Jean Tinguely

Admission to the exhibition is free and online reservation guarantees priority access in the selected time slot. Members have priority access even without reservation.

Jean Tinguely (Fribourg, 1925 – Bern, 1991) is considered one of the great pioneering artists of the 20^th century. As one of the most important exponents of kinetic art, he revolutionized the concept of the artwork itself. At the heart of his work is the exploration of the machine, its function and movement, its noises and sounds, and its inherent poetry. Tinguely was one of the first artists to use found objects, gears, and other materials, which he then welded together to create noisy, cacophonous working machines equipped with real motors. His sculptures also have a performative quality because of their constant movement and the peculiar way in which they engage the audience. Gears, especially the wheel, are often the basic element in the works of Tinguely, who deliberately disrupts their conventional function, liberating the machine from the “tyranny of utility” and encouraging the unexpected and ephemeral in his absurd, surprising contraptions.

The exhibition at Pirelli HangarBicocca is the most comprehensive retrospective held in Italy since the artist’s death and features more than forty works from the 1950s to the 1990s, which fill almost the entire 5,000 square meters of the Navate. The exhibition moves through a single sonic and visual choreography consisting of works in various formats, some even monumental, through which sound as well as dynamic and color components emerge, together with Tinguely’s forerunning expressivity.  The mechanical works establish a spontaneous connection with the vastness of the former industrial space of Pirelli HangarBicocca, offering the public the possibility to engage with and deeply explore the Swiss artist’s practice. His approach to art was intentionally detached from authorship, and therefore never unambiguous and definitive. Often realized as performance and sometimes set in public spaces, his art was transitory yet engaging and fascinating, thanks to its interactive elements.

The exhibition is organized in collaboration with Museum Tinguely, Basel and it is part of the tinguely100 programme.

The exhibition will be accompanied by a catalogue (Italian and English) published by Marsilio Arte, with contributions by Béatrice Joyeux-Prunel, Camille Morineau, Lucia Pesapane, Renzo Piano, Annalisa Rimmaudo, Vicente Todolí, and Melissa Warak.

Activation of the works in the exhibition

The works in the exhibition activate following a predefined choreography that lasts a total of one hour.
Méta-Matic No.10,1959 (replica, 2024): at Pirelli HangarBicocca’s Bookshop, it is possible to purchase a token at the cost of 5 euro that will allow visitors to activate the work and realize a drawing on stamped paper.
Rotozaza No. 2, 1967: the work is activated by a museum mediator on Thursdays and Fridays at 11.30 AM and on Saturday and Sundays at 11.30 AM and 4.30 PM.
Maschinenbar, 1960-85: the work can be directly operated by viewers by keeping the button in front of each sculpture pressed.

Some of the most important international institutions have hosted solo exhibitions of Jean Tinguely, including Kunstpalast, Düsseldorf (2016); Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam (2016, 1984, 1973); Centro Cultural Borges, Buenos Aires (2012); Henie Onstad Art Centre, Oslo (2009); Institut Valencià d’Art Modern (2008); Kunst Haus Wien (2008, 1991); Kunsthal Rotterdam (2007); Stadtgalerie Klagenfurt, Klagenfurt am Wörthersee, Austria (2003); Städtische Kunsthalle, Mannheim, Germany (2002); Musée Picasso, Antibes (1999); Museum für Kunst und Geschichte, Freiburg (1991); Central House of the Artist, Moscow (1990); Centre Pompidou, Paris (1988); Palazzo Grassi, Venice (1987); Louisiana Museum, Humlebaek, Denmark (1986, 1973, 1961); Museum of Modern art of Shiga, Japan (1984); Musée Rath, Geneva (1983); Palais des Beaux-Arts, Brussels, Tate Gallery, London, Kunsthaus, Zurich (1982); Wilhelm Lehmbruck Museum, Duisburg, Germany (1978); Kunstmuseum Basel (1976, 1972); Museum of Modern Art, New York, (1975, 1961); Moderna Museet, Stockholm (1972, 1966); Centre National d’Art Contemporain, Paris (1971); Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago (1968); Dayton Art Institute, Ohio (1966); The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (1965); Kunsthalle, Baden-Baden, Germany (1964).

The artist’s works have also been included in numerous festivals and group exhibitions, such as Biennale de la sculpture, Yonne, France (1991); Biennale Monumenta, Middelheim, Antwerp (1987); Biennale de Paris (1982); documenta, Kassel (1968); Expo – International and Universal Exposition, Montréal (1967); Expo – Exposition Nationale Suisse, Lausanne (1964); Venice Biennale (1964); Salon de Mai, Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris (1966, 1964).

Jean Tinguely also has an entire museum dedicated to him, Museum Tinguely in Basel, a unique and playful place, which opened in 1996 and houses the world largest collection of the artist’s works, many of which were donated by Niki de Saint Phalle.