ARS 06 – Sense of the Real

ARS 06 - Sense of the Real
Jan 21 – Aug 27, 2006

Kiasma, Museum of Contemporary Art
Mannerheiminaukio 2
00100 Helsinki
Finland
tel. 358 (0)9 1733 6501
www.kiasma.fi

ARS 06 SENSE OF THE REAL

40 artists and collectives from 24 countries participate in the international ARS 06 exhibition in Kiasma, Museum of Contemporary Art in Helsinki. Over 100 works of contemporary art fill the whole Kiasma building for seven months. ARS 06 – Sense of the Real is open 21 January -27 August.

Art seeks diverse ways of understanding reality. Kiasmas international exhibition ARS 06 focuses on meaning of art as part of the reality of our time. The subtitle of the exhibition is Sense of the Real. The human experiences like joy and sorrow are never far apart, but dependent on the perspective and on who experiences them. One persons Paradise may be anothers Hell. Sometimes the first impression may be misleading. The works in ARS 06 are approachable and yet very complex. They also open up vistas to horrifying and hurtful things.

Since the first ARS exhibition in 1961, all ARS exhibitions have aroused discussion and many of the works exhibited have continued to live on in the minds of the spectators. Each ARS exhibition has formed a picture of its time and offered unforgettable experiences. The 7th international ARS exhibition is an important review of contemporary art in the 21st century. ARS 06 Sense of the Real is curated by Museum Director Tuula Karjalainen and curator Jari-Pekka Vanhala.

ARS 06 is open: Wed-Sat 10am-8.30 pm, Tue and Sun 10am-5pm, Mon closed
Admission: freee under 18-year

Sense of the Real ARS 06 Seminar
3-4 March 2006 in Kiasma Theatre

An international seminar digs into ARS 06 exhibition by exploring what is the significance of art as a part of todays reality. Registration by 28 February: seminaari.ars06@kiasma.fi. Free admission.
Preliminary Programme

March 3
Theme : ART AS HUMAN ACTIVITY
10 am Tuula Karjalainen, Ph.D., Director of Kiasma, ARS 06 Curator
Opening speech introducing the themes of ARS 06. Marja Sakari, Ph.D., Senior Curator at Kiasma
Introduction to the speakers of the seminar. (Chair)
10.30 Riikka Stewen, Ph.D., Professor of Art History and Theory, Academy of Fine Arts, Helsinki “Intertwinings: The Return of the Aesthetic?”
11 Lars Bang Larsen, Art historian, Denmark Contemporary Art and Historical Space: Between Lack, Loss and Exhilarated Stability.
11.30 Mika Ojakangas, D.Soc.Sc., Docent in Political Science, University of Helsinki The Conscience of Art.
13.30 Lolita Jablonskiene, Chief Curator, National Gallery of Art, Vilnius, Lithuania
14 Denise Robinson, Critic, Curator, UK
14.30 Petah Coyne, ARS 06 artist, USA
15.30 Roi Vaara, ARS 06 artist, Finland “White Man, Golden Handshakes”
16 Mariele Neudecker, ARS 06 artist, Germany / UK They have only gone for a long walk. ‘Kindertotenlieder’ and other works by Mariele Neudecker.
16.30 Tellervo Kalleinen & Oliver Kochta-Kalleinen, ARS 06 artists, Finland / Germany Complaints & other human shortcomings – presentation of the works “Complaints Choir” and “The Making of Utopia”.
17 17.30 Closing session with open discussion.
Reception
March 4
Theme : GOOD AND EVIL
10 am Thierry de Duve, Art historian, Belgium Art in the face of radical evil.
10.30 Ari Hirvonen, LL.D., Adjunct Professor of Philosophy of Law, University of Helsinki “See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil”. The Possibility/Impossibility of Representation of Evil.
11 Jordan Crandall, Media artist and theorist, Assistant Professor of Visual Arts at University of California in San Diego, USA The State of Readiness: Embodiment, Motivating Power, and the Politics of Affect
11.30 Thomas Nordanstad, ARS 06 artist, Sweden Lost Island The Story of Dotokou, documentary film
13.30 Willie Doherty, ARS 06 artist, Northern Ireland “Real and Present Threat, Again!”
14 Lars Nilsson, ARS 06 artist, Sweden “Politics and the Artists Responsibility with myself as a case-study”
14.30 Jota Castro, ARS 06 artist, Peru / Belgium “Sometimes I feel like a piece of shit, sometimes I feel like God”.
15 16 Closing session with open discussion
In collaboration with FRAME and Nordic Culture Fund.

Kiasma
Museum of Contemporary Art
Mannerheiminaukio 2
00100 Helsinki
Finland

tel. 358 (0)9 1733 6501

/www.kiasma.fi