baibakovartprojects-blog
BAIBAKOV art projects
Baibakov Art Projects is a private, non-profit institution founded in 2008 by Maria Baibakova as a progressive platform for cultural production within Moscow and abroad. Since its inception, Baibakov Art Projects has produced exhibitions with over seventy Russian and international artists.
49 posts
Don't wanna be here? Send us removal request.
Last Seen Blogs
serinanoor
Untitled
consumer-goods-software
Consumer Goods Software
abildtrupclay07
The Love of Offersen 919
perfectprosecutor
♛ PERFECTION.
raisaurus
Renaissance
Text
The Garage announces a program of stipends for young Russian artists
Taus Makhacheva, Maturity II, 2006
As the Museum of Everything makes its way around Russia (by our calculations they should currently be on route to Nizhny Novgorod), Moscow's Garage is addressing a broader problem.
While prizes like ArtChronika's Kandinsky Prize and the state-funded Innovation Prize are quick to recognize "Young Artists" (not flinching when these same "emerging talents" also clinch other nominations along mid-career artists), there is no support system to allow for truly emerging artists to develop.
Over the last two decades, the Russian art world as it stands is concentrated in Moscow, with little market existing in the provinces. The market in Moscow was incredibly isolated, with a circuit of galleries selling a circuit of artists to a circuit of clients for prices those artists would not be able to fetch outside the confines of this system (which is how an artist who has represented Russia in the Venice Biennale ends up having a first solo show in the states in a tiny Lower East Side start-up.) Now that system is famously collapsing, with several of the top galleries recently folding or "restructuring" as non-profits, whose exhibitions are underwritten by vodka sponsors.
In other words, it's one thing to discover a new artist, quite another to support that artist's development. A prize is one thing, but without the network of grants and commissions that feed artists in other parts of the world, enterprising young talents more often than not end up making palatable projects glorifying alcoholic beverages or luxury cars.
This is where the Garage steps in; echoing the funding structure that helped New York to explode, the organization will be offering monthly stipends of 20,000 rubles (roughly ) to young artists, in the hopes that those funds will allow them to concentrate on their work. Russian artists, from age 18-35, are encouraged to submit applications, available here.
Applications will be accepted through August 31, 2012.
0 notes
Text
Pussy Riot, Madonna, High Court Hijinks and What it means to be a Hooligan
Madonna at her August 7, 2012, concert in Moscow
Like most of the world - judging from the number of Pussy-Riot-relard requests in our inbox - we have spent the last week watching The Trial of Pussy Riot, a tragicomedy that plays more like something from the files of OBERIU than a study in contemporary justice. As Slavoj Zizek writes in a piece for Chto Delat?, "What is a modest Pussy Riot obscene provocation in a church compared to the accusation against Pussy Riot, this gigantic obscene provocation of the state apparatus which mocks any notion of decent law and order?"
Like most of the world, we've also been wondering what relevance Madonna still holds in a world where cone-bras and stage-kissing pop tarts no longer shocks culture into action.
It turns out, when the issue is human rights in Russia, Madonna matters a lot more than any logical argument. Her statement last night in support of the three girls immediately exploded over the Internet, surpassing even the wild search queries triggered by Anthony Kiedis and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, when Kiedis donned a Pussy Riot t-shirt for his performance a few weeks back.
Granted, Kiedis wore a shirt, while Madonna bore the name of the "band" (these people do realize PR - wow, how did it take us so long to catch on the irony of the initials?! - are not musicians, yes?) directly on her skin. She spoke out about freedom, calling Pussy Riot "courageous." While she was clear she "means no disrespect to the church," she also concluded, "I pray for their freedom." Watch her full comments below:
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lXtE6DR6g4]
Of the myriad, somewhat incredulous reports on the peculiar absurdities of the trial - the constantly aborted questions, the denial of any witnesses for the defense, the use of blue-eyed, blonde, potentially "professional" witnesses - we recommend the always insightful Julia Ioffe, who submitted a report for the New Republic. Just an excerpt (though its enough to understand the OBERIU reference):
Because Sokologorskaya was claiming “moral damage,” one of the defense lawyers, Nikolai Polozov, asked her if she had turned to a doctor or a psychologist to address her suffering.
“I’m an Orthodox believer,” Sokologorskaya said. “The gracious power of the Holy Spirit is a million times stronger than any psychologist!”
“Then why didn’t the gracious power of the Holy Spirit assuage your moral suffering?”
“The question is struck!” snapped the judge.
“Have you seen the video of the punk prayer?” Polozov asked.
“Yes.”
“If the performance caused you such moral suffering, why did you decide to poison your soul again?”
The judge struck the question.
