Promised Landsla Haus der Kulturen der Welt, BerlinMarta Jecu24 martie – 14 mai 2006: China – zwischen Vergangenheit und Zukunft [China – între trecut øi viitor]; 30 septembrie– 20 noiembrie 2005: Räume und Schatten – zeitgenössische Kunst aus Südostasien [Spaflii øi umbre– arta contemporanæ din Asia de Sud-Est]; 2– 18 decembrie 2005: Traum und Trauma, Moving Images andPromised Lands [Vis øi traumæ, imagini mobile øi flinuturi fægæduite]; 19 martie – 9 mai 2004: Entfernte Nähe –neue Positionen iranischer Künstler [Apropiere îndepærtatæ – noi poziflii ale artiøtilor iranieni]; 20 martie –11 mai2003: DisORIENTation – Contemporary Arab Artists from the Middle East [DisORIENTation – artiøti arabi contemporanidin Orientul Mijlociu]; 19 septembrie – 16 noiembrie 2003: Body.City – New Perspectives from India[Corp.Oraø – Noi perspective din India].Moving Images and Promised Lands este subtitlul lirico-evocativ al titlului nu mai puflinrezonant – Traum und Trauma [Vis øi traumæ] – al expoziflei despre „ideea de Israel“de la Haus der Kulturen der Welt din Berlin. „Casa Culturilor Lumii“ promite,prin imagini contemporane, cartografierea unor teritorii îndepærtate øi însceneazæ,începînd cu anii ’90, un divan interdisciplinar de prezentare dialogicæ (exclusiv) a culturilorextraeuropene: America Latinæ, Asia øi Orientul Mijlociu. Între „tradiflie øi globalizare,religie øi noile medii“ – anunflæ argumentul pe o paginæ web –, proiectelecuratoriale 1 cautæ sæ foreze multistratificarea unor experienfle sociale øi politicecontemporane, prin manifestæri estetice.Am sæ mæ refer mai jos la modele expoziflionale practicate de Haus der Kulturender Welt (HKW), pe care le-aø putea numi de facturæ post-postcolonialæ: ele iauîn calcul imposibilitatea unei cunoaøteri/prezentæri exhaustive a unei culturi stræine,dar pleacæ de la premise postcoloniale, printr-o construcflie conceptualæ ce are labazæ o formulæ binaræ (local-stræin), cu termeni menflinufli în opoziflie. Privesc acestepractici ca pe o reminiscenflæ a strategiilor curatoriale antropologico-artistice alesfîrøitului anilor ’80 2 , extrapolate, printr-un discurs adus la zi, la dinamica transferurilorøi la interactivitatea confruntaflionalæ, inerente discursului actual.Suportul teoretic înfæfliøat în argumentele curatorilor 3 øi în textele de prezentare aleexpozifliilor traverseazæ toposurile criticii culturale din ultimele decenii, pledînd pentruasimilarea lor: urmærirea reflelei globale, prin care acfliuni locale se influenfleazæreciproc, a pluralitæflii tradifliilor øi a modernitæflilor, cu noile lor consecinfle asupraproducfliei artistice contemporane, depæøirea viziunii unei lumi polarizate întrecentru øi periferie, valorizarea în mod egal a unor culturi diferite, implicarea individualuluiøi a cotidianului, pentru a face relevant un discurs cultural. 4 Aluziile la conotafliilespecifice lucrærilor sînt minime, avînd eventual ponderea unor note de subsolla teoremele preexistente. Potenflialul expresiv inedit, degajat de calitæflile speculativeinerente unei abordæri artistice critice/documentare, este subordonat unor paradigmeinterpretative devenite între timp locuri comune.O altæ instituflie culturalæ de prestigiu din Berlin, Martin Gropius Bau, prezintæ, înexpoziflii la fel de cuprinzætoare, într-o manieræ didacticæ, coordonatele structuraleale unor culturi contemporane. La HKW, prin evenimente dedicate, de exemplu,Asiei de Sud-Est (Räume und Schatten – 2005), Iranului (Entfernte Nähe – 2004),flærilor arabe (DisORIENTation – 2003), Indiei (Body.City – 2003), Americii Latine(Havana/São Paulo – 1996), expunerea construieøte, dimpotrivæ, o ambiguitate însce-PROMISED LANDS AT HAUS DER KULTUREN DER WELT, BERLINMarta Jecu24 March – 14 May 2006: China – zwischen Vergangenheit undZukunft; 30 September – 20 November 2005: Räume und Schatten– zeitgenössische Kunst aus Südostasien; 2–18 December 2005:Traum und Trauma, Moving Images and Promised Lands;19 March – 9 May 2004: Entfernte Nähe – neue Positionen iranischerKünstler; 20 March – 11 May 2003: DisORIENTation – ContemporaryArab Artists from the Middle East; 19 September – 16 November2003: Body.City – New Perspectives from India.Moving Images and Promised Lands is the lyrical-evocative subtitleof a no less grandiloquent title – Traum und Trauma (Dream andtrauma) – for the exhibition on the “<strong>idea</strong> of Israel” in Haus derKulturen der Welt, Berlin. “The House of the World Cultures” promises,through contemporary images, to map distant territories andstages, starting with the ’90s, an interdisciplinary area of (exclusively)extra-European culture presentation in dialog: Latin America,Asia and the Middle East. Between “tradition and globalization, religionand new media” – announces the statement on the web site –the curatorial projects 1 seek to dig for the multi-stratum social andpolitical contemporary