

About Hans Ulrich Obrist
Hans Ulrich Obrist (b. 1968, Zurich, Switzerland) is Artistic Director of the Serpentine in London, and Senior Advisor at LUMA Arles. Prior to this, he was the Curator of the Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris. Since his first show ‘World Soup’ (The Kitchen Show) in 1991, he has curated more than 350 shows.   

Obrist’s recent publications include ‘Ways of Curating’ (2015), ‘The Age of Earthquakes’ (2015), ‘Lives of the Artists, Lives of Architects’ (2015), ‘The Extreme Self: Age of You’ (2021), and ‘140 Ideas for Planet Earth’ (2021), ‘Edouard Glissant: Archipelago’ (2021), ‘James Lovelock: Ever Gaia’ (2023) ‘Remember to Dream’ (2023), and ‘Une vie in Progress’ (2023).  

About Joan Jonas 
Joan Jonas (b. 1936, New York, NY) is a world-renowned artist whose work encompasses a wide range of media including video, performance, installation, sound, text, and sculpture. Jonas' experiments and productions in the late 1960s and early 1970s continue to be crucial to the development of many contemporary art genres, from performance and video to conceptual art and theatre. Since 1968, her practice has explored ways of seeing, the rhythms of rituals, and the authority of objects and gestures.

Jonas has exhibited and performed extensively around the world. Her notable exhibition history includes Documenta 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, and 13; the 28th Sao Paolo Biennial; the 5th Kochi-Muziris Biennale; and the 13th Shanghai Biennale. She has recently presented solo exhibitions at the United States Pavilion for the 56th Edition of the Venice Biennial; Tate Modern, London; Museu Serralves, Porto; Pinacoteca de São Paulo; Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid; Dia Beacon; Haus der Kunst, Munich; and The Drawing Center, New York. Most recently, the Museum of Modern Art in New York hosted a retrospective of Jonas's work. Jonas is the recipient of many awards including The Whitechapel Gallery Art Icon (2016); the Maya Deren Award given by the American Film Institute (1989); and the Lifetime Achievement Award given by the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (2009). In 2018, she was awarded the prestigious Kyoto Prize, presented to those individuals who have contributed significantly to the scientific, cultural and spiritual betterment of mankind. 

About Emerson Collective
Emerson Collective is a company that invests in entrepreneurs and innovators driven by purpose and a sense of possibility, working to create a world of abundance for future generations.

Complex challenges in education and economic mobility, immigration and the environment require audacious ideas, rigorous thinking and hard work. At EC, we are proud to partner with those taking big swings — with humility.

About Emerson Collective's Climate Science Fair
Welcome scientists, farmers, foodies, artists, thinkers, nature lovers, and the curious of all ages to Emerson Collective's 2024 Climate Science Fair. We're coming together to show that big, bold, optimistic climate ideas are not just possible, but already making a difference. Walk through the fair to get informed, inspired, and discover your inner citizen* scientist.

*...And if you're a human, you're a citizen of Earth!

About Climate Week NYC 
Climate Week NYC is the largest annual climate event of its kind, bringing together over 600 events and activities across the City of New York – in person, hybrid and online. Each year, business leaders, political change makers, local decision takers and civil society representatives of all ages and backgrounds, from all over the world, gather to drive the transition, speed up progress, and champion change that is already happening.

Climate Week NYC is hosted by Climate Group, an international non-profit whose purpose is to drive climate action, fast. Climate Group hosts the official program during the week that brings together the most senior international figures from business, government, civil society and the climate sector.

This year, Climate Week NYC is being held from September 22-29, 2024. The event takes place every year in partnership with the United Nations General Assembly and is run in coordination with the United Nations and the City of New York.