As Mark Feygin, the girls' lawyer pointed out in his closing statement (which you can listen to, in Russian, here), his clients did not commit any crime. Well, at least not the crime with which they were charged, which is hooliganstvo - ie, being a hooligan, which is defined by the law as disrupting the social order. As Feigin points out, had these girls performed on Novy Arbat Street - arguably a case study for The Social Order - nothing might have happened, other than the girls maybe collecting a hatful of loose change. What the "witnesses" brought in testified to was the personal offense of Christians, which cannot be hooliganstvo considered by the law as it stands.
So where does that leave things? Michael Idov tries to piece together the various implications in his column for the New York Times (we love this line: "This has nothing to do with the quality of their music; judging it on artistic merit would be like chiding the Yippies because Pigasus the Immortal, the pig they ran for president in 1968, was not a viable candidate."), but at the end of the day, it comes down to the Russian Court recognizing and upholding its own laws.
So now it's just a matter of waiting the 10 days for the court to hand down its sentence? We'll keep you posted. (Though maybe, so will Madonna.)
3 notes
·
View notes
Text
The Museum of Everything "discovers" Russia
Today, one of Moscow's foremost cultural commentators, Afisha veteran Yury Saprykin posed the very important question as to why Peter Gabriel and Sting are so quick to voice support for Pussy Riot, while Russian rock stars like Zemfira keep quiet. He proposes that the former are laboring under the misapprehension that Pussy Riot is an actual band, ala Sex Pistols, and not an artistic initiative, operating within the confines of the art world.
As for what constitutes these confines, that's a task that the Museum of Everything aims to explore with its fifth exhibition, which takes the shape of a tour across Russia, seeking undiscovered talents or outsider artists. This search will culminate in what the promotional video below absurdly calls "the first truly democratic exhibition of contemporary art" at the Garage's new Gorky Park space in Moscow. For more information and the dates of the tour, check the website, or watch this video:
[vimeo http://www.vimeo.com/45572835 w=500&h=281]
Meanwhile, at Iris Foundation's St Petersburg outpost, New Holland, the summer program opens an exhibition called "Lyuda EXPRESS" today, which is set to showcase the efforts of artist Peter Belyi's experimental non-profit, Lyuda Gallery. While it may not meet the qualifications for the Museum of Everything's "outsider" status, the St Petersburg scene has been more or less ignored for refusing to play along with the slick packaging of Moscow. This exhibition will rotate the artist on display every three days, going through a roster with such diverse talents as revered minimalist sculptor Konstantin Simun (known - though in our opinion, not enough - for his stunning Broken Ring monument to the Leningrad Blockade) to the emerging painter Vlad Kulkov. The exhibition is curated by Gleb Ershov, and will run from today until August 15. For more information, visit the website (soon to be updated in English.)
Konstantin Simun, The Broken Ring, 1966 monument to the Leningrad Blockade
#Museum of Everything#Lyuda Gallery#Lyuda Express#New Holland#Konstantin Simun#Vlad Kulkov#Yury Saprykin
2 notes
·
View notes
Text
And then there were...? Two more galleries leave Moscow's Winzavod
Archival images from Taus Makhacheva's "Let Me Be Part of the Narrative," on view at Paperworks Gallery, April 10-May 11, 2012
This weekend, Moscow's Winzavod Art Center - which has undergone some major changes with the arrival of new director Elena Panteleeva and the "transition" of three of its leading galleries to nonprofit spaces - just lost two more galleries.
First, this Saturday, Irina Meglinskaya announced that her Meglinskaya Gallery - which draws from a photography-weighted roster of artists like Igor Mukhin - would be leaving. Artguide broke the news, but offered few details other than dangling promises of an exclusive interview in its next issue.
Installation view of Valery Chtak's "Bits of Truth," on view at Paperworks, September 24 - November 9, 2011
This announcement was followed shortly thereafter by a statement from Paperworks, announcing they would not renew their lease, which expires August 1, 2012.
Baibakov Art Projects has collaborated with Paperworks in the past, co-publishing Valery Chtak's Bits of Truth, but more than that, we have always admired their program, which encourages smart (and as of a few rounds on the award circuit, well decorated) up-and-comers like Taus Makhacheva and Polina Kanis. Before moving to Winzavod in 2009, Paperworks got its start in 2005 at the scrappy Art Strelka space (now the site of the Strelka Institute); we have great faith that gallery owners Lena Bakanova and Evgeny Mitta will push on with their activities in a new location that reflects the edginess and dynamism of their program.
#Winzavod#Paperworks#Meglinskaya#Taus Makhacheva#Valery Chtak#Moscow art galleries#Moscow contemporary art
1 note
·
View note
Text
A.i.R. Dubai announces an Open Call for 2013
Artist-in-Residence (A.i.R.) Dubai is an annual two month program run by Art Dubai, Delfina Foundation, Dubai Culture & Arts Authority, and Tashkeel that offers artists (and one curator) the chance to spend a concentrated period in Dubai in the months leading up to Art Dubai.
