Free International University
Encyclopedia
The Free International University (FIU), was a support organization founded by the German artist Joseph Beuys
together with Klaus Staeck (1st chairman), Georg Meistermann
(2nd chairman) and Willi Bongard (secretary). It was founded as a "organizational place of research, work, and communication" to ponder the future of society. As a free University it was intended to supplement the state educational system while at the same time campaigning for legal equality with that system.
The FIU was founded on 27 April 1973 in the Düsseldorf studio of Joseph Beuys and existed as a non-profit, recognized, and registered association up to its dissolution in 1988, more than two years after the death of the artist.
The idea of the Free International University was revisited and taken further by various people and groups, including the author Rainer Rappmann under the FIU-Verlag and the F.I.U.s in Amsterdam
, Gelsenkirchen
, Hamburg
, and Munich
, which were begun by students of Beuys. They also include the organization Mehr Demokratie e.V. and the Omnibus for direct Democracy.
Joseph Beuys
Joseph Beuys was a German performance artist, sculptor, installation artist, graphic artist, art theorist and pedagogue of art.His extensive work is grounded in concepts of humanism, social philosophy and anthroposophy; it culminates in his "extended definition of art" and the idea of social...
together with Klaus Staeck (1st chairman), Georg Meistermann
Georg Meistermann
Georg Meistermann was a German painter and draftsman who was also famous for his stained glass windows in the whole of Europe....
(2nd chairman) and Willi Bongard (secretary). It was founded as a "organizational place of research, work, and communication" to ponder the future of society. As a free University it was intended to supplement the state educational system while at the same time campaigning for legal equality with that system.
The FIU was founded on 27 April 1973 in the Düsseldorf studio of Joseph Beuys and existed as a non-profit, recognized, and registered association up to its dissolution in 1988, more than two years after the death of the artist.
The idea of the Free International University was revisited and taken further by various people and groups, including the author Rainer Rappmann under the FIU-Verlag and the F.I.U.s in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, Gelsenkirchen
Gelsenkirchen
Gelsenkirchen is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the northern part of the Ruhr area. Its population in 2006 was c. 267,000....
, Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, and Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, which were begun by students of Beuys. They also include the organization Mehr Demokratie e.V. and the Omnibus for direct Democracy.
External links
- FIU-timeline and further information
- Josephbeuysraum20.com - Photos of Students in the class of Beuys from 1961-1978
- F.I.U.-Amsterdam & Free International University World Art Collection
- FIU-Munich
- Freie Kunstschule Hamburg FIU (Free Art School Hamburg FIU)