Joseph Beuys
Joseph Heinrich Beuys (/bɔɪs/ BOYSS, German: [ˈjoːzɛf ˈbɔʏs]) was a German artist, teacher, performance artist, and art theorist whose work reflected concepts of humanism, sociology, and anthroposophy. He was a founder of a provocative art movement known as Fluxus and was a key figure in the development of Happenings.
Beuys is known for his "extended definition of art" in which the ideas of social sculpture could potentially reshape society and politics. He frequently held open public debates on a wide range of subjects, including political, environmental, social, and long-term cultural issues.
“Art alone makes life possible – this is how radically I should like to formulate it. I would say that without art man is inconceivable in physiological terms… I would say man does not consist only of chemical processes, but also of metaphysical occurrences. The provocateur of the chemical processes is located outside the world. Man is only truly alive when he realizes he is a creative, artistic being… Even the act of peeling a potato can be a work of art if it is a conscious act.”
Joseph Beuys
“In places like universities, where everyone talks too rationally, it is necessary for a kind of enchanter to appear.”
Joseph Beuys
“Truth must be found in reality, not systems.”
Joseph Beuys