According to the call for submissions put out last week by Art Dubai, A.i.R. Dubai is seeking applicants for 6 artists in residence: 3 Emirati artists and 3 international artists. These artists will live and work together "in historic Al Bastakiya, in the heart of Dubai’s trading district alongside the Creek," from January 7 to March 31, to coincide with the 7th edition of Art Dubai, Design Days Dubai and the SIKKA Art Fair. During this time, the artists complete site-specific commissions as part of the fair programs.
Faycal Baghriche, Nothing More Real, Art Dubai Projects 2012
Additionally, the program, in collaboration with ArtAsiaPacific, invites 1 international curator interested in researching aspects of the Gulf. According to the Delfina website: "The selected curator will be an upcoming/mid-career curator from anywhere in the world, either working with an established institution (and able to take a sabbatical) or freelance. The jury will be seeking applicants who have demonstrated interest in the UAE/Gulf/Middle East with the capacity for in-depth research and writing. It is expected that the curator will use the opportunity to further develop links within and knowledge of the Gulf, with a view to working with artists based in, or ideas developed within, this region in the future."
Joining the jury this year is guest juror Sarah Rifky, curator of Cairo's Townhouse Gallery and one of documenta 13's agents.
The deadline for applications is September 16, 2012. To apply, or for more information, check this website.
#A.i.R. Dubai#Art Dubai#SIKKA Art Fair#Delfina Foundation#Sarah Rifky#ArtAsiaPacific#curatorial residencies#artist residencies
0 notes
Text
ANOTHER SIX MONTHS for Pussy Riot
Members of Pussy Riot sit behind bars before a court hearing in Moscow, July 20, 2012. Photo: REUTERS/Tatyana Makeyeva
Today, in advance of Pussy Riot's staunch July 24 court date, the Russian court arbitrarily announced that the trial for JANUARY 13, 2013. That's nearly TEN MONTHS after their arrest - without ever being formally convicted with anything!
This in the wake of reports that the court had been troubled by some of the members' earlier actions as part of the group Voina. In particular, Elena Misulina, a representative of the Duma Committee for Matters relating to Family, Women and Children, pointed to "indecent acts with a chicken." She is referring to the performance "How to Snatch a Chicken: A Tale of How One Cunt Fed the Whole of Group Voina." In this performance - not for the weak stomach, as the title might insinuate - the group purportedly rebels against the capitalist system by shoplifting a turkey in the least appetizing of manners. This action was evoked in court as evidence that the February 2012 performance for which the Pussy Riot members are being prosecuted was not an isolated event in the lives of these young women.
Speaking of things which don't belong in one's anatomy, the girls found another rock and roll ally in Anthony Kiedis, lead singer of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, who donned a homemade Pussy Riot shirt for his performance this weekend.
Anthony Kiedis performs in his Pussy Riot shirt. Photo Miriam Elder, via Twitter.
1 note
·
View note
Text
The Public Art Fund brings Oscar Tuazon's People to Brooklyn Bridge Park
Oscar Tuazon, An Error, 2010. Installation view as part of "Perpetual Battles," Baibakov Art Projects, Moscow.
It's been just two years since Oscar Tuazon installed An Error at Baibakov Art Projects, as part of the exhibition "Perpetual Battles," but in that time, the artist has had more exhibitions than some artists have in their careers (including participation in Bice Curiger's project at the Venice Biennale as well as a major piece in the 2012 Whitney Biennial.)
Today, New York's Public Art Fund will reveal Tuazon's latest, a set of three sculptures built in response to the Brooklyn Bridge. Entitled "People," the work will remain in the park until April 26, 2013.
Oscar Tuazon selecting trees from New York’s Hudson Valley for his project in Brooklyn. Photo @The Art Newspaper
Tuazon spoke to The Art Newspaper about the project, which he describes as "site-responsive" instead of site-specific:
The Art Newspaper: How different is it creating work for a park as opposed to a gallery space?
Oscar Tuazon: Specific to this location: the skyline of Manhattan is incredible. The first thing I realised when I visited is that it’s pointless to try and do something massive because you’ll never be able to compete with the skyline. So, I decided to do something that was human in scale. And to me, trees are human scale. They’re bigger than people, but even on a monumental scale, I think a tree is still something that’s quite approachable because it has human qualities. The tree is also an interesting object in terms of its verticality. Like a totem pole, it doesn’t necessarily have to be massive to do something interesting to the space around it. Its verticality [makes it interesting]. These three pieces are trying to almost function as utilitarian objects within the park. They should be used.
Read the rest of the interview here.
Congratulations to Oscar and the Public Art Fund on this commission!
