Documenta facts for kids
Documenta is a famous art exhibition that happens every five years in Kassel, Germany. It shows off the latest and most exciting contemporary art from all over the world.
The exhibition was started in 1955 by an artist and teacher named Arnold Bode. He wanted to help Germany reconnect with modern art after the dark times of Nazism. The first Documenta showed works by important artists like Pablo Picasso and Wassily Kandinsky. Today, Documenta features artists from many different countries. A lot of the art is site-specific, meaning it's made especially for the place where it's shown.
Each Documenta exhibition lasts for exactly 100 days. Because of this, people often call it the "museum of 100 days." It's important to know that Documenta is not a place where art is sold.
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What Does "Documenta" Mean?
The name Documenta was made up. It comes from the idea of "documenting" or showing modern art. This art was not available to the German public during the Nazi era.
Some people close to Arnold Bode said the name was also inspired by a Latin word, documentum. This word can be split into docere (meaning 'to teach') and mens (meaning 'intellect' or 'mind'). So, the name was thought to be perfect for an exhibition that aims to teach and inspire minds.
Each Documenta exhibition has its own unique look. Most of them use only small letters for their text, a style that came from the famous Bauhaus art school.
A Look at Documenta's History
The first Documenta was started by Arnold Bode, an art professor and designer from Kassel. It was originally planned as a smaller event alongside a garden show in 1955. But it became very popular, attracting over 130,000 visitors!
The first show didn't focus on brand-new art made after 1945. Instead, Bode wanted to show art that had been called "Entartete Kunst" (forbidden art) during the Nazi era. This included styles like Fauvism, Expressionism, Cubism, and Abstract art. The exhibition mainly focused on abstract paintings from the 1920s and 1930s.
Over time, Documenta started to focus more on truly contemporary art. At first, it only showed art from Europe. But soon, it included works by artists from the Americas, Africa, and Asia.
The 4. documenta was the first one to make a profit. It featured new art styles like Pop art, Minimal art, and Kinetic art. In 1972, documenta 5 changed how people thought about art. It showed minimal and conceptual art, which helped these styles become more accepted. It also featured the work of Adolf Wolfli, a unique Swiss artist who was not well-known then.
Later, documenta X (1997) looked at how art explores politics, society, culture, and beauty. Documenta11 focused on themes like migration, city life, and post-colonial experiences. It featured lots of photography, film, and video from many different places. In 2012, documenta (13) was known for being very global and using many different types of media. It even included works by artists who had passed away and some ancient art.
Who Directs Documenta?
Arnold Bode organized the first four Documenta exhibitions. He helped make the show famous around the world. Since the fifth Documenta in 1972, a new artistic director is chosen for each exhibition. A group of art experts picks this director.
Sometimes, the planning can be tricky. For example, Documenta 8 had to be put together in two years instead of the usual five. The first directors couldn't agree and left.
Catherine David was the first woman and the first non-German speaker to be the director for documenta X. The first director from outside Europe was Okwui Enwezor for Documenta11. The artistic director of Documenta earns about €100,000 a year.
