Vladimir Filonov / MTThe Grammar of Freedom / Five Lessons exhibit is put together with the help of Ljubljanas Moderna Galerija.

Freedom is onthe curriculum atthe Garage Museum ofContemporary Art with "Grammar ofFreedom / Five Lessons," anexhibition based around five ways oflooking atart's role inthe search forfreedom.

TheGarage museum incollaboration with theModerna Galerija inLjubljana, Slovenia has put together anexhibition that shows work bymore than 60 artists andart collectives. Themain part ofthe exhibition is made up ofworks fromthe Arteast 2000+ collection, brought over fromSlovenia.

Thethemes ofthe lessons, said Snejana Krasteva, one ofthe curators forthe exhibition, are strategies common toboth Russian andEuropean artists: "What is interesting is tolook atwhat is similar. Even if people don't speak thesame language."

"These [art] forms have emerged ina very different context thelack ofan art market meant that people had different motivations fordoing art," said Krasteva.

TheArteast 2000+ collection was thefirst museum initiative tofocus onthe postwar avant-garde Eastern European artists inan international context. Inturn, theGarage exhibition is afirst forRussia. "This country has never had anexhibition that considers Russian artists inthe context ofthe Eastern European scene," said Kate Fowle, chief curator atGarage.

Oppression, lack ofinfrastructure andCold War tensions are afew ofthe "parallel legacies" that Russia andcountries ofEastern Europe enjoy, Krasteva said.

"This lack ofinfrastructure andlack ofsupport encouraged artists toengage inself-organization andassume therole ofart institutions," Krasteva said. This was particularly true inthe Soviet Union, where, unlike their Eastern European counterparts, Soviet artists had almost no contact with theWestern art world. Tight restrictions onthe postal service inthe U.S.S.R. limited correspondence andexchange ofideas. Lesson four inthe exhibit "The Practice ofSelf-Organization as Resistance" comes out ofthis isolation.

Theexhibition opens with the"grandmother ofperformance art," Serbian artist Marina Abramovic andher 1974 performance "Rhythm 0" as thefirst subject in"Lesson 1: TheBody as aTool forLiberation." Inthe original installation inGalleria Studio Morra inNaples, seventy-two objects including aloaded gun were laid out ona table touse as theaudience wished onthe body ofthe artist. This lasted six hours andended with theartist holding agun toher head. "That was theheaviest piece I ever did because I wasn't incontrol. Theaudience was incontrol," Abramovic once said.

Vladimir Filonov / MT

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Learning the Lessons of Art Freedom at Garage