5 notes
·
View notes
Text
Passing Time at the Lincoln Center: Christian Marclay's The Clock returns to New York
Photo: Still from Christian Marclay, The Clock, 2010. Courtesy Paula Cooper Gallery, New York and White Cube, Mason’s Yard, London. Photo: Todd White Photography
This week, Lincoln Center will kick off the triumphant return of Christian Marclay's much-lauded "The Clock" to New York. The 24 hour marvel uses a cleverly-edited montage of film clips to act as a real-time clock within the exhibition space. In Roberta Smith's glowing review of the piece, she called it "the greatest movie trailer ever made," "a 24 hour valentine to the movies" and "the ultimate work of appropriation art."
It is hard to say why this panoply of timepieces and plot twists is so gripping, but it is. After watching “The Clock” from around 7:30 p.m. last Friday to past midnight, I dragged myself away, despite the desire to stay and see exactly how the time would be told, how different hours would be rung in.
From July 13- August 1, the piece will be open to the public in the David Rubenstein Atrium. Admission is free, though, if experience has taught us anything, there will certainly be a line to get in.
For those eager to get a sneak peek (or to help support Lincoln Center, ensuring this and other such projects remain free to the public), Lincoln Center will hold a special preview on Thursday, July 12, which will be co-hosted by Baibakov Art Projects' Maria Baibakova, along with esteemed international patrons Mohammed Afkhami, Alexandra Chemla, Dana Farouki, Adam Fields and Yana Peel. Guests will enjoy drinks at the Empire Hotel rooftop, starting at 9pm. At 10pm, Marclay himself will be on hand to introduce the work. From 10:30pm-1am, guests will enjoy a private screening of what are arguably some of the film's most exciting scenes (After all, just how many movie plots revolve around "the stroke of midnight"...?)
For more about this special preview or to purchase tickets, check the event page on the Lincoln Center website. To find out more about the project, including opening times, check here.
Christian Marclay. Detail of The Clock, 2012. Courtesy Paula Cooper Gallery, New York and White Cube, London. Photo: Todd-White Photography.
0 notes
Text
Slavs and Tatars, Sosnowska, Solakov: The 2nd Ural Biennale reveals its roster
Slavs & Tatars, Régions d’être, 2012
This morning, the site Artguide.ru broke the artist roster for the second Ural Industrial Biennale of Contemporary Art, slated to run just over a month this fall, from September 13 - October 22, 2012.
The first Ural Biennale - curated by Katya Degot, David Riff and Cosmin Costinas - made headlines with its contentious theme: "Shockworkers of the Mobile Image." As we mentioned earlier, the first press release promised that the sophomore edition - curated by Iara Boubnova - would continue to develop this theme, revolving "around the industrial and the post-industrial, the Soviet and the Post-Soviet, material and symbolic labour." Since that time, there's been some rephrasing (namely a critical verb switch):
The 2nd biennial will depart from the main themes of the 1st biennial, which revolved around the industrial and the post-industrial, the material and the symbolic; it will consider the possibilities of moving beyond the traditional opposition of production and consumption in artistic, cultural and social spheres and explore the potential of (non)-exhibition spaces appropriated by contemporary art.
In addition to Baibakov Alums Adel Abdessemed, Irina Korina, and Slavs and Tatars, Artists include Kutluğ Ataman, Thomas Demand, Irwin, Emily Jacir, Boris Mikhailov, Anton Vidokle & e-Flux, Dan Perjovski, RAQS Media Collective, RECYCLE, Michael Sailstorfer, Nedko Solakov, and Monika Sosnowska.
For now, the complete roster is only available on Artguide.
In addition to Boubnova's main project, there will be parallel exhibitions curated by stellar critic-curator Valentin Diaconov, the Hermitage 20/21's Dmitry Ozerkov and and a joint project with the Ekaterinburg State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre, as well as invited presentations from the Garage, Winzavod and Christie's. For more information, check here.
The 2nd biennial will depart from the main themes of the 1st biennial, which revolved around the industrial and the post-industrial, the material and the symbolic; it will consider the possibilities of moving beyond the traditional opposition of production and consumption in artistic, cultural and social spheres and explore the potential of (non)-exhibition spaces appropriated by contemporary art.
In addition to Baibakov Alums Adel Abdessemed, Irina Korina, and Slavs and Tatars, Artists include Kutluğ Ataman, Thomas Demand, Irwin, Emily Jacir, Boris Mikhailov, Anton Vidokle & e-Flux, Dan Perjovski, RAQS Media Collective, RECYCLE, Michael Sailstorfer, Nedko Solakov, and Monika Sosnowska.
For now, the complete roster is only available on Artguide.
In addition to Boubnova's main project, there will be parallel exhibitions curated by stellar critic-curator Valentin Diaconov, the Hermitage 20/21's Dmitry Ozerkov and and a joint project with the Ekaterinburg State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre, as well as invited presentations from the Garage, Winzavod and Christie's. For more information, check here.
