Art, Activism, Antagonism?– a workshop with the participation of the representatives of local cultural and civic initiatives, facilitated by Rada Leu [BG/CH] and Vladimir Us [MD]
Saturday, May 25, 2024, 6 pm
Zpace (Casa Zemstvei, 103 Al. Sciusev str., Chisinau)
Dear all, we invite you to join the workshop ”Art, Activism, Antagonism?” which is part of the event series “Culture Wars in times of polarization”.
What is currently polarizing society in Moldova the most and how is your practice addressing this?
The workshop provides an opportunity for cultural workers, artists and activists to discuss their practice in an organized manner with a focus on the ongoing challenges that the independent cultural community currently faces. Together we will discuss the topic of polarization of Moldovan society and try to answer the questions from above – and ask further ones. The findings of this workshop will be picked up in the next iteration of this ongoing series, to take place in the fall of 2024, leading towards an international symposium to be organized in 2025. The workshop is open to artists, activists, students and anyone interested in the topic, and will be moderated by Rada Leu [BG/CH] and Vladimir Us [MD].
In order to take part in the workshop please register by Friday, May 24: here
Contributors
Rada Leu [BG/CH] is an artist, musician and performer. She is a member of the queer band Acid Amazonians and the research-based political theatre collective Neue Dringlichkeit and co-founder of QWAS, a multi-format exchange program between Switzerland and Kazakhstan. The collectives she works in explore topics such as pop culture, post-Soviet space, the world of logistics and globalization, and DIY music making.
Jörg Scheller [DE/CH] is a Professor of Art History at the Department of Fine Arts at the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK) and a visiting professor at the Poznań University of the Arts. He is currently leading the research project “Contemporary Art, Popular Culture and Peacebuilding in Eastern Europe” (2022-2026), funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation. His monographic book publications cover a wide range of topics, from physical culture to popular music and identity politics. As a guest author and columnist, he contributes, among others, to DIE ZEIT, Neue Zürcher Zeitung, frieze magazine, Geschichte der Gegenwart, Stuttgarter Zeitung and Psychologie Heute. He is a member of the commission for art in public space of the city of Zurich and has curated or co-curated several contemporary art exhibitions. Since 2003, he has been the singer and bassist of the metal duo Malmzeit, with whom he runs a heavy metal delivery service. In addition, he is a certified fitness instructor.
Rana Yazaji [SY] is a researcher and co-director of the advanced studies program “Art and International Cooperation” at the Zurich University of the Arts. She is currently co-director ofArtasfoundationn, the Swiss Foundation for Art in Conflict Regions. She is also a consultant and trainer in socially engaged art practices, supporting organizations working with communities in difficulty, thus building agile and accountable institutional structures. In 2011, she co-founded Ettijahat – Independent Culture, a Syrian organization that supports independent arts and culture to play a role in social and political transformation. In 2014, Yazaji became executive director of Culture Resource, a regional cultural organization active in the Arab region. She bases her work on a combination of research and cultural practices, focusing on three interconnected levels: creative initiatives in fragile contexts, institutional development, and policy debates.
–
This program is organized by Oberliht Association in partnership with Zurich University of the Arts, in the frame of the research project ”Contemporary Art, Popular Culture and Peacebuilding in Eastern Europe” supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) and is hosted by Zpace and Queer Cafe / media partners: #diez, youth.md, fest.md and platzforma.md / technical support: CSCI din RM