Informal session with Maria Hlavajova:

Instituting Otherwise:

Yearning for Truth, Us, and the World

Philosopher Marina Garcés once defined the notion of “honesty with the real” as the virtue that “defines the material power of art that is engaged with the problems of a time and of a world we share.” It is “not defined by its themes, by its processes or by its places but by the power of its involvement and by its yearnings: a yearning for truth, a yearning for us and a yearning for the world.” In this informal session, I will think the institutional in the space of art alongside these three yearnings. Setting off from the year 1989, I will discuss restructuring of the field of art in its intersection with both theory and the political. In parallel, I will look at the role of theoretically-informed and politically-driven art institutions within this process. Using a number of pivotal projects from within the twenty-five-years of the praxis of BAK, basis voor actuele kunst in Utrecht under my directorship—from Former West (2008–2016) to New World Academy (2013–2016) to Propositions for Non-Fascist Living (2017–2024)—I will focus on the institutional forms of artistic research and preformative learning.

Do feel free to pass on to anyone interested (but they are kindly asked to let me know if they plan to join us – at jacoblund@cc.au.dk)