Leonid Tishkov, Private Moon, 2003-2011. Installed here at old Water-cooling tower in the VIZ factory as part of the First Industrial Biennale in the Urals, Ekaterinburg
1 note
·
View note
Text
OpenSpace closes: Moscow's cultural hub loses its domain
The Contemporary Art page of Openspace.ru, June 26, 2012
This week the editors of the online cultural portal OpenSpace.ru - which agglomerates information on categories like Contemporary Art, Literature, Theater and Classical Music - informed the public that the site would cease operation on June 30th.
As present-chief editor Maria Stepanova details in an interview with Afisha, the decision to close was the owner's, Vadim Belyaev, who has brought in former editor of the now defunct Vlast ("Power"), Maxim Kovalsky, to retool the site into more of a political animal.
"I would hope that the new OpenSpace will serve as a cultural and social hub," Belyaev explains in a statement, also given to Afisha. "I just think 'culture' means something more than a site about art."
Since its founding the Contemporary Art section has been a particularly valuable resource, supplementing annotated listings of each week's openings with columns by curator Katya Degot, as well as artists Olga Bozhko (who covered Design) and Kirill Ass (Architecture.) You can check out Degot's latest - a three part diary of Documenta - starting here (in Russian.)
In February of this year, OpenSpace launched its youth-oriented spin-off, W-O-S ("Weekend Open Space"), which could be said to play T Magazine to OpenSpace's Times. (Still, this type of site has a long way to go before it catches up to Look At Me, arguably the online center of Moscow youth culture. LAM's "grown-up" section, The Village, was recently awarded a 2012 Gold Lion in Cannes' Mobile category.)
For her part, Stepanova has vowed to register a new domain and migrate all archival content - and her entire editorial team - there. In the meantime, OpenSpace, as we know it, will be closed.
0 notes
Text
The Pinchuk Art Centre announces its short list for the Future Generation Art Prize 2012!
From Jonathas de Andrade, "Love and Happiness in Marriage," 2007
Today the Pinchuk Art Centre announced the 2012 short list for its Future Generation Art Prize. An exhibition of the short-listed artists will open in Kyiv on October 27, 2012, and the official winner of the $100,000 prize will be announced in a special ceremony December 7, 2012.
As a Partner Platform, Baibakov Art Projects is especially proud to see one of our nominees - the spectacular Jonathas de Andrade - made the list!
The shortlist of the Future Generation Art Prize 2012:
Jonathas de Andrade, 30 (Brazil),
Marwa Arsanios, 33 (Lebanon),
Micol Assael, 33 (Italy),
Abigail DeVille, 30 (United States),
Aurelien Froment, 35 (France),
Mykyta Kadan,29 (Ukraine),
Meiro Koizumi, 35 (Japan),
Andre Komatsu, 33 (Brazil),
Eva Kotatkova, 29 (Czech Republic),
Tala Madani, 30 (Iran),
Basim Magdy, 34 (Egypt),
Angioletti Meris, 34 (Italy),
Ahmet Öğüt, 30 (Turkey),
Amalia Pica, 33 (Argentina),
Agnieszka Polska, 27 (Poland),
Emily Roysdon, 34 (United States),
Rayyane Tabet, 28 (Lebanon),
Xing Yan, 26 (China),
Lynette Yiadom-Boakye, 34 (United Kingdom),
Joao Maria Gusmao + Pedro Paiva, 33, 34 (Portugal),
R.E.P (Ukraine): Volodymyr Kuznetsov (35), Mykyta Kadan (29),
Olesia Khomenko (31), Zhanna Kadyrova (30), Ksenia Gnylitska (28),
Lada Nakonechna (31).
Congratulations to all of the nominees!
0 notes
Text
Alexey Buldakov and Kathrin Becker talk Youth, Art and Politics - oh, and the Berlin Biennale
The latest issue of ArtChronika has just hit the stands, raising eyebrows (and LEGO heads) with the cover: YOUTH AS FETISH.
Just in time, as July 11 marks the opening of the III Moscow International Biennale for Young Art, whose main project boasts such "youngsters" as AIDS 3D, Edgardo Aragón, Jorinde Voight, Ryan McNamara and Marinella Senatore. For the issue, Baibakov Art Projects alum and art crush Alexey Buldakov makes a rather intriguing interview with Kathrin Becker, curator of the main project, which she has titled "Under A Tinsel Sun." We quoted a bit of her explanation of this theme back in November, but just to catch up:
Under A Tinsel Sun assumes that, despite the cultural, economic and social differences that may exist between the participants from different countries, there is a common factor in the impossibility of locating oneself by belonging to certain peer groups (whether in the ideological or in the artistic sense). Cultural science often refers to this as an "almost desperate isolation" (Wolfgang Kaschuba), as the final state of a development in the field of art that had already begun in the mid-1970s, manifesting itself in the end of the historical avant-gardes and in their reassessment as part of a dominant canon. The collapse of ideologies at the end of the 1980s and the dawning of the post-ideological age both play a role within this mesh, as much as the end of the narrative of youth culture representing the universal culture of renewal, induced by the merciless commercial exploitation of the subcultures in the mid-1990s, which in turn coincides with the onset of commercial availability of the World Wide Web in 1994.
