Timeline

It's All Over?

Picture Credits: Andy Warhol

Cases of Art and Urbanism from Post-Soviet Countries

You are welcome to take part in the whole event or attend specific discussions/workshops.

Registration

All participant can choose between 2 workshops they wish to attend. Both workshops can host up to 10 participants. Please register here.

Attendance costs: bring some cookies/chocolate for the coffee break

Schedule

13.00-13.30 Introducing the Post-Soviet context by Masaki Yada

13.30-14.00 Exploring the concept of ´failure´ in examples of Estonian Art by Kristino Rav

14.00-14.30 Tracing Urban Activism in Contemporary Russian Street Art by Shriya Malhotra

Coffee break

15.00-17.00 Workshop I ‘Psycho-geographic Mapping’ led by Shriya Malhotra

15.00-17.00 Workshop II ‘Body and Movement’ led by Kristino Rav & Gabriella Hirst

17.00- 17.30 Discussion / Round table led by Cédric Noël

About the discussions and workshops
Art and urbanism in a post-soviet context was affected by rapid transformations of the 1990s. But changes of the period are neither well understood nor analyzed. Masaki Yada will provide a brief introduction to the complexities in the Post-Soviet era which ground the selected examples of ‘failures’ in Estonian art scene and cases showing the recent emergence of bottom-up urban and street art activism in Russia that reveal both-sides of the same rusty coin.

Using visuals and videos, Kristino Rav will explore the concpets of discourse and power in relation to the ideological turn and changes in the local art scene following the collapse of the Soviet Union in Estonia. Using the same historical moment as a point of departure, Shriya Malhotra will discuss the changing relationship between art and urbanism in relation to the Russian traditions of revolution and avant garde.

In the framework of a post-cold war era Berlin, they will review the role of arts and artists in society and the ideological impacts of capitalist, socialist political systems. The discussion will center around following questions: Are cities and artists contemporary failures? Do the arts symbolically showcase downfall? How do socialist traditions continue in changing socio-political contexts? Who has the power to dictate, but also benefit from what is accepted as the dominant discourse in the society at large? How has art been used to express ideological apprehensions? And, what can we learn from these examples of contemporary art and urban development in a post-Soviet, neo-liberal context?

Discussions will be supplemented by practical workshops in which participants have the option to test non-traditional research methods or artistic strategies that will be followed by a discussion circle held by Cédric Noël.

Workshop I Psychogeographic Mapping

Shriya Malhotra will introduce practices of psychogeographic mapping and using the body as a sensor to create different maps and representations.

Workshop II Body and Movement

Kristino Rav and Gabriella Hirst will lead a session of Butoh dance inspired movement in which participants try to challenge their mental and physical boundaries as means of creation. Please wear comfortable clothes!