GLASGOW.- At Mul’s request there is no exhibition and the gallery will remain empty. Although there is no exhibition in Gallery 1 the public are encouraged to visit and interact with the space. The only things visible are billboards that advertise the exhibition’s cancellation. While the gallery is empty, GoMA hopes the local community will seize this opportunity and propose alternative uses for the space. Removing the exhibition from the gallery space forces us to question the value and function of cultural institutions such as GoMA in contemporary society today.

Marlie Mul’s exhibition has been cancelled and GoMA has not replaced it with another programmed exhibition, leaving Gallery 1 vacant. The public are invited to propose alternative uses for the space during the time that had been set aside for Mul’s show. Instead this creates space to involve GoMA’s existing audience and exciting opportunities to engage new audiences. This exceptional situation offers visitors a platform for creating their own in-gallery events and a chance to contribute to conversations that will develop in the space left by Mul’s cancelled exhibition.

Curator of Contemporary Art at GoMA Will Cooper said: “By removing what would traditionally be considered an Art Object we are instead presenting the gallery as an empty space, giving us a moment to question the value in turning over exhibition after exhibition after exhibition. Perhaps GoMA and, by extension, other museums and galleries would be better placed as a space for another kind of activity?

“The public have been invited to respond and suggest ways that we might use the space. We’re excited by the different types of activities that might be on offer during this cancelled show. So far it’s looking like we’ll have some life drawing classes, yoga sessions, artist film screenings and I even think my daughter’s got Bounce and Rhyme scheduled in. We might even get a carpet bowls session on the go. This is as amazing opportunity for GoMA to explore other ways that we could use our space.”

Mul’s conceptual gesture in this project is to act as an implicit critique of what is displayed within museums and galleries and the process that leads to it being placed there. By removing traditional content and opening the space for public use, Mul is augmenting the institution to question the relevance of an art exhibition in 2017.

This project draws on GoMA’s experience exploring the future of public arts institutions addressed by Atelier Public (2011 and 2014) and Ellie Harrison’s Dark Days (2015).

Marlie Mul (born Utrecht, The Netherlands), momentarily lives in Berlin. She studied Architectural History and Theory at the Architectural Association in London, and Fine Arts and Fashion and Textile Design at the Academy of Fine Arts in Maastricht. Recent solo exhibitions include “Arbeidsvitaminen" at Vilma Gold in London (2015), "Boneless Banquet For One" at Croy Nielsen in Berlin in 2013, "So We Came Anyway, In Barrels", at Fluxia in Milan in 2012, and "No Oduur (Stop Being So Attractive I Can’t Get Anything Done)” at Autocenter, Berlin and at Space in London in 2012. Recent group exhibitions include Kunsthalle Wien, Vienna (2016); Berlin Biennial, Akademie der Kunste (2016); MECA, Aguascalientes, Mexico (2016); Ballroom Marfa, Texas (2015); Kunsthalle Bern (2015); Witte de With, Rotterdam (2015); The Taipei Biennial (2014); ICA, London (2014); Fridericianium, Kassel (2014); Bortolami Gallery, New York (2014) and David Roberts Art Foundation, London (2014).

Marlie Mul’s decision to cancel her exhibition at GoMA means that Gallery 1 will be empty from 26th of May until 29th October 2017. This means it is possible for the public to propose creative ways to use the space throughout what would have been the exhibition’s run.