Miles Greenberg: New impulses for performance art in Essen!

Miles Greenberg: New impulses for performance art in Essen!

An exciting time begins on May 7th, 2025 at the Folkwang University of the Arts in Essen. Starting in the summer semester, Miles Greenberg will take over the Pina Bausch Professorship. The applicant's decision was met with great approval. Greenberg, born in Canada in 1997, is an internationally recognized performance artist and sculptor whose works are characterized by their slowness and decay of form.

The upcoming exhibition “Restless Sanctuaries” will take place from May 13th to 15th, 2025 in the SANAA building on the Zollverein World Heritage Campus. The works of Greenberg and students of various disciplines can be viewed on the ground floor, first floor and in front of the building. Admission is free and opening hours are daily from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Performances and workshops

As part of the exhibition, various performances will be presented from May 13th to 15th that address the students' individual artistic backgrounds. Jerome-Joseph Clemons, Gloria Carobini, Belendjwa Peter Ekemba, Kadji Hänisch and Konstantin Pütz will perform on May 13th. On May 14th you can see Chloé Challal, Silviu Guiman, Betsy Paola Contreras Lara, Nicol Memoli and Charlie Wyrsch. On the final day, May 15th, Helia Abdollahi, Arnaud Dubois, Belendjwa Peter Ekemba, Denis Okatan and Nathan William Stearns will perform.

Greenberg will begin the “Black Ritual and Durational Action” workshop in April 2025, in which around 15 students from the fields of music, theater, dance, design and science will take part. Here he will pass on his expertise and methods and have individual long-term performances developed.

Miles Greenberg's career

Greenberg has made a name for himself through his spectacular long-term performances, which gained attention at the Louvre and at the last Venice Biennale, among others. He has exhibited at high-profile institutions such as the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin and the New Museum in New York. He was also artist in residence at the Palais de Tokyo in France and Fountainhead in the USA.

His rigorous and ritualistic methods allow him to use the body as a sculptural element and create large, sensory immersive environments. In his live performances, which are often recorded, the transformation of the body in space is in the foreground and serves as the basis for other creative works, such as video installations and sculptures.

The Pina Bausch Professorship was launched in 2022/23 and enables the appointment of international artists. This also includes Marina Abramović, who served as the first visiting professor and initiated the “Free Interdisciplinary Performance Lab”. Ina Brandes, the Minister of Culture and Science of North Rhine-Westphalia, sees Greenberg's appointment as an enrichment for the university and the students.

The appointment is not only a confirmation of his impressive career, but also a step towards interdisciplinary collaboration. Holger Zebu Kluth, the designated rector of Folkwang University, praises Greenberg's suitability for this prestigious professorship. Salomon Bausch, founder of the Pina Bausch Foundation, emphasizes his ability to open new horizons for students.

The Folkwang University community is eagerly awaiting the developments that the collaboration with Miles Greenberg will bring.

Folkwang University reports that...

Designbote provides information about the Pina Bausch Professorship

Folkwang University about future collaboration with Miles Greenberg