As a representative of concrete-minimal art Charlotte Posenenske was among Germany’s leading artists in the 1960s. She aspired to a clear, hard realism of form, production, distribution and reception – all conditions that in the context of the 1968 movement meant changing society. In 1968, having come to the conclusion that art ultimately cannot have sufficient political impact Posenenske took the radical step of giving up art altogether.

She went on to study sociology and worked as a social scientist. Even though she could not envision political issues being pursued within a conceptual approach, it later became clear that she had formulated important aspects in her art that only came to bear in Concept Art in the 1970s. These aspects included the variability of objects, participation in production, the inclusion of a specific situation, a social context and institutional critique. (Between Bridges, 2007)

Curatorial Feelings is a book that collects arts practitioner Eloise Sweetman’s writing from the past decade, written on the occasion of exhibitions she curated, written on and for individual artworks, as well as for public talks. Sweetman often wrote while, and not before, the artworks were on view. The time of retrospection, and of being with artworks, imbues her language. Moving between prose and poetry, impressions and reflections, coursing through the writing is a commitment to senses, to subjectivity, to social responsibility.

Sweetman writes to the work of Malin Arnell, Gwenneth Boelens, Katarzyna Kobro, Charlotte Posenenske, Miyeon Lee, Arin Rungjang, Jo-ey Tang, Katie West, Zarouhie Abdalian, Ruth Buchanan, Sofia Caesar, Theo van Doesburg, Marcel Duchamp, Ian Kiaer, Lee Kit, Liu Chao-tze, Ma Qiusha, K.R.M. Mooney, Elena Narbutaitė, Kate Newby, Shanta Rao, Himali Singh Soin & David Soin Tapperser, and Louwrien Wijers.

Edited by Eloise Sweetman and Jo-ey Tang. Designed by Dongyoung Lee.

Produced on the occasion of the survey exhibition, Charlotte Posenenske: Work in Progress at the Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, May 30 — Aug 2, 2020.

In the 1960s, parallel with American Minimalism and the emerging Conceptual Art, Charlotte Posenenske (1930–1985) developed an impressive body of minimalist works within just twelve years, thus demonstrating her innovative understanding of art. Although the artist, who worked in Frankfurt am Main, exhibited during her lifetime together with artists such as Carl Andre, Donald Judd, and Sol LeWitt, and, in 1967, had an exhibition in the gallery of Konrad Fischer in Düsseldorf, which had opened only shortly before, her contribution to the discourse of Minimalism and Conceptual Art remained largely ignored for a long time.

Produced on the occasion of the exhibition I’M NOT A NICE GIRL! Eleanor Antin, Lee Lozano, Adrian Piper, Mierle Laderman Ukeles at K21 Düsseldorf.

The point of departure for the exhibition is a series of documents that have rarely or never been shown before – letters, concepts, and photographs from the Archive Dorothee and Konrad Fischer which chronicle contacts between the internationally influential gallerist Konrad Fischer and Lucy R. Lippard, as well as women Conceptual artists from the late 1960s and early 1970s such as Eleanor Antin, Hanne Darboven, Agnes Denes, Adrian Piper, Lee Lozano, Charlotte Posenenske, and Alina Szapocznikow.

Pamphlet for the exhibition of one work by Charlotte Posenenske, exhibited in-situ in a training room at the offices of the United Workers Union. The work was from her “DW Series” (1967), a minimal set of square cardboard tubes which are collaboratively put together by participants in the context where they are exhibited.

Wednesday 18 December 2019 6-8pm
United Workers Union
Lvl 1, 833 Bourke St, Docklands, VIC 3008

Organised by Nicholas Tammens with Imogen Beynon and Eloise Sweetman.
The first configuration was made by Cameron Stops, Bridget Erin Flack, Megan Berry, Jenna Christie, Kate O’Brien, Zarah and Rhodes—all union organisers at the United Workers Union.

Designed by Ziga Testen.

You can find more on the exhibition here

Produced on the occasion of Lexicon of Infinite Movement, at the Kröller Müller Museum, 18 May 2019 – 15 September 2019, the first Dutch museum solo exhibition of Charlotte Posenenske.

The works of Charlotte Posenenske (Wiesbaden, 1930-Frankfurt am Main, 1985) consist of series in an unlimited edition. According to a number of rules, they can be made and repeated – also by others – and combined with each other. With her radical and ‘democratic’ ideas about material, production and authorship, Charlotte Posenenske influenced and shaped conceptual and minimalist art of the sixties.

Curated by Suzanne Wallinga and Eloise Sweetman and featuring the work of Ruth Buchanan (New Plymouth, 1980) and Yeb Wiersma (Groningen, 1973) in reaction to the work of Charlotte Posenenske.

Also available here as a PDF.