In October 2016, Haus der Kunst opened the landmark exhibition ‘Postwar. Art Between the Pacific and the Atlantic, 1945–1965’; an unprecedented historical project that, for the first time, focused on the production of art across all continents under the conditions engendered by World War II. Curated by Okwui Enwezor, Katy Siegel, and Ulrich Wilmes, the exhibition illuminated the epochal social changes through the work of more than two hundred artists from almost seventy countries, which were shown across eight thematic sections that enfold the different regional, national, and transnational relations and connections of artistic production over the twenty-year period. Two further editions of the project were planned–examining Postcolonialism and Postcommunism respectively–which would in turn bring this survey of the global, imbricated nature of our social, political and economic proximities right up until the current moment.

In order to conceive of such an undertaking, Enwezor called upon curators, scholars and thinkers from all over the world, and facilitated a series of symposia, discussions and fellowships that sought to unpack the concept of ‘Postwar’ in all of its varied complexities. By expanding the remit of the exhibition to include a thorough examination of these global forces and encounters, this unprecedented curatorial project also foregrounded the ‘contemporaneity’ of the postwar period; the manner in which it presaged current debates concerning globalisation and its aftershocks.

In his lecture, Damian Lentini will discuss how ‘Postwar’ was both conceived and realised, as well as examining how this thinking could feed into future projects. Taking a look behind the scenes, the lecture will offer clues as to how contemporary curators and artists could learn from the lessons of the exhibition in order to re-think the art of the past 75 years and its relationship to your current moment.

Damian Lentini is currently a curator at the Vienna Secession. He obtained his doctoral degree in 2009 at the University of Melbourne and has taught extensively on contemporary art, curation, and museum studies. Prior to moving to Vienna, Lentini was a curator at Haus der Kunst München (2015-2023), where he had the great privilege to work together with Okwui Enwezor, Ulrich Wilmes and Katy Siegel on the landmark exhibition project ‘Postwar: Art between the Pacific and the Atlantic, 1945–1965’ (2016). Subsequent to ‘Postwar’, Lentini realized major projects with artists such as El Anatsui, Phyllida Barlow, Kapwani Kiwanga, Sarah Sze, Sung Tieu, Raqs Media Collective, Harun Farocki, Dumb Type, Khvay Samnang, Lina Lapelytė and the Karrabing Film Collective amongst others.

The lecture will be held in English.