In a series of 11 identical white rooms at Manchester Art Gallery, a space more usually associated with glowing Pre-Raphaelite paintings, curators Hans Ulrich Obrist and Klaus Biesenbach gave 11 artists a space – and time – to fill. The result was, in Obrist’s words, ‘like a sculpture gallery where all the sculptures go home at 6pm’. Audiences travelled around the gallery interacting with performers and pieces that were resolutely ‘live’ – Tino Sehgal’s eerie and affecting living doll Annlee, the bedroom comedy drama of Simon Fujiwara’s Playing the Martyr, Santiago Sierra’s austere and heartbreaking Veterans of the Wars of Northern Ireland, Afghanistan and Iraq Facing the Corner. Ambiguous and affecting, 11 Rooms was a major hit with the international art scene and local audiences alike.

‘The questioning, individual intelligence motivating each piece seems almost palpable. It adds up to a resonant experience’ The Times

Commissioned by Manchester International Festival, Manchester Art Gallery and the International Arts Festival RUHRTRIENNALE 2012-2014. Produced by Manchester International Festival and Manchester Art Gallery. With thanks to Heiner Goebbels for his collaboration and support.