living room - SOHO
a discussion site with the topic

Forming Alliances

"Forming alliances means at least temporarily to parallel differing interests in order to act within a common position.
An alliance is all the more stronger, the more groups of interest are working in the same direction." BUM – office for unusual measures

The Artistic action as political intervention has to include in its analysis the dynamics of power relationship:

• When does artistic action serve as confirmation?
• When is confirmation going to be a crime?
• How can artistic action attack power?
• And what form of artistic action of resistance can we apply?
• Who must stay silent while we take action?
• And who is by acting continously denying others the needed room for manoeuvre?

There are numerous questions all refering to artistic action and refering to the conditions of art production ... If artists in their doings do not open up rooms in which the „excluded“ can be heard, and are not able to point at hitherto neglected perspectives, then they are lacking critical distance to the succesful mainstream. In this respect I consider antagonism within the artistic area not as an arbitrary field where freely floating art producers can settle their conflicts.

If the decision has been made to pursue anti-sexist, anti-racial etc. ART then the existing antagonistic views can be considered merely a matter of strategy and tactic.

That is the point where capabilities and resources of artists can form alliances with other subjects who are politically committed. The rules of the game have to be that if one cannot fight against existing exclusions in our society, one should at least abstain to reproduce them or pass them on.

Ljubomir Bratic

Restaurant ETAP - courtyard. 1160 Vienna, Neulerchenfelder Straße 13

Concept: Ljubomir Bratic (BUM), Daniela Koweindl, Ula Schneider

Pictures by Alexandra Wacker: "Omufuma" (2001)

program

• May 22^nd: opening night [more ...]
• May 24^th: Discussion "LABOR SITUATION: PRECARIOUS TILL STATE OF EMERGENCY" [more ...]
• May 25^th: KANAK TV Cologne [more ...]
• May 26^th: Discussion: "Media as political arena" [more ...]
• May 27^th: "Nachtreise" – movie and talk [more ...]
• May 28^th: Discussion "To gain the public. To whom belongs the public?" [more ...]
• May 29^th: CommULab 2.0 [more ...]
• May 31^st: Videopresentation "I do not want to be a thief" [more ...]
• June 1^st: Discussion "Legalization for all!" [more ...]
• June 2^nd: Discussion "IS THE ARTIST A SOCIAL WORKER?" [more ...]
• June 3^rd: Presentation and talk
  "DIVIDED TERRITORIES – GAINED COMMON GROUND I" [more ...]
• June 4^th: Presentation and talk
  "DIVIDED TERRITORIES – GAINED COMMON GROUND II" [more ...]
• June 5^th: Final night [more ...]

living-room – the friend listens
Lale Rodgarkia-Dara and Barbara Stöhr

archives, records and produces four stimulating hours on „Orange 94,0“ with invited guests.

www.speis.net