Cady Noland, installation view MUSEUM MMK, photo: David Griffin  Image description: View into a triangular white exhibition room with two white columns and three steel sculptures. In the back corner of the room is a large steel surface with holes, further ahead on the left is a silver post with a black tire base. On the front right edge of the image is a section of a scaffold made of metal bars.
Cady Noland, installation view MUSEUM MMK, photo: David Griffin Image description: View into a triangular white exhibition room with two white columns and three steel sculptures. In the back corner of the room is a large steel surface with holes, further ahead on the left is a silver post with a black tire base. On the front right edge of the image is a section of a scaffold made of metal bars.

CADY NOLAND

In modernity, violence finds expression not only in social action, but also in omnipresent objects, facilities and urban structures. The severity of the aggression is condensed in both form and material. The geometric austerity suggests functionality; the reflected light of the metallic surfaces creates distance. The shape, shine and hardness of the resistant materials testify to their strength and power, endowing the objects with immediate brutality.

In her works, Cady Noland (b. 1956) uncovers the violence we encounter every day in scenarios of spatial and ideological demarcation. She thus exposes the alleged neutrality of material and form. The supposedly clear distinction between objects and subjects becomes blurred, the unceasing interaction between them evident.

The US American flag, charcoal grills, bridles, cowboy saddles and weapons are all symbols of American identity. Yet the myth of the American dream, which Noland – with apparent naivety – takes seriously, has become a globalized reality characterized by the glorification of violence, radical individualism, consumption as both stimulus and fulfilment, and conflict in the form of separatism and exclusion. In her work, barriers, gates and fences are physical and symbolic manifestations that generate publicity and rule out participation. For those unable to comply with the pressure to perform, prostheses such as walkers, picker arms or canes for the blind are the only means of participating in public life. Celebrities, on the other hand, no longer have any choice but to participate. Their involuntary objectification is the prerequisite for the callous treatment they are frequently subjected to. In her 1987 essay “Towards a Metalanguage of Evil”, Noland describes US American society with utter detachment, almost as a psychopath would. It is an analysis that captures global reality today.

The comprehensive exhibition at the MMK will be presented in dialogue with selected works from the collection. 

Exhibition

27 Oktober 2018 — 26 Mai 2019

MUSEUMMMK

Domstraße 10
60311 Frankfurt am Main


mmk@stadt-frankfurt.de
+49 69 212 30447

Exhibition Views

In the front: Cady Noland, Publyck Sculpture, 1994, Glenstone Museum, Potomac, Maryland On the top: Claes Oldenburg, Bacon/Caport, 1991, © Claes Oldenburg, MUSEUM MMK FÜR MODERNE KUNST Installation view MUSEUM MMK FÜR MODERNE KUNST, photo: Axel Schneider
Cady Noland, Publyck Sculpture, 1994, Glenstone Museum, Potomac, Maryland, Installation view MUSEUM MMK FÜR MODERNE KUNST, photo: Fabian Frinzel
Cady Noland, Dead Space, 1989, Collection Peter Fleissig (US), In background: Kenneth C. Noland, Touch, 1963, MUSEUM MMK FÜR MODERNE KUNST on the right: Steven Parrino, Bent Painting, 1991, MUSEUM MMK FÜR MODERNE KUNST, Installation view MUSEUM MMK FÜR MODERNE KUNST, photo: Fabian Frinzel
Cady Noland, Dead Space, 1989, Collection Peter Fleissig (US), on the left: Steven Parrino, Bent Painting, 1991, MUSEUM MMK FÜR MODERNE KUNST Installation view MUSEUM MMK FÜR MODERNE KUNST, Photo: Axel Schneider
In the background: Cady Noland, Dead Space, 1989, Collection Peter Fleissig (US), On the left: Cady Noland, Shuttle, 1987, Glenstone Museum, Potomac, Maryland (US), On the right: Cady Noland, Untitled (Brick Wall), 1994/1995, Private Collection (US), Installation view MUSEUM MMK FÜR MODERNE KUNST, photo: Axel Schneider
On the left: Cady Noland, Untitled (Brick Wall), 1994/1995, Private Collection (US) On the right: Cady Noland, Untitled, 1999, Courtesy Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst, Zurich (CH) Installation view MUSEUM MMK FÜR MODERNE KUNST, photo: Axel Schneider
Cady Noland, Untitled, 1999, Courtesy Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst, Zurich (CH) Installation view MUSEUM MMK FÜR MODERNE KUNST, photo: Axel Schneider
In the front: Cady Noland, Untitled, 2008, Collection Walker Art Center, Minneapolis,  Gift of the artist and Helen van der Miej-Tcheng,by exchange, 2009 In the background: Cady Noland, Tower of Terror, 1993/1994, Glenstone Museum, Potomac, Maryland (US) Installation view MUSEUM MMK FÜR MODERNE KUNST, photo: Fabian Frinzel
On the left: Cady Noland, Untitled, 1997/1998, Loan from the artist (US) In the middle: Cady Noland,Tower of Terror, 1993, Glenstone Museum, Potomac, Maryland (US) On the right: Cady Noland,Truck Rack Blank, 1991, Museum Ludwig, Cologne (D) Donation to the Art Foundation at the Museum Ludwig from Gaby and Wilhelm Schürmann 2009 Installation view MUSEUM MMK FÜR MODERNE KUNST, photo: David Griffin
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