In the interview, Buldakov picks apart some of this narrative that Becker has spun, referring to Becker's own past, part of which she spent in Perestroika Petersburg, when identity politics were at a fever pitch and the world was waiting with baited breath for its first glimpse behind the wall. Buldakov asks if maybe the situation was comparable today, when the Berlin Biennale occupies itself and glamour shots of Pussy Riot seem to plaster the internet. This leads to a discussion on the Berlin Biennale and the power of art to act politically, which we found pretty interesting, and so we have translated sections for the English-speaking audience. (Please note, this is just our rough translation and should not be taken for direct quotes, which can be found here, albeit in Russian.)
AB: One of the major questions these days is whether art can influence politics. You know about the Berlin Biennale, right? About how when Artur Zmijewski came to Moscow last fall, he said he was more interested in "street fighters" than artists? I didn't really understand who he meant by street fighters: the warlords of the Libyan opposition or anarchists from the Black Bloc...? But in either case, neither is too interested in art.
KB: So many artists position themselves like social workers, and their art then becomes this attempt to communicate with the public. I have spent a lot of time talking with Zmijewski. In his opinion, this kind of communication should lead to some kind of result, and not just serve as justification in the eyes of the art world elite. To differentiate the political activism from the art is very difficult, because these fundamental gestures are viewed exclusively within the context of the art system. When artists appropriate and disseminate actual political statements, these statements lose their substance, their effect and their connection with reality.
Unfortunately, political artists often act like vampires, sucking the life force out of whatever seems most relevant or pressing. I get why Zmijewski is sympathetic to "street fighters" and Voina. But I am more interested not in those artists who set goals to try to change something, but rather in the artists who bring knowledge to the people and who work to expand the boundaries of how we perceive reality. But for now, alas, contemporary art is fundamentally focused on public space within politics, and not knowledge production.
AB: Well it's obvious right now that the biennale moment is in crisis. Maybe that's why they brought on Zmijewski? As someone who might be able to change the situation?
KB: I think it was just an experiment. I don't know who it was who chose him as curator, there was probably some kind of committee. I am sure Artur understands that he cannot actually change anything. Not the situation in art, not the situation in politics. The function of this biennale was to create a new space for communication, not to change the political structure. And I should say, Artur did a brilliant job creating this new concept for communication.
I agree with the idea that biennales all over the world are in crisis. But at the same time, these biennales keep bringing in more and more viewers. People wait in line for two hours to get into the exhibitions at Documenta or the Venice Biennale. So, really, the crisis of these biennales may be more about the dearth of new ideas. The biennale movement will keep pushing on though, if only for the economic reasons.
We look forward to seeing how Becker herself handles this biennale crisis. To be continued, July 11...?
#Berlin Biennale#Kathrin Becker#Young Art Biennale#Moscow Biennale of Young Art#Alexey Buldakov#ArtChronika#Artur Zmijewski
0 notes
Text
CAC fills in some blanks with Lithuanian Art 2012
Robertas Narkus and Milda Zabarauskaite, "I Spent 7 Years in My Uncles Home as a Servant, " 2011
Tomorrow the CAC in Vilnius will kick off not 1 but 18 different exhibitions of Lithuanian art. All together, the program will comprise the whole of Lithuanian Art 2012, a run-down of the scene that will precede the 11th Annual Baltic Triennale, slated to open in August.
Robertas Narkus and Milda Zabarauskaite, "I Spent 7 Years in My Uncles Home as a Servant, " 2011
Tomorrow the CAC in Vilnius will kick off not 1 but 18 different exhibitions of Lithuanian art. All together, the program will comprise the whole of Lithuanian Art 2012, a run-down of the scene that will precede the 11th Annual Baltic Triennale, slated to open in August.
The exhibitions in question all bear intriguing titles, ala "Chance Number Six: Red Herring," "Romas Ubartas," "An Evening with Doctor Shepherd," and "Sculpture Exhibition." The list of curators is too long to reproduce here, let alone the artists roster, but all of this information can be found here. The exhibitions themselves will be on view through August 12, 2012.
As for the Triennale, this year it will take the more condensed format of a 12-day intensive exhibition curated by Defne Ayas and Benjamin Cook. It will also be radically unlike any other of these large-scaled exhibitions, ala Documenta or Manifesta. In short, based on an idea of artists Ieva Misevičiūtė and Michael Portnoy, the "Mindaugas Triennale" will take the shape of a man:
Mindaugas, who has one of the most common Lithuanian names (literally “much fame” or “one who has many ideas”), is the medium through which the artists will channel their works. He will appear each day throughout the Triennial, animated by different instructions, scripts, scenarios, and scores by the participating artists to be played out in the city of Vilnius or nearby surrounding areas.
