The lecture sheds light on one of the most intellectual and fascinating trends in contemporary art. International conceptual art has emphasised the importance of the artistic idea over material production. In a self-reflexive way, it has also reflected on the institutional framework of art. In the process, the self-image of artists and the role of the audience have changed significantly. The lecture will use illustrative examples to present the fundamental principles that are relevant to many works of conceptual art: Dematerialisation, verbalisation, participation, documentation, seriality and institutional critique. The art-historical significance and influence of conceptual art is greater and more far-reaching than it may sometimes seem in the spectacular art world. Many artistic works from the 1980s to the present day are almost inconceivable without an examination of this movement.

Hubertus Butin studied art history in Bonn and Zurich. In the 1990s, he worked as an art historical assistant in Gerhard Richter's studio in Cologne. Since 1991, he has published numerous essays and books on contemporary art, art theory and cultural policy. Among other things, he published the catalogue raisonné of Gerhard Richter's editions in 2014 and the lexicon of terms on contemporary art. In 2020, Suhrkamp Verlag published his art-sociological book on art forgeries. As an independent expert, he works worldwide for museums, collectors, art dealers, auction houses and investigating authorities. In 2021, he worked as a guest curator for the Kunstforum Wien and the Kunsthaus Zürich. He is also a freelance contributor to the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. Hubertus Butin lives in Berlin.