VOICES: Hans Winkler

Hans Winkler's (born 1955) many action-based projects completed with artist Stefan Micheel as the group p.t.t.red ( paint the town red ) can be described as artistic pranking and/or purposeful public engagement. For example, the pair managed to convince the German public that bears had re-inhabited an area by romping through the woods in bear suits. In a similar act of disguise during a fellowship at MoMA PS1 in New York, they successfully placed red filters over the lights that illuminate the Statue of Liberty by dressing as civil workers. Winkler's recently curated exhibition and handbook for guerilla art, LEGAL/ILLEGAL: Art Beyond Law, is representative of his own practice, including art projects that seek a conflict between the systems of politics, art, and life. Winkler has had recent solo exhibitions at Pierogi Gallery, Brooklyn, and New Langton Arts, San Francisco.