Enlarge image Charles Atlas (b. 1949). Still from Turning (live mix) with Antony and the Johnsons, 2004. (© Image courtesy the artist and Vilma Gold, London) The German Consulate General Supports:

The 2012 Biennial takes over most of the Whitney from March 1 through May 27, with portions of the exhibition and some programs continuing through June 10.The Whitney’s fourth-floor Emily Fisher Landau Galleries will become a dynamic 6,000-square foot performance space for music, dance, theater, and other events. This is the first Whitney Biennial in which nearly a full floor of the Museum has been given over to a changing season of performances, events, and residencies.

The 2012 Biennial comprises work by 51 artists, including German filmmaker Werner Herzog, painter Jutta Koether, and Kai Althoff.

The breakdown of boundaries between art forms is everywhere in evidence. Kai Althoff is creating an installation, as well as performing in a play by Yair Oelbaum that will be presented during the third week of May. Jutta Koether, a painter who is also a writer, performing artist, musician, and critic, will hang four of her paintings on glass walls.
Werner Herzog looks back in time at the etchings of the Dutch landscape painter and printmaker Hercules Segers (c.1589-c.1638) in a multi-media installation that includes projections of Segers’s work and music by Ernst Reijeseger, who has also composed music for Herzog’s films; excerpts are included from Herzog’s own Ode to the Dawn of Man (2011), a film about the making of the music for his Cave of Forgotten Dreams (2011), winner of this year’s award for Best Documentary from the New York Film Critics Circle.

See the Whitney website and press release for a complete list of Biennial artists, performances, film screenings, and residencies.

Sponsored in part by Deutsche Bank, major support is provided by Sotheby’s, Bentley Meeker and exclusive hotel partner The Surrey.

Ticket and Museum Information:

Tickets for the Biennial go on sale February 10 and may be purchased via whitney.org or in person at the Whitney, Wednesday through Sunday during gallery hours. All Biennial performances are free with Museum admission. Note: The Sarah Michelson and Michael Clark performances require special entry tickets (advance ticket booking is strongly suggested); all other events are first-come, first-served. Whitney members receive unlimited express admission to the Museum’s galleries and film programs.

The Whitney Museum
945 Madison Avenue (at 75th Street)

Museum hours are:
Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Friday from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m.
closed Monday and Tuesday

General admission: $18. Full-time students and visitors ages 19–25 and 62 & over: $12. Visitors 18 & under and Whitney members: FREE. Admission is pay-what-you-wish on Fridays, 6–9 p.m. For general information, please call (212) 570-3600 or visit whitney.org.