Now & Now

Who am I today, right now? What point have I reached in my life? And: who might I be in two years’ time? Who is going to be looking back at me out of the mirror then?

In his latest long-term project Mats Staub focuses his interest in people and their stories on the present and the near future. At the heart of it is the living individual, constantly on the move, changing and growing. «Now & Now» is a snapshot, conserving the moment to be shown again: the first part of the project will be created during the course of this year’s Ruhrtriennale in Bochum, the second part in two years’ time.

We are looking for people who live in the Ruhrgebiet and who are willing to agree to two meetings a long time apart: people who will enjoy thinking about themselves, who like writing letters and who are prepared to share their thoughts with Mats Staub and become part of a work of art. We are looking for one participant of every age between 8 and 80 – each one will be given two binding dates, the first in August/September 2021 and the second in the Spring of 2023. At both meetings, which will each last around 60 minutes, the participants will be involved in a conversation with themselves: they will stand opposite their own reflection and listen to their favourite music while being filmed, and they will then write a handwritten letter to their future selves. This letter will be kept safe until their second meeting in two years’ time. The images and words from all these meetings will form the basis for a new work that will be presented at the Ruhrtriennale 2023.

The first meeting will take place in Bochum between 17 August and 19 September 2021 in the Turbinenhalle next to the Jahrhunderthalle. The second meeting is planned in March 2023. Looking far ahead into the future is part of the project – it is essential for the work as a whole that everyone taking part attends both meetings.

If you are interested in taking part, please contact us by emailing jetzt[at]ruhrtriennale.de and you will be asked for the following: name the month and year in which you were born; look for a photo that was taken of you approximately two years ago; send this to us and describe in a few sentences what changes you have noticed. Finally, we also need a phone number on which we can contact you.