THE FLUXUS COLLECTION

Fluxus is a term used to describe an artistic standpoint rather than a particular direction or “ism” in an art historical sense. The name was coined by George Maciunas, and means flowing, in flux, to be found in movement. Officially, it was the same Maciunas who started the movement in Wiesbaden in 1962, when he arranged a series of concerts and performances that were planned to be published as the Fluxus Magazine.

As the concerts progressed, they became the object of several newspaper reviews expressing scandal, and the word Fluxus began to take on a life of its own. It went on to give its name to an independent movement and to an international network of artists who, from time to time, worked together. The roots of the movement were firmly planted in Dadaism and Surrealism, with particular reference to the work of Marcel Duchamps and John Cage. The artists involved in the movement worked with “anti-art” projects. They were critical of conventional ideas about art, and were against the commercial nature of the art world.

Seen in this context, Fluxus was a phenomenon that was closely linked to the 1968 generation. The Nouveaux Réalistes were another group of artists with a similar outlook, though they preceded the Fluxus movement. Fluxus encompassed many kinds of art, not only visual – it was a cross-disciplinary phenomenon that involved experimental artists working with poetry, dance, music and theatre. Since the Henie Onstad Art Centre was an active hub for experimental art in Norway at the time, it was natural for the Fluxus movement to be drawn to it.

Many of the artists who, over the course of the years, became closely linked with the Art Centre through exhibitions, concerts and other activities, had originally been involved with the Fluxus movement in one way or another: Joseph Beuys, César, Christo, Mark Boyle, John Cage, Nam June Paik, Alison Knowles, Geoffrey Hendricks, Dick Higgins, and Yoko Ono, were some. The Art Centre acquired work by many of them, or the artists themselves donated it to the collection. The artist and art sociologist Ken Friedman initiated the systematic building up of a Fluxus Archives, and a special collection began to emerge.

Today, the collection counts around three hundred works, consisting largely of documentary material from happenings and performances, works on paper, Xerox copies, drawings, posters, prints and several so-called “Fluxus Boxes”. In addition, there are musical works, records and tape recordings, as well as films, videotapes, and artist’s books. Amongst the artists represented are Ben Vautier, Daniel Spoerri, Emmet Williams, George Maciunas, Yoko Ono, Geoffrey Hendricks, Robert Filliou, Alison Knowles, Dick Higgins, Nam June Paik, Ken Friedman and Dieter Roth. There is also a large collection of Mail Art, including pieces by Joseph Beuys.

Throughout the years, several exhibitions concerning the Fluxus movement have been staged in Norway and the Nordic countries, including material from the Henie Onstad Art Centre’s Fluxus collection. Since the Art Centre now proposes to develop this material, we feel very fortunate to have recently received a generous donation – Ken Friedman’s entire collection will now be housed at the Art Centre named Ken Friedman Fluxus Collection.

By returning to our roots, and to the Art Centre’s own history within this context, we hope that opening the Fluxus Archives to the public once again will allow them to grow and develop. By doing so, the Henie Onstad Art Centre hopes to highlight both the historical and the contemporary significance of the movement.

The essay is taken from the book The Henie Onstad Art Centre: The Art of Tomorrow Today : The Collection by Karin Hellandsjø, Torino : Skira, 2008