Gallery Merz, a new exhibition space at Henie Onstad Kunstsenter. Photo: Ivar Kvaal, Henie Onstad Kunstsenter.
gallery Merz - Henie Onstad Kunstsenter
Gallery Merz is dedicated to the German avant-garde artist Kurt Schwitters, his contemporaries, and the artists he later inspired. The result of a close collaboration between the internationally renowned architecture practice Snøhetta and the artist Luca Frei, the 430-square-metre space is spread across two levels and is integrated into the original 1968 Henie Onstad Kunstsenter building. It features the semi-permanent exhibition Merz! Flux! Pop!, which shares the story of Schwitters’ years in Norway, introduces his unique working method and philosophy “Merz,” and highlights the artists who, at the turn of the last century, were united together with Schwitters in a revitalization and transformation of art. Curated by Caroline Ugelstad, Merz! Flux! Pop! presents more than 150 works by artists such as Jean Arp, Constantin Brancusi, Sonia Delanuay, Max Ernst, Robert Filliou, Paul Klee, Fernand Léger, George Maciunas, Joan Miró, Yoko Ono, Francis Picabia and Man Ray, among others, while works by Hannah Höch and René Magritte are presented for the first time in Norway.