Create Your Own Museum | 24 January - 1 March 2007

Art collecting is a deeply personal and enriching pursuit—one that transcends the notion of ownership. At its core, it is about surrounding oneself with creative energy and cultivating a space that encourages curiosity, introspection, and meaningful connection. It is a journey of passion and preservation, of cultural discovery and aesthetic delight.

The exhibition presents a curated selection of works from distinguished private collections, offering a journey through different artistic periods—from sacred icons and early modernist experiments to bold contemporary statements. Together, these works reflect the richness and diversity of artistic expression across time and cultures.

At the heart of the exhibition is a rare 15th-century icon depicting the famous story of Saint George slaying the dragon. This work stands as a striking example of medieval religious art, combining profound symbolism with exceptional craftsmanship. The icon not only embodies the spiritual values of its era but also serves as an important link in art history, preserving traditions and artistic techniques passed down through generations.

In dialogue with this monument of the past are photographs by Alexander Rodchenko and László Moholy-Nagy — pioneers who transformed the concept of photography in the early 20th century. Rodchenko, a key figure of Russian Constructivism, redefined photography by introducing dynamic angles and bold compositions, turning it from a static image into a lively, experimental process. Moholy-Nagy, a prominent Bauhaus artist, regarded light not merely as illumination but as an independent material for creating form and movement. His innovative explorations forged a new visual language that combined artistic and technical elements, profoundly influencing the development of modern art and design.

The graphic works of Kazimir Malevich and Ilya Chashnik reflect major trends of the early 20th-century avant-garde. Malevich, the founder of Suprematism, moved away from depicting the tangible world toward pure abstraction — new geometric shapes and color experiments. His disciple, Ilya Chashnik, a member of the UNOVIS group, expanded on these ideas by incorporating philosophical and architectural concepts, creating harmonious spatial compositions through the dynamic interaction of form and color.

The contemporary section of the exhibition features artists whose names have become iconic in recent decades. Their practices encompass a wide range of artistic strategies — from conceptual painting to realistic and surreal sculpture.

George Condo blends classical painting techniques with grotesque distortion, creating images marked by fragmented identities and emotional tension. Daniel Richter combines figuration and abstraction, constructing richly colored compositions with a strong social subtext. Evgeny Chubarov develops a language of gestural abstraction, merging philosophical depth with emotional expressiveness and the legacy of Soviet nonconformism. Stephan Balkenhol works primarily in wood, emphasizing the tactile qualities of the material and creating figures simple in form but charged with restrained presence and attention to everyday life. Tony Matelli produces hyperrealistic sculptures with elements of absurdity and visual paradox, exploring themes of instability, isolation, and anxiety. Jake and Dinos Chapman, through provocative sculptures and installations, address themes of violence, morality, and historical memory, urging the viewer to rethink fundamental humanistic values through the language of contemporary art.

Conceptual artists Peter Halley, Sarah Morris, Anton Henning, Dirk Skreber, and Remy Zaugg engage with the visual language of mass culture, architectural forms, and urban environments in their paintings, transforming everyday imagery into tools for critical analysis of perception and social reality. Together, these artists create a complex and multifaceted portrait of contemporary art, where visual experimentation and cultural critique converge in a vibrant dialogue with the world today.

Create Your Own Museum is an exhibition about how art becomes part of one’s personal space, and collecting art becomes a form of creative expression. It invites the viewer to see a collection as a deliberate act of choice, where art history intertwines with intuition and personal experience.