For Children. Art Stories since 1968

What happens when artists place children at the centre of their process? The exhibition, “For Children,” presents artists who have turned to young people, creating artworks specifically for children and adolescents from 1968 to the present. It explores universal themes – such as humanity, society, politics, economics, ecology, technology, and the future – that we first encounter as children and that continue to resonate in adulthood. While the works primarily address children, these fundamental subjects invite visitors of all ages to engage in an intergenerational dialogue.

The exhibition connects to our previous show, “Inside other Spaces. Environments by Women Artists 1956–76,” and highlights the influence of newly developed art forms, such as the “environment,” on subsequent generations of artists. Until the mid-20^th century, artworks for children primarily involved designing toys, building sets, and children's furniture. However, from the late 1950s onwards, artists around the world began to create works that invited children to collaborate, treated them as equal and capable recipients, and encouraged autonomy and responsibility for their own actions. The exhibition follows this mindset and raises questions such as: “What is today’s understanding of childhood?” and “How can children actively participate in world affairs and help shape the reality in which they will live as adults?”

“For Children” inhabits different spaces within the building and is conceived as a three-part exhibition. Two large installations frame the group show and open the space to the public sphere: the artist Ei Arakawa-Nash, inspired by the legacy of the avant-garde group Gutai, invites visitors to draw on the museum floor in his interactive installation. While artist KOO JEONG A opens the building to the Eisbach River and the English Garden with a skateable sculpture. The exhibition continues the future-oriented approach of Haus der Kunst by challenging traditional narratives and the canon, while taking a step towards new ways of exhibition-making, from display to interpretation.

With KOO JEONG A, Agus Nur Amal PMTOH, Ei Arakawa-Nash, Tarek Atoui, Yto Barrada, Antoine Catala, Neha Choksi, DIS, Olafur Eliasson, Harun Farocki, Emily Floyd, Jan Peter Hammer, KEKS, Eva Koťátková, Basim Magdy, Ana Mendieta, Meredith Monk, Bruce Nauman, Ernesto Neto, Rivane Neuenschwander, Lygia Pape, Rachel Rose, Afrah Shafiq, and Tromarama.

Curated by Andrea Lissoni, Emma Enderby, Lydia Korndörfer, Xue Tan
with Lydia Antoniou, Laila Wu, as well as Sabine Brantl (Archive), Pia Linden and Camille Latreille (Learning and Engagement).

“For Children. Art Stories since 1968” is supported by Beisheim Stiftung, Teiger Foundation and Hackenberg Stiftung.
We thank the LEGO Group for the support of the exhibition.

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