Europe and Others
Saturday, 28th February 2004
Fondazione Antonio Ratti
Lungo Lario Trento 9, Como
Schedule: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Information: Teresa Saibene
FAR phone +39 031233211
fax +39 031233249
fondazioneratti@libero.it
INTERNATIONAL FORUM ON VISUAL ARTS
Europe and “Others”
On 28th February 2004 the Fondazione Antonio Ratti will hold an International Forum on Visual Arts at its headquarters in Como. The forum will feature presentations by international scholars and a public debate on a specific theme: the identity and role of contemporary artists in relations between the European world and other cultures.
This event, organized by Lorand Hegyi, will feature the following speakers: Carlos Basualdo (poet, art critic and curator), Yuko Hasegawa (Chief Curator, 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, Japan), Lorand Hegyi (Director, Musee d’Art Moderne St. Etienne, France), Jean-Hubert Martin (Director, Kunst Museum Palast, Dusseldorf, Germany), and, as moderator of the debate, Anna Detherige (art critic).
The aim of the forum, entitled “L’Europa e gli ‘Altri’” (Europe and “Others”), is to explore the profound contemporary reformulation of European cultural identity: the historical, political, and ideological conditions at the basis of processes that contribute to definition of an image of oneself and others that is increasingly dominated by prejudices and stereotypes; the standardization of ways of life and “other” cultural experiences that have a complex relationship with the West. The goal is to contrast the representation of the world as irremediably westernized with the proliferation of differences, which render concepts of “the West” and “Europe” less and less definable and subject to continuous challenge.
Starting from the particular perspective of artistic innovation, the way in which real differences act within specific cultural systems will be analyzed: the ways in which art relates to religion and the representation of time and history; its capacity to deal with political topics connected with the redefinition of boundaries and practices of exclusion within the European space. The individual speakers will address this complex of issues by presenting a series of experiences and approaches from diverse geographical and cultural contexts that are linked by constant dialogue (Asia, Latin America, Africa).
The principal aim of this forum is to focus on the special status assumed by artists in their own communities, their specific commitment to developing political and social awareness, and their ability to foreshadow scenarios that are alternative to a present tendency that interprets cultures as subjects in conflict and Europe as a closed space.
INTERNATIONAL FORUM ON VISUAL ARTS. Europe and “Others”
Organizer: Lorand Hegyi
Date: 28th February 2004
