[rohrpost] Symposium Positions in Flux in Amsterdam

[susanne jaschko]

Positions in flux:
On the changing role of the artist and institution in the networked society
May 8, 2009

The symposium 'Positions in flux: On the changing role of the artist and
institution in the networked society' will center on some of the major
parameters for the current and future development of contemporary art.
'Positions in flux' will give floor to international artists,
theoreticians, critics, cultural producers and aims to initiate a truly
critical debate. The symposium is designed for a broad audience working
in the field of contemporary culture and art, with a desire to
understand what comes ahead and how to respond to these changes on an
artistic or institutional level.

The symposium will be streamed from the symposium venue, Trouw
Amsterdam. Online audiences will have the opportunity to participate in
the debate in online chat.

Panel 1: Art goes politics
In this session we will discuss the potential of art to contribute to
the solution and understanding of political and cultural conflicts.
Or is art constrained to raising awareness only? Should art become an 
agency for political and social
affairs at all? How to successfully implement and conduct art projects
in zones of crisis? How far do these projects benefit from the dubious
attention of the mass media?
With
Hans Bernhard (AT), artist, UBERMORGEN.COM, http://www.ubermorgen.com
Wafaa Bilal, artist (IQ/US, http://www.wafaabilal.com
Knowbotic Research,(DE/CH), artists in residence at NIMk 2008/2009, 
http://www.krcf.org
Moderated by Chris Keulemans, writer and journalist (NL)

Panel 2: New territories and cultures of the digital
This panel will look at the geographical shift that media culture
currently undergoes and that will shape the future of this field. In the
past, Europe, North America and Japan were at the forefront of digital
production, design, art and technological research. Now that digital
technologies become available at lower prices and spread more widely on
the globe, new digital communities flourish. This panel looks
specifically at new initiatives and bottom-up organisations in other
parts of the world such as East Europe, the Middle East, Africa and
South America, trying to understand what characterizes these
initiatives. In how far do local and national cultures shape digital
culture? Do these initiatives share common experiences and challenges,
or is there no common ground to be found? Which kind of art arises from
these new nodes on the digital map? How can we support the growth and
establishment of these organisations?
With
Bronac Ferran (UK), researcher, consultant and founding member of 
bricolabs, http://www.boundaryobject.org
Nat Muller, independent curator and critic (NL)
Marcus Neustetter, media artist, curator and co-founder of Trinity
Session (ZA), http://www.onair.co.za/thetrinitysession/index_temp.html
Adam Somlai-Fischer, artist and architect, programme director of Kitchen
Budapest (HU), http://www.kitchenbudapest.hu
Moderated by Rob van Kranenburg, thinker, networker and author (NL/BE)

Panel 3: Open Source – A scheme for art production and curating?
This session deals with the concept of open source for art production
and its presentation. The open source movement is driven by the idea of
collective, process-based, sustainable production and improvement. In
software development this strategy has already proven to be valid;
however can this model be applied to other products such as artworks or
even exhibitions? In how far does the open source model differ from
other forms of artistic collaboration? Is there a new role model for
both the artist and the curator in the future? Which (economic) value
and impact has expertise in open source production? How could
institutions and organisations respond to this trend? How could
institutions and organisations respond to this trend and create public
domains?
With
Marcos Garcia, director of Interactivos, Medialab Prado (ES), 
http://www.medialab-prado.es
Jaromil, dyne.org and researcher at NIMk, http://jaromil.dyne.org/journal/
Joasia Krysa, curator, founder of KURATOR (PL/UK), http://www.kurator.org
Femke Snelting (NL) and Renée Turner (US), De Geuzen, http://www.geuzen.org
Moderated by Josephine Bosma, theoretician and critic (NL)

Please see full programme and speakers' bios at www.nimk.nl.

-- 

susanne jaschko
curator