From the Refugee Crisis to Colonialism and the Society of Exclusion
joint guided tours of the exhibitions
07.04.2016
Programme:
5:00 pm, Guided tour within the exhibition Fear of the Unknown in Dom umenia/Kunsthalle Bratislava, followed by a walk to tranzit.sk
6:30 pm, Guided tour within the exhibition Ghosts of the Civil Dead in tranzit.sk, followed by an informal discussion with the audience
Venue: Dom umenia/Kunsthalle Bratislava, Námestie SNP 12, Bratislava
tranzit.sk, Beskydská 12, Bratislava
The guided tours will take place in English.
A collaboration project between tranzit.sk and Dom umenia/Kunsthalle Bratislava.
Two exhibitions are being held at the same time in Bratislava which reflect on the current issue of migration and related public discussion.
The exhibition at Dom umenia/Kunsthalle Bratislava, Fear of the Unknown, takes a look at the current so-called immigration crisis primarily through the prism of its perception by the Slovak society. In the opinion of its curator, Lenka Kukurová, our society’s prevailing attitude is influenced by fears and distrust resulting from a lack of awareness of foreign cultures and the situation of the people on the run. The works presented, which are mostly direct reactions to the mood that has emerged in the society, are aiming to be a tool for tying into an open dialogue which “can possibly prevent simplification into abstract ‘good‘ and ‘bad‘ and focuses rather on imaginings and visions.”
The exhibition Ghosts of the Civil Dead at tranzit.sk looks at the present situation mostly from a historical perspective. It focuses not just on migrants, but also on other groups of people, prisoners or slaves, deprived of their civil rights by means of their physical confinement and separation. Through the presented works, which deal with various modern forms of the complex of exclusion, the curator Christian Kravagna points out that institutions and instruments used for this purpose (prisons, camps, fences and walls) can be traced back to the times of colonialism and slavery. At the same time, this comprehensive approach aims to shed light on the economic inequalities and social conflicts underlying migration.
Emphasizing the exhibition as a place of dialogue inspired the curators towards the format of joined guided tour of both exhibitions. Together they will present not only the exhibitions themselves and their individual works, but they will discuss their conceptions, starting-points and related social-political frameworks.
Mulugeta Gebrekidan, Auropa, 2015, mp4 video. Photo: © Mulugeta Gebrekidan.
Kateřina Šedá, 2016, 2016, object/installation. Photo: © Tereza Havlinková.