| Title | Date | Director | Exhibitors | Exhibits | Visitors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| documenta | 16 July – 18 September 1955 | Arnold Bode | 148 | 670 | 130,000 |
| II. documenta | 11 July – 11 October 1959 | Arnold Bode, Werner Haftmann | 338 | 1770 | 134,000 |
| documenta III | 27 June – 5 October 1964 | Arnold Bode, Werner Haftmann | 361 | 1450 | 200,000 |
| 4. documenta | 27 June – 6 October 1968 | 24-strong documenta council | 151 | 1000 | 220,000 |
| documenta 5 | 30 June – 8 October 1972 | Harald Szeemann | 218 | 820 | 228,621 |
| documenta 6 | 24 June – 2 October 1977 | Manfred Schneckenburger | 622 | 2700 | 343,410 |
| documenta 7 | 19 June – 28 September 1982 | Rudi Fuchs | 182 | 1000 | 378,691 |
| documenta 8 | 12 June – 20 September 1987 | Manfred Schneckenburger | 150 | 600 | 474,417 |
| documenta IX | 12 June – 20 September 1992 | Jan Hoet | 189 | 1000 | 603,456 |
| documenta X | 21 June – 28 September 1997 | Catherine David | 120 | 700 | 628,776 |
| documenta11 | 8 June – 15 September 2002 | Okwui Enwezor | 118 | 450 | 650,924 |
| documenta 12 | 16 June – 23 September 2007 | Roger M. Buergel/Ruth Noack | 114 | over 500 | 754,301 |
| documenta (13) | 9 June – 16 September 2012 | Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev | 187 | 904,992 | |
| documenta 14 | 8 April – 16 July 2017 in Athens, Greece; 10 June – 17 September 2017 in Kassel |
Adam Szymczyk | more than 160 | 1500 | 339,000 in Athens 891,500 in Kassel |
| documenta fifteen | 18 June 2022 – 25 September 2022 in Kassel | ruangrupa | more than 67 |
Where Documenta Happens
Documenta takes place in different locations around Kassel. Since 1955, the main building has always been the Fridericianum. The Documenta-Halle was built in 1992 specifically for the exhibition. It now holds some of the artworks.
Other places used for Documenta include the Karlsaue park, Schloss Wilhelmshöhe (a castle), the Neue Galerie, the Ottoneum, and the Kulturzentrum Schlachthof.
For Documenta11, the director Okwui Enwezor wanted to make the exhibition less focused on Europe. He set up five smaller events before the main show in cities like Vienna, Berlin, New Delhi, St Lucia, and Lagos. This was an effort to explore new art from different parts of the world.
In 2012, documenta (13) even showed about a fifth of its artworks in far-off places like Kabul, Afghanistan, and Banff, Canada.
Many artworks are also shown outdoors, especially in Friedrichsplatz (a large square in front of the Fridericianum) and the Karlsaue park. For documenta (13), a temporary building called the "Aue-Pavillon" was built in the park.
Artworks That Stay in Kassel
Some of the artworks shown at Documenta have been bought and now stay in museums in Kassel. These permanent installations include:
- 7000 Eichen (7000 Oaks) by Joseph Beuys
- Rahmenbau (Frame Building) from 1977 by Haus-Rucker-Co
- Laserscape Kassel (1977) by Horst H. Baumann
- Traumschiff Tante Olga (Dream Ship Aunt Olga) (1977) by Anatol Herzfeld
- Vertikaler Erdkilometer (Vertical Earth Kilometer) by Walter De Maria
- Spitzhacke (Pickaxe) (1982) by Claes Oldenburg
- Man walking to the sky (1992) by Jonathan Borofsky
- Fremde (Strangers) (1992) by Thomas Schütte (parts of these sculptures are on buildings in Kassel and Lübeck).
The Documenta Archive
Because so much information and material is created for each exhibition, Arnold Bode started an archive in 1961. This archive keeps all the files and materials from the Documenta organization. It also has a growing collection of videos and images. The archive also holds the personal collections of Arnold Bode and artist Harry Kramer.
How Documenta is Managed
Visitors
In 1992, for documenta IX, more than half a million people visited Kassel for the exhibition for the first time. The 2002 Documenta attracted 650,000 visitors, which is more than three times the population of Kassel itself!
In 2007, documenta 12 had 754,000 paying visitors. More than a third of these visitors came from other countries, especially from nearby Netherlands, France, Belgium, and Austria. In 2012, documenta (13) had an amazing 904,992 visitors.
Budget
In 2007, Documenta's total budget was 19 million euros (about $25.7 million). Half of this money came from the city of Kassel, the state of Hessen, and Germany's national cultural foundation. The rest of the money came from sponsors, donors, and ticket sales.
Documenta 14 had a larger budget of 37 million euros (about $40 million) spread over several years. However, it ended up with a deficit of 5.4 million euros. Spending too much money in Athens caused a shortage of 7 million euros. This meant that the owners of Documenta (the city of Kassel and the German state of Hesse) had to provide emergency loans to help.
See also
In Spanish: Documenta para niños
