Chus Martínez

 
Chus Martínez (born 1972 in Ponteceso, Spain) has a background in philosophy and art history. Currently she is the Head of the Institute of Art of the FHNW Academy of Arts and Design in Basel, Switzerland. Before she was the Chief Curator at El Museo Del Barrio (2012-2014), New York. She was dOCUMENTA (13) Head of Department, and Member of Core Agent Group. Previously she was Chief Curator at MACBA, Barcelona (2008-2011), Director of the Frankfurter Kunstverein (2005-2008) and Artistic Director of Sala Rekalde, Bilbao (2002-2005).
For the 56th Biennale di Venezia (2015), Martínez curated the National Pavilion of Catalonia with the filmmaker Albert Serra; for the 51st Biennale di Venezia (2005) she also curated the Cyprus National Pavilion; in 2014/2015 served as alliance of the 14th edition of the Istambul Biennial; in 2008 served as a Curatorial Advisor for the Carnegie International and in 2010 for the 29th Bienal de São Paulo. During her tenure as Director of the Frankfurter Kunstverein she curated solo exhibitions of Wilhelm Sasnal among others; and a series of group exhibitions including “Pensée Sauvage” and “The Great Game To Come”. She was also the founder of the Deutsche Börse Residency Program for international artists, art writers and curators. While at MACBA Martínez curated the Thomas Bayrle retrospective, an Otolith Group monographic show, and an exhibition devoted to television, “Are you ready for TV?” In 2008 Martínez was the curator of the Deimantas Narkevičius retrospective exhibition, “The Unanimous Life” at the Museo de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid, which traveled to major European museums.
Martínez lectures and writes regularly including numerous catalogue texts and critical essays, and is a regular contributor to ArtforumMousse and Spike, among other international journals.
 
Chus Martínez - The Complex Answer - On Art as a Nonbinary Intelligence
2023
English edition
Sternberg Press - History, Criticism and Theory
The Complex Answer presents the reader with a selection of texts—from 2010 to 2021—that introduce an exercise in how a practice of art and exhibition making has been influenced by philosophical thinking.
Chus Martínez - Corona Tales - Let Life Happen to You
2020
English edition
Lenz Press
When she started writing the Corona Tales, Chus Martínez had been weighing how people and the media were addressing the outbreak of the virus as an unprecedented disaster. One possible contribution, as curator and writer, would be to write a short story a day and post it on an Instagram account that many could access…
Chus Martínez - Club Univers
2017
English edition
Sternberg Press - History, Criticism and Theory
A collection of notes written along the years by Spanish curator and Head of Institut Kunst in Basel Chus Martínez. Aimed at her students, this notebook gathers personal thoughts on artists who inspire Martínez's ongoing practice.
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