Among the artists animating Mindaugas (a real-life Annlee?) are Asli Çavuşoğlu, Ragnar Kjartansson and Marianne Vitale. Visitors can witness this triennale from August 24 until September 9, 2012. For more info, check here.
#Mindaugas Triennale#Defne Ayas#CAC VIlnius#Lithuanian Art#Michael Portnoy#Benjamin COoke#Baltic Triennale
0 notes
Text
The Culture of Riot: "Media Impactors" launches in Berlin
A day after the Palais de Tokyo opened its defense of Pussy Riot in Paris, Berlin takes a look at some of the other creative protest coming out of Moscow with the launch of "Media Impactors: Activist Art from Russia."
The catalogue documents one of the parallel projects of the 4th Moscow Biennale, and includes Pussy Riot, PG, Anton Nikolaev, and others (samples of whose work you can find here.) Work from these artists will also be on view at OKK until July 14.
Tomorrow, Saturday, June 23, at 4pm, curator Peter Weibel, artist Joulia Strauss and curator Tania Volkova will follow the book launch at the KW Institute - now "occupied" as the site of the Berlin Biennale - with a round-table titled "Art and Agency in the Information Age: From Bradley Manning to Pussy Riot."
Preceding tomorrow's discussion, Volkova will also give a lecture on "The Culture of Riot: The Experience of Recent Protests Movements in Russia" today, Friday, June 22, at 7:30pm at 129 Gallery.
For more information check the blog for Volkova's ZhiruZhir, or the page for the event on Kritische-Kunst (both in English.)
#Media Impactors#Tania Volkova#Pussy Riot#PG#Activist Art in Russia#Peter Weibel#Joulia Strauss#Berlin Biennale
1 note
·
View note
Text
Pussy Riot faces even more jail time - still without a trial!
Just one day before the Palais de Tokyo takes up the defense of Pussy Riot, the Moscow court will hold a hearing to determine if the trial should be postponed - yet again.
These means the members of the group will have spent 107 days behind bars, without even being formally charged.
107 days.
This without family visits, despite the three girls all being young mothers.
The court tomorrow will decide if the trial should be postponed another 2 months.
However your feelings over Pussy Riot's actions, this kind of imprisonment - without being officially charged - is unjustifiable in the extreme. In response, the Moscow art community has organized the 2nd Open Court Cultural-Festival, an extravaganza of poetry, performance and protest in defense of Pussy Riot.
While flyers have circulated, announcing a 1pm meeting time in front of the courthouse, Pussy Riot's blog has now moved the festival to noon, advising participants to arrive at 11:30pm. The reason for the time change is that the nervous court, upon hearing tell of the planned festivities, bumped up the proceedings. At least they have the court running scared?
0 notes
Text
Hallo from Switzerland! A brief wrap-up of Basel
Jeff Koons, Winter Bears, 1988
It's been a quiet week, as the art world descended on otherwise-quiet town of Basel for the 43rd edition of Art Basel. As if the international economic situation and the oversaturation of fairs (with Frieze NY and Hong Kong now "must-attends," this means some galleries are at four big fairs, this month alone...), with the Schaulager under renovation (set to open up again in February with a Steve McQueen show) and the Messeplatz construction site basically the most extravagant Mike Nelson installation anyone's seen, it seemed like this could have been an ideal year to skip the show.
"Tatlin: New Art for a New World" at the Museum Tinguely
Those who did go were rewarded, and not only with the crazy Jeff Koons/ Philippe Parreno pairing at the Beyeler. The Tinguely Museum featured an excellent Tatlin show, which expanded from the Tower to include Counter-Reliefs and Theatre Design. Another type of Russian Modernism was on view at Design Miami, where Moscow's Heritage Gallery offered a selection of Soviet furnishings. In the pristine setting, items like entertainment units or couches took on a very high-design look, but some of the Post-Soviet clientele had other opinions; artist Katya Bochavar entered the booth and immediately starting cataloguing: "My grandmother has this... my other grandmother has that..."
On view at Heritage Gallery
Back at the Big Fair, Art Statements - solo presentations of younger artists - was strong, with new work from Oliver Laric, Matthew Metzger and Slavs&Tatars. This year marked the first year that Gianni Jetzer - curator of New York's Swiss Institute - took the helm of Art Unlimited, the section of the fair devoted to oversized projects (You can read about each of the projects here or follow other images on our Twitter stream.)
Nina Beier, Tragedy, 2012. Image courtesy of Laura Bartlett.
