VIENNA.- Why not, for once, look at a collection as a fabric of relationships among things that meet by chance? And as an opportunity which, as Jean Baudrillard put it, might establish an “everyday prose of objects, […] a triumphant unconscious discourse”? Picking up on this idea, Flirting with Strangers, the autumn exhibition on the ground floor of the 21er Haus from 9 September 2015 to 31 January 2016, stages an exciting, playful, and at times unexpected encounter between and with works from the collection. On display are works by over one hundred artists—the oldest exhibit from the 14th century, the youngest from 2015.

Artworks are objects that are attributed a particularly high level of individuality. None resembles another; their uniqueness distinguishes them, which is also the common justification for why they are worthy of the collection. Once selected, they become just one of many. We associate with museums’ collections an arrangement of objects according to scientific categories that establish connections, create meaning, and—as powerful interpretations—produce reliable knowledge. “Exhibitions are ultimately the structuring or organization of knowledge, which simultaneously have the potential to conceptualize alternative interpretations and enable things to be brought up to date,” according to Curator Luisa Ziaja.

It is precisely this point that the exhibition addresses: Flirting with Strangers consciously attempts to move on from the arguments and organizational methods of classical art history and instead draws our attention back to the objects themselves. “Its approach is systematically ahistorical and independent of stylistic trends, sometimes emphasizing apparently negligible details or even far-fetched similarities—with the intention of focusing on the detail of the individual and proposing at times surprising connections, for example when Erwin Wurm’s instruction Seien Sie ein Hund für eine Minute [Be a Dog for One Minute] from 2003 comes up against Oskar Kokoschka’s The Tigon from 1926,” explains Curator Severin Dünser. While Wurm enables visitors to experience the bestial, Kokoschka impressively paints a never since repeated crossbreed between a lion and a tiger.

The core tasks of the 21er Haus are to collect, preserve, appraise, and not least exhibit local contemporary art in an international context. But what does “contemporary art” actually mean? It is certainly distinct from the avant-gardes of Modernism, which—from a Western perspective—dominated the field for a long time. And it promises relevance to the present day, a relationship with the here and now. Furthermore, it is defined more by its openness than by geographical or cultural boundaries: even the globalized world with its ideal diversity yet simultaneous economization is reflected in contemporary art.

“1,511 works by Austrian or international artists have been acquired since 2007,” according to Agnes Husslein-Arco, Director of the Belvedere and the 21er Haus. “That’s more than 76 per cent of our entire contemporary holdings. It’s a matter of great importance to me personally to continue this development in the future and to communicate it via dedicated exhibitions. It’s crucial that the Belvedere’s contemporary collection—and this is also the motivation behind this exhibition—is seen as something vibrant, as something that is constantly developing and growing,” says Agnes HussleinArco of the background to the current exhibition at the 21er Haus.

The exhibition is accompanied by the first volume of a new series of publications, which sheds light on collection activities, as well as by an extensive educational program, which offers a performance, talks, and workshops alongside short YouTube videos with the curators about select works and constellations.

Curated by Severin Dünser and Luisa Ziaja.