Image: MASSIMODECARLO, Milan
The Lawrence Weiner exhibition ‘& UNA CERTA MASSA ALLA BASE DI TUTTO | & DETERMINED MASS AT THE BASE OF IT ALL’ opens at MASSIMODECARLO Milano on 10 September 2026. It will remain on view through 10 October.
Weiner (1942–2021) was born in the Bronx, New York, and lived and worked in New York City and Amsterdam. In the late 1960s, he turned from painting to adopt language as his primary material. Over more than 50 years, he explored the possibilities of artistic production, presentation and reception.
In 1969, Weiner issued a ‘Declaration of Intent’:
“1. THE ARTIST MAY CONSTRUCT THE WORK
2. THE WORK MAY BE FABRICATED
3. THE WORK NEED NOT BE BUILT
EACH BEING EQUAL AND CONSISTENT WITH THE INTENT OF THE ARTIST, THE DECISION AS TO CONDITION RESTS WITH THE RECEIVER UPON THE OCCASION OF RECEIVERSHIP”
Weiner’s artworks could be presented at a specific site without being created for that site. Their materials and formal presentation varied among museums, galleries, homes and public spaces. A work could take different forms in its placement, colour, typeface, format and scale, and its texts could be painted, printed, stencilled or made in vinyl.
Works appeared across a range of surfaces, including walls, matchbooks, manhole covers, pins and T-shirts; they could also be spoken or sung. His work was widely accessible, as reflected in the posters, books, films, editions and public installations he produced during his lifetime.
‘& UNA CERTA MASSA ALLA BASE DI TUTTO | & DETERMINED MASS AT THE BASE OF IT ALL’ is on view in Milano from 10 September to 10 October 2026.
