Show Time

Book excerpt: Jens Hoffmann's survey of groundbreaking exhibitions since 1989 explores the radical shifts that have taken place in the practice of curating contemporary art over the last 25 years. Nine thematic sections focus on a huge variety of exhibitions - 53 in total - including those that have explored public space; reflected on globalization; engaged audiences in revolutionary ways; and brought into the gallery other disciplines such as theatre and architecture. Five new exhibitions have been added: 'Living as Form' (New York, 2011), the first large-scale survey of 'social practice'; '55th Venice Biennale' (Venice, 2013), the first time that 'outsider art' was presented alongside 'fine art' in the most prestigious art exhibition of them all; 'When Attitudes Become Form: Bern 1969 / Venice 2013' (Venice, 2013), a remake of arguably the most important exhibition of the last 50 years; 'The Other Story' (1989-90, London), interesting as a critical response to the iconic exhibition 'Magiciens de la Terre'; 'artevida' (Rio de Janeiro, 2014), the first overview of artistic practices emerging in the 1960s and 1970s to focus on the Global South.