Philosopher of her own Ruin: Alan Longino's Final Curatorial Act at Bonner Kunstverein

Key facts

• Alan Longino curated the exhibition while dying of cancer; he died in July 2024 at age 37.
• The gallery space was physically reduced on Longino's instruction.
• Title borrowed from Canadian poet Lisa Robertson's essay on menopausal women as 'dandies'.
• Exhibition draws parallels between menopausal and sick bodies as detached from societal utility.
• Nine artists from different generations and countries are featured.
• Rosemarie Castoro's 'Sarcophagus Self-Portrait' (1994) is a minimal steel silhouette.
• Sydney Schrader's 'Untitled' series (2025) shows an ill-defined body shifting positions.
• Bertram Schmiterlöw's 'Sömnen' (c. 2000) depicts an ageing male floating in space.
• Anna Bella Geiger's 'Passagens 1' (1974) was filmed in Rio de Janeiro under dictatorship.
• Miyako Ishiuchi's 'Mother's #54' (2002) photographs her late mother's lipstick.
• Susan Hiller's 'Painting Block' works (1980) are stitched-together canvas segments with erased imagery.
• Longino republished Yutaka Matsuzawa's 'Quantum Art Manifesto' (1988) as part of his research.
• Exhibition runs at Bonner Kunstverein, Bonn, through 27 July 2025.
• The show is described as Longino's final autobiographical expression and a keystone in his legacy.