Artists

Kirill Agafonov, Alexandra Carambellas, Murnau Den Linden, Isabelle Krieg, Hanga Séra, Felix Stöckle

Press release

"I think, therefore I am". With the eponymous question, we have already moved beyond doubting our own existence, as René Descartes refuted in his famous statement. We are and can no longer stop thinking. Why? What is the reason that constantly motivates us to do so? There are situations in life that lead to endless circles of thought that are based on excessive sensory impressions. Be it drastic life events or life crises. The lived experience may be unique or temporary, but thoughts can revive it at any time. Caught up in thoughts, they suddenly take on a momentum of their own - they take on new forms and suddenly gain weight by becoming emotionally charged in a variety of ways. In our head cinema, the thought movie is continued, re-edited, re-assembled. We try to suppress painful or painful thoughts. However, they manage to continuously regroup - like a phoenix rising from the ashes. Historical events in particular, triggered by conflicts and crises, threaten humanity as a collective. They also always appear in a new guise. According to the Global Peace Index, in 2023 the average level of global peacefulness deteriorated for the ninth year in a row. Conflicts have become more hybrid. Art has the potential to create its very own relationship to the world, making the seemingly familiar more perceptible and revising familiar categorizations. In the group exhibition Why do I keep thinking?, themes such as armed conflicts, health, resistance, but also care, hope and home are addressed. Through artistic creation, experiences that are difficult to grasp are made indirect and at the same time the desire for the future is awakened.