Museion Passage, a new experimental format

Matt Mullican, 102 Signs for a Museum Fence, 2006, Museion. Collezione Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano - Alto Adige. Photo: Luca Guadagnini

The word Passage has many different meanings. It can be taken literally as the action of moving through or past a specific place or point in time, or have figurative or philosophical connotations. But, when it comes to Museion, at this moment in time, all these interpretations apply simultaneously. With Museion Passage, we are entering a new phase in Museion’s institutional evolution, where the collection takes center stage in our storytelling and association with current affairs.

It is no coincidence, then, that the first work chosen from the Museion collection for this new format is 102 Signs for a Museion Fence by the artist Matt Mullican (b. 1951, Santa Monica, CA). The work, created in 2006 for the fence around the construction site of the new Museion, informed the public, through the power of its signs, that this would be a home for contemporary art and therefore conversation and the exchange of ideas. Passage will use the installation as a starting point for reassessing the role of the museum today by involving local partners in a series of video interviews. These themes will also be the inspiration for the ideas and analyses in the Museion Bulletin.

Bart van der Heide, Museion director