This year, in addition to showings of Baibakov-alums Walead Beshty and Sterling Ruby, there were high profile debuts from Douglas Gordon (whose film appeared to have Harry Hopper - aka, son of Dennis - having some overwrought response to wearing underwear), Richard Phillips ("step away from the Lohan..") and Jeremy Deller (a 3-d bat-cave adventure.) But the works which really got the most attention were more understated - from Rudolf Stingel's piercing portrait of Paula Cooper to Germaine Krup's whirling dervish to Nina Beier's Tragedy, a series of canine performances in which expertly trained pooches would take turns playing dead on a Persian rug.
Nina Beier, Tragedy, 2012. Image courtesy of Laura Bartlett.
This year, in addition to showings of Baibakov-alums Walead Beshty and Sterling Ruby, there were high profile debuts from Douglas Gordon (whose film appeared to have Harry Hopper - aka, son of Dennis - having some overwrought response to wearing underwear), Richard Phillips ("step away from the Lohan..") and Jeremy Deller (a 3-d bat-cave adventure.) But the works which really got the most attention were more understated - from Rudolf Stingel's piercing portrait of Paula Cooper to Germaine Krup's whirling dervish to Nina Beier's Tragedy, a series of canine performances in which expertly trained pooches would take turns playing dead on a Persian rug.
Speaking of dogs, as much as the fair had to offer, what really set tongues wagging was still Documenta. Because of the timing, most people at the fair were either arriving fresh from Kassel or heading there next. While a lot of people got stuck on madame curator's Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev's habit of being ludicrously quotable (What was that about how women and dogs are equal? What's that you say? It's not a slant towards women, it's a move towards animal suffrage...?), others were gratefully able to get pass that and really talk about the work. (Though, as one observer pointed out, Sfeir Semler's booth at Basel was basically a mini-Documenta.) Frieze blog published a series of diary entries detailing some very different perspectives on the various components of the massive spread. (It's particularly interesting to read Jennifer Allen against Art-Agenda's Quinn Latimer.)
For their part, the Documenta team seems to have pled oblivious to the uproar over the curator's spotlight shenanigans: instead of any defense other than the exhibition, they have circulated a photo of CCB giving a VIP tour to a pony-tailed Brad Pitt. (And the web rejoices...)
One thing is certain: whatever the circus going on in Kassel, we're glad we still have 90 more days to see it!
#Art Basel#Art Basel 43#Art Unlimited#Tinguely Museum#Tatlin#Heritage Museum#Beyeler#carolyn christov-bakargiev#Nina Beier#Jeff Koons#Gianni Jetzer#Slavs and Tatars#Documenta
1 note
·
View note
Text
Kulik-curated Parallel Project to Kyiv's Arsenale censored
Detail of Lusine Djanyan and Aleksey Knedlyakovsky, "White Ring," 2012
Kyiv's Arsenale 2012 may have gotten off to a rocky start, but at least it's still open.
Yesterday, the Ukrainian Kommersant reported that the exhibition "Apocalypse and Rebirth in the Chocolate House" has been closed for pornographic content. Organized by the Mironova Gallery, the exhibition was supposed to run in the Kyiv State Museum for Russian Art, from May 15 - July 27, 2012, as a parallel project to David Elliot's "Rebirth and Apocalypse" project in the Arsenale. Curated by Oleg Kulik, Anastasia Shablokhova and Konstantin Doroshenko, the exhibition boasted an impressive 43-artist roster, from Documenta 12 veterans Dmitry Gutov, Andrei Monastyrski and Anatoly Osmolovsky to perpetual up-and-comers Andrey Kuzkin, Recycle, Maksim Svishev, Zhanna Kadyrova and Valery Chtak.
Andrey Kuzkin, Natural Phenomena, 2012
The exhibition was cited for "pornography." The Kommersant has suggested two works that may have garnered that charge. The first is Andrey Kuzkin's "Natural Phenomena," in which a naked male figure is planted like a tree in the outside courtyard. The second is more political porno: Lucine Djanyan and Aleksey Knedlyakovsky's "White Ring," a collection of mini-protestors standing in a scaled model of Moscow's city streets.
This is not the first incident of censorship in Kyiv, which recently struggled with the closure of another exhibition, "The Ukrainian Body." It's perhaps curious, then, that Elliot's project hasn't attracted this kind of attention as one of his four themes is "flesh", which "takes the human body, its appetites, desires and limitations as its central theme." Kommersant seems to agree, ending on a quote from critic Maria Kruschek: "A naked body does not count as pornography; otherwise, you would have to put boxers on Michelangelo's David. What counts as pornography is when the Committee for Social Morality closes down an exhibition of contemporary art in Ukraine, in 2012."
#Ukrainian Body#Kyiv Arsenale#Rebirth and Apocalypse#Apocalypse and Rebirth#Oleg Kulik#Andrey Kuzkin#David Elliot
1 note
·
View note