This exhibition offers a conceptual and alternative approach towards the depiction of the human figure. By spotlighting the ordinary and the “other,” it creates a space that fosters deep empathy and inclusion. Alongside examples of the antihero, empty pedestals and furniture, interactive platforms, and strategically placed mirrors invite us to project our own heroes and also see ourselves reflected within the narrative.
The exhibition takes its title from a body of work of the same name by Mexican artist Enrique López Llamas, on view at the culmination of this exhibition. A series of sixteen video vignettes where López Llamas acts as both hero and victim, it navigates the fragile realities of coming of age and modern masculinity. Blending art history with popular culture, his performances shift between the humorous and the disturbing, offering raw allegories of the human condition.
The exhibition also draws inspiration from writer Carlos Monsiváis’s essay of the same title. Although written on the occasion of a historic nine-hour concert performed by pop icon Juan Gabriel, it shifts the spotlight away from him to celebrate his diverse, multigenerational audience instead. Echoing this perspective, this presentation eschews the iconic. It focuses instead on the contemporary human figure—the physical antihero who remains admirably heroic in spirit.
Ultimately, the exhibition reveals what might be behind our masks and armor, leaving us to confront our shared, fragile humanity and celebrate the quiet courage it takes to face each tomorrow.
“…art must carry man’s craving for the ideal, must be an expression of his reaching out towards it; that art must give man hope and faith. And the more hopeless the world in the artist’s version, the more clearly, perhaps, must we see the ideal that stands in opposition – otherwise life becomes impossible! Art symbolizes the meaning of our existence.” – Andrei Tarkovsky, ‘Sculpting in Time’ – Andrei Tarkovski, ‘Esculpir en el tiempo’
Artists:
Jordi Alcaraz
Jim Amaral
Martha Atienza
Ed Atkins
Leilah Babirye
Stephan Balkenhol
David Bestué
Norbert Bisky
Anna & Bernhard Blüme
Mathieu Bonardet
Joan Brossa
Michael Bühler-Rose
Carlos Bunga
Tom Burr
Werner Büttner
James Castle
Martí Cormand
John Dugdale
Pepe Espaliú
Galli
Alberto Giacometti
Camilo Godoy
Jason Gringler
Donna Huanca
Stephen Irwin
Jiři Kolář
Kang Seung Lee
Enrique López Llamas
Mateo Lopez
Robert Mapplethorpe
Martin Margiela
Sean Mellyn
Pierre Molinier
Juan Muñoz
Navid Nuur
Berenice Olmedo
Murat Önen
Prinz Gholam
Robin Rhode
Gerhard Richter
Miguel Ángel Rojas
Chloe Royer
R.H. Quaytman
Paul Mpagi Sepuya
Hugh Steers
Sam Taylor-Johnson
Wolfgang Tillmans
Franz Erhard Walther
Franz West
Erwin Wurm