DO IT

Curated by Hans Ulrich Obrist

do it began in 1993, the result of a conversation between Hans Ulrich Obrist and artists Christian Boltanski and Bertrand Lavier who mused about the potential of “scores,” or written instructions by artists, to create exhibition formats that could be more flexible and open-ended—exhibitions that would never stop.

Since then, do it has become the longest-running and most far-reaching exhibition to ever happen—constantly generating new versions of itself. It has grown from a selection of 12 instructions to an ongoing project including over 400 artist-submitted instructions that have been carried-out at institutions all over the world from Austria to Australia, from Thailand to Uruguay, and from Canada to Iceland. Many new versions have appeared, including do it (museum), do it (home), do it (TV), do it (seminar), and an online do it in collaboration with e-flux. Every time it is presented, do it is reinterpreted anew, engaging the local community in a dialogue that responds to a set of instructions. A call to action, do it invites the presenting venues and visitors to take part, interpret, re-invent and generate ideas, creating new dynamic institutional and exhibition formats for years to come.

Yoko Ono, Wish Tree (1996). do it, installation view, Symfonik Fest - Gränslandet, Stockholm, 2019. Courtesy of Najda Sjöström.

Erwin Wurm, Untitled (1995). do it, installation view, Garage Museum of Contemporary Art, Moscow, 2014. Photo by Anton Silenin.

DO IT (IN SCHOOL) The newest version of do it, produced by ICI in partnership with Studio in a School (Studio), do it (in school) is a selection of instructions that form a study-based curriculum for high-school students. It represents a new take on art education, a solid base from which to learn about conceptual art and some of the most influential art practices of this century. Students learn about contemporary artists from around the world, and have the opportunity to interpret the works themselves while generating artworks that respond to their personal experience. In 2018–19, Studio artist-instructors adopted do it (in school) in their on-going work with three New York City high schools. The works produced through the program formed the basis of an exhibition at Hunter East Harlem Gallery in Spring 2019. Through this collaboration with Hunter College, do it (in school) empowered high-schoolers to become active participants in a city college environment.

do it (in school) is made possible with the generous collaboration of Uri Aran, and by ICI’s Board of Trustees, ICI’s Leadership Council and the Jeanne and Dennis Masel Foundation, and additional gifts to ICI’s Access Fund.

do it (in school), installation view, Hunter East Harlem Gallery, New York, 2019. Courtesy of Hunter East Harlem Gallery and ICI.

DO IT (ARCHIVE) The do it (archive), curated by ICI and Hans Ulrich Obrist in collaboration with Joseph Grigley, is a compilation of ephemera, photographs, and videos, that acts as an appendix to the exhibition, presenting the project’s vast history, its global reach, and evolution over the past 20+ years. It can be shown alongside any presentation of do it, and gives important historical context to the exhibition.

do it (archive), installation view, do it 2013, Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester, 2013. Photo Credit: Alan Seabright

PUBLICATION do it: the compendium by Hans Ulrich Obrist, published by ICI and DAP, marks the exhibition’s 20th anniversary.

CURATOR Hans Ulrich Obrist is Artistic Director of the Serpentine Galleries, London.

For information contact Becky Nahom at becky@curatorsintl.org or call 212 254 8200.