TAKAKO SAITO DIES AT THE AGE OF 96

Takako Saito died on 30 September 2025.

Her works can be seen in major museums around the world: delicate, tranquil objects made from the simplest of materials, countless variations on chess sets, or stalls reminiscent of toy shops, the ‘You&Me Shops’, where twigs, stones, leaves, shells and everyday objects are exchanged, combined or incorporated into small collaborative works.
(Today, on 2 October, I picked up the first chestnut in the main square).
Takako Saito attached great importance to interaction with her fellow human beings. Play took centre stage in her work; it was her way of communicating, her language.
We owe her unforgettable moments in Hadersdorf.
The great Fluxus artist was a guest at the ‘Ausstellungshaus Spoerri’ in 2018 and ensured that the museum extended into the park on the main square. The residents of Hadersdorf were invited to participate in three playful performances. After the performances, they said:
‘We all agree: let's do it again anytime!’
We are very sad that it is no longer possible to repeat the event, but we should ensure that Takako's cheerfulness remains in the world.
Barbara Räderscheidt

 

Season 2016: Morellet – Spoerri – Topor

MARCH 20 – JUNE 26, 2016

The drawings of the caricaturist and master of black humor, Roland Topor, might not seem to have much in common with the austere graphics of François Morellet. Daniel Spoerri and Alexandre Devaux, Parisian guest curator of our exhibition, invited us to go beyond the superficial and discover a common ground in the shared sense of humor of these two artists. 

Thematic parallels can be clearly seen in the works of Topor and Spoerri: digestion as an expression of the eternal cycle of growth and decay is a topic that is repeatedly addressed. The human body is studied, dissected, turned upside down and reassembled. Devaux speaks of "variations" (hence the subtitle of the exhibition was »Variations on Diverse Themes«). 

This is where the work of Francois Morellet comes in. Lines, condensed into grids, the repetition of geometric shapes - many variants of a basic pattern. Commonalities with Daniel Spoerri's assemblages are not obvious, and yet both had a similar initial idea in their artistic development: they wanted to counteract the myth of the artist as genius. He should preferably not come through as an author. 

Exhibition period: March 20 – June 26, 2016

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27 March – 02 November 2025
Friday – Sunday
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