Olaf Breuning: Genius and Stupidity

Explore the highs and lows of human nature through the drawings of Swiss artist Olaf Breuning.

Olaf Breuning: Genius & Stupidity brings together works mainly created since 2016 by the New York State-based Swiss artist. They revolve around universal themes and questions dealing with the relationship between humankind, nature, and technology. Reckless exploitation of resources and climate change play a major role in Breuning's recent work. He exposes the fractures and failures, naivety, and stupidity that characterize much of human behavior as relentlessly as he does the absurd and the amusing.

Around sixty recent drawings by Breuning constitute the book’s common thread. Photographs, video stills, views of installations and exhibitions complement these drawings to create an independent visual reading. The bizarre meets a brightly colored, attractive repertoire of images, creating an idiosyncratic cosmos that causes exhilaration as well as contemplation. Two scholarly essays introduce Olaf Breuning's multi-layered artistic practice, while two literary contributions offer a wider view of his visual world.

Sarah Merten is an art historian and curator for contemporary art at Museum zu Allerheiligen in Schaffhausen, Switzerland.