Paul Pfeiffer Unpacks Society’s Obsession with Celebrity and Spectacle in Guggenheim Bilbao Survey

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Who’s using who?

At present, the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao is displaying Pfeiffer’s most extensive European survey exhibition, highlighting more than thirty pieces crafted over the past quarter-century. Previously unveiled at MOCA’s Geffen Contemporary in Los Angeles, “Prologue to the Story of the Birth of Freedom” offers insight into our fascination with the extraordinary, illuminating the critical moments and visuals that resonate deeply within us.

As a gamer, I’d put it like this:

Exploring the fascinating parallel between religious icons and modern-day celebrities, I find myself delving into how one individual can symbolize the worldwide dissemination and consumption of visual content. In the series “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse” (2000–), a collection of suspended NBA players photographed mid-air, Pfeiffer highlights this correlation. Their bodies, poised in a cruciform manner amidst a swarm of fans, serve as objects of reverence within our “media-driven sanctification.

Sports venues, concerts, and cinemas serve as repositories of shared memory within society, where collective emotions such as fear, desire, and excitement are expressed through applause and captivated gazes: Muhammad Ali and George Foreman become spectral in “The Long Count” (2000-2001) as Pfeiffer digitally erases their physical presence from the iconic 1974 match. This leaves an empty ring surrounded by a passionate audience, creating a powerful, metaphorical discussion on the allure of the spectacle and its myth.

Paul Pfeiffer: Prologue to the Story of the Birth of Freedom is now on view through March 16.

Guggenheim Bilbao Museum
Abandoibarra Etorb., 2, Abando,
48009 Bilbo, Bizkaia, Spain

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2025-03-05 22:26