experiences through esthetic events.I shall refer hereafter to the exhibition models put into practice atHaus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW), which I could call post-post-colonial:they take into account the impossibility of knowing /presentingexhaustively a foreign culture but starts off from post-colonialgrounds through their conceptual construction having at its foundationsa binary formula (local-foreign) with opposing terms. I seethese practices as reminiscence of the anthropological-artistic curatorialstrategies of the late ’80s 2 , extrapolated through a discourseupdated to the dynamic of transfers and confrontation interactivity,inherent to the today discourse.The theoretic background presented in the curators’ 3 statements andin the description texts of the exhibitions cross the themes of the culturalcriticism of the past decades pleading for their assimilation:to follow the global network through which local actions influencemutually, the plurality of traditions and modernisms, with their newconsequences on the contemporary artistic production, to overcomethe vision of a world divided in center and periphery, to equallyvalue different cultures, to involve the individual and the day-to-dayfor the relevance of a cultural discourse 4 . The hint to the specific connotationsof the works is minimal with the weight of a footnoteMARTA JECU a fæcut studii de istoria artei øi a absolvit un masterat în antropologie la Bucureøti. În prezenteste doctorand în antropologie urbanæ la Berlin.MARTA JECU obtained a BA in art history and graduated a MAin anthropology, in Bucharest. She is now a PhD student in urbananthropology, in Berlin.98
scenanatæ, care pretinde cæ lasæ loc unui relativism firesc în contextul contemporan, darmizeazæ pe exotismul unei alteritæfli culturale. Dacæ la Martin Gropius Bau, în expozifliaDie Neuen Hebraer. 100 Jahre Kunst in Israel (2005, curator: Doreet LeVitteHarten) conceptul expoziflional este o prezentare istoricæ a artei din Israel a ultimuluisecol, în cazul HKW, ceea ce este pus în scenæ este un teritoriu, iar lucrærile expusedevin fragmente disparate, subsumate artificial unei imagini-construct generalizante.Conceptul de „teritoriu stræin“, lipsit de un concept adjuvant pentru a fi precizatøi restrîns asupra unui cîmp/aspect definibil, este suprapus unor lucræri diverse, prezentateca fiind exemplare pentru acest unic model explicativ/demonstrativ. Artiøtii invitaflisæ expunæ provin exclusiv din regiunile respective, ceea ce conduce la potenflareaimpresiei de unitate geograficæ/naflionalæ øi la marcarea unei diferenfle faflæ de publicul(presupus) vestic. Dialogul intercultural se opreøte la un decupaj binar, menitsæ dea impresia de autenticitate. Parcurgerea unor serii de expoziflii la HKW conferæimpresia unui proces curatorial, care nu mai porneøte de la lucræri în direcflia elaboræriiunui criteriu intern, analitic de expunere, ci, dimpotrivæ, porneøte de la uncriteriu exterior, cumulativ, øi apoi îl proiecteazæ asupra anumitor lucræri. Situareaunor indivizi autonomi în formulæ colectivæ (comunitaræ) într-un spafliu delimitat teritorial/naflionalextrapoleazæ acest spafliu ca spafliu identitar, în care identitatea naflionalteritorialædevine criteriu de apartenenflæ. Aceastæ delimitare fictivæ, transferatæ dela artiøti asupra lucrærilor lor, reduce øi, în consecinflæ, falsificæ potenflialul lor conceptualøi expresiv iniflial.Ideea lui Marius Babias din articolul „Producerea subiectului øi practica artei politice“ 5este cæ, dupæ Documenta 11 din 2002, s-a cristalizat în artæ o nouæ manieræ de abordarepostcolonialæ: o concentrare mai atentæ pe aspectele socio-culturale øi politice,care nu a înlocuit însæ nevoia de a satisface piafla globalæ prin versiuni din ce în cemai rafinate ale „altor“ culturi øi lumi „exotice“. Interpretarea lui asupra contextuluide manifestare-receptare al artei critice/politice actuale este un construct conceptual,în care aø putea plasa øi cazul HKW. În viziunea lui Babias, arta criticæ actualænu se mai poate concentra decît pe domenii stigmatizate ca „nonartæ“, pentru a documenta„iregularitæfli micropolitice“, care însæ nu pot iniflia rezistenfla împotriva unorcircumstanfle atotstæpînitoare. Sistemul capitalist produce, pe de o parte, artæ criticæ,manifestæri disidente øi, pe de altæ parte, eludeazæ transformærile radicale princooptarea øi asimilarea lor, ceea ce conduce, în final, la maximizarea consumuluihedonist în cæutare de spectaculos.Politica vizualæ coagulantæ practicatæ de HKW forfleazæ o asimilare a singularului încontextul-matrice dictat de o anumitæ prezentare, egalizînd impulsurile critice particulareøi diversitatea fireascæ a perspectivelor personale. Lucræri cu un transparentto the preexisting theorems at most. The genuine expressive potentialcoming from the inherent speculative qualities of an artistic critical/documentaryapproach is submitted to interpretative paradigmsthat have become common places in the meanwhile.Another prestigious cultural institution in Berlin, Martin Gropius Bau,presents through similarly vast exhibitions the coordinates of contemporarycultures in a didactic, mode. At HKW, through eventsdedicated to South-East Asia (Räume und Schatten – 2005), Iran(Entfernte Nähe – 2004), Arab countries (DisORIENTation– 2003), India (Body.City – 2003), Latin America (Havana/São Paulo –1996), the presentation builds, quite on the contrary, a staged ambiguitythat pretends to leave place for a natural relativism of the contemporarycontext, but counts on the exoticism of cultural otherness.If at Martin Gropius Bau, in the exhibition Die Neuen Hebraer.100 Jahre Kunst in Israel (2005, curator: Doreet LeVitte Harten)the concept is a historical presentation of art in Israel in the last century,at HKW a land is exhibited and the works are scarce fragments,artificially grouped in a generalizing image-construct. The conceptof “foreign land”, lacking an additional adjuvant concept, that wouldcontain it on a definable field, is overlapped with various works presentedas emblematic for this unique explicative/demonstrativemodel. The invited artists come exclusively from the respectiveregions, which leads to an enhancement of the impression of geographic/nationalunity and to a clear-cut difference with the (supposed)western public. The intercultural dialog stops at a binarypattern meant to give the impression of authenticity. Looking ata series of exhibitions at HKW leaves the impression that there isa curatorial process that doesn’t start from works in order to elaboratean internal analytical criterion but, on the contrary, from anexterior cumulative criterion to be projected on certain works.Placing autonomous individuals in the collective formula in a spacedefined territorially-nationally extrapolates this space as an identityspace wherein the national-territorial identity becomes a criterionof belonging. This fictitious delimitation, transferred from artistson their works reduces, hence falsifies, their initial conceptual andexpressive potential.Marius Babias’ assertion in the article “Subject production and politicalart practice” 5 is that after Documenta 11 in 2002 there has beena new post-colonial approach in art: a more careful concentration onthe socio-cultural and political aspects, which haven’t replaced howeverthe need to satisfy the global market through increasinglyrefined versions of “other” cultures and “exotic” worlds. His interpretationof the manifestation-reception context of today critical/ politicalart is a conceptual construct that also applies to HKW.In Babias’ viewpoint the art today can only focus on stigmatizeddomains such as “non-art” in order to document “micro-politicalirregularities”, which cannot start however the resistance againstoverwhelming circumstances. The capitalist system produces thecritical art, dissident manifestations, on one hand and eludes theradical trans<strong>format</strong>ions, on the other, through their co-optation andassimilation leading, eventually, to the maximization of hedonist consumptionalways seeking the spectacular.The coagulating visual policy at HKW pushes an assimilation of thesingular within the context-matrix dictated by a certain presentation,making equal the particular critical impulses and the natural diversityof the personal perspectives. Works having a transparent critical(social, politic) discourse are obviously wanted but their critic potentialwill be faded to suppression through the way to exhibit them.The curatorial intervention cannot be seen any longer as a mediationbut as a re-interpretation either as it doesn’t generate a supplementaryconceptual register of circumscribing analytically the works.In the post-colonial criticism of the ’90s the accent shifts on socialand imaginative practices and processes, in the detriment of fixedoperating formulae. In this context, Hal Foster describes inThe Return of the Real how the primitive fantasies of the othernessare absorbed in the ’90s 6 in a realist paradigm through which “other-99
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arhivaJulie Ault øi Martin Beck s
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arhivaWesleyan University Press/Uni
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Am vorbit la telefon cu Jaw. Se va
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toare: prin abandon - aøa-numita
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Paulo, 2002, pp. 44-55 - a fost rea
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împotriva cærora nici bogæflia,
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Oraø al paniciiPaul Virilio„Atun
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s-o cîøtigæm. Acum, aceastæ lup