Our perception of bodies is shaped by social structures and historical narratives. Personal, political and social processes are negotiated in and on bodies. Numerous movements of the 20th and 21st centuries have fought to make these structures visible, to question and break them, and to celebrate the body as a place of freedom. In her book „Everybody – A Book about Freedom”, author Olivia Laing explores some of these processes. Looking at the 21st century, Laing raises the worried observation: „The victories that were won were hard fought, but not secured for eternity, and now the relapse into conditions thought to be overcome threatens“.
Inspired by Laing's book, the group exhibition everybody takes up this point. The artworks on display focus on the body not as a static category, but as a dynamic structure, shaped by social, historical and emotional inscriptions. The participating artists reflect on and imagine individual as well as collective body politics in their works.