Hordaland Kunstsenter

Starting from the concept of visions – that of being visionary, foresighted, future thinking – B-open wishes to discuss to what degree contemporary artists relate to an imagined future.

Mining the past and archives are thematic and methodical ghosts in much of contemporary art production. Looking back is motivated and shaped by many different agendas. It can be justified by the artist wanting to use the past’s visions to evaluate the present, or it can originate in a critique of the archives and institutions shaping history writing. Then again, the artist’s glance at the future could be an attempt to intervene in coming history writing, creating what can be seen as a visionary project. 

The tendency to look back has been criticised for cultivating nostalgia and sentimentality, yet has also been defended as important contributions to developing a critical consciousness of history. The idea that it is no longer possible to create anything new comes from a broad political and philosophical critique of Modernity and its faith in progress and utopias. In relation to this discussion it is important to focus on art and the artist role, since our understanding of both is closely linked to Modernity.

Modernity tied the artist to the idea of the visionary: Its image of an artist is that of the one who can see further than the non-artist. From psychoanalysis, which also is an invention of Modernity, the idea emerged that the artist through her own sub-consciousness could show and interpret the collective sub-consciousness, thus part take in public as a truth witness. It is possible to argue that the ideas of the artist as a visionary and a truth witness was fractioned by Post-Modernism, when the artist started to act as a cultural DJ, autonomy yielded to populism and high- and low culture was supposedly dissolved.

We want to discuss: Is it in our time, in this historical moment, possible to make or to think something new and to escape the refrain that everything is already done?

11:00-11:15 Velcome
11:15-11:30 Introduction
11:30-12:30 Jacqueline Hoàng Nguyễn
12:30-13:30 Jakob H. Jakobsen
13:30-14:30 Lunch
14:30-15:30 Per-Oscar Leu
15:30-16:30 Charles Esche
16:30-17:00 Discussion

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The seminar is free and open to all, coffee/tea is included.

Visions: Upheavals and Unpractical Ideