Berlin Documentary Forum 2
31 May–3 June 2012
Haus der Kulturen der Welt
John-Foster-Dulles-Allee 10
10557 Berlin
berlin.doc.forum [at] hkw.de
www.berlindocumentaryforum.de
www.hkw.de
Berlin Documentary Forum is a biennial festival dedicated to documentary practices across a variety of disciplines. The project seeks to explore the documentary as an art form capable of constructing and reshaping realities and histories. Encompassing cultural studies, philosophy, and diverse artistic practices, the festival accentuates the critical potential of documentary work and distinguishes it from today’s excessive production and distribution of visual documents.
Berlin Documentary Forum 2 will investigate the ability of images to produce truth and authenticity, to provoke controversy, and to implement change. The second edition of the festival reinforces the documentary as a dialectical form that negotiates between the real, its representation by an author, and an observing, critical audience. In a program of live performances, screenings, and presentations, international artists and theoreticians will explore the unstable, uncontrolled, and unpredictable character of the documentary “event.”
What can an image reveal beyond what is visible within the frame? The group exhibition A Blind Spot looks at the documentary in contemporary art and photography. The works included in this show subvert conventional visual regimes by addressing the openness and indeterminacy of the image. A Blind Spot runs from 31 May to 1 July 2012.
The online magazine Issue Zero will probe new ways of producing, presenting, and viewing documentary works on the Internet. Issue Zero will present artistic projects as well as portrayals of the festival’s events.
Participants include: Michael Baers, Eric Baudelaire, David Goldblatt, Hassan Khan, Joachim Koester, Vincent Meessen, Christine Meisner, Rabih Mroué, Olaf Nicolai, Melik Ohanian, Volker Pantenburg, Christopher Pinney, Ben Russell, Eszter Salamon, Efrat Shvily, Eyal Sivan, Hito Steyerl, Ito Takashi, Matsumoto Toshio, Klaus Wildenhahn, Christopher Williams
Berlin Documentary Forum 2 is a project by Hila Peleg in collaboration with Catherine David, Antje Ehmann, Harun Farocki, Sylvère Lotringer, Florian Schneider, and Eduardo Thomas.
The Berlin Documentary Forum is organized by Haus der Kulturen der Welt. “A Blind Spot” is funded by the Capital Cultural Fund. Haus der Kulturen der Welt is supported by the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media on the basis of a resolution adopted by the German Parliament as well as by the Federal Foreign Office.
Press
Anne Maier
T +49.30.39787.153
anne.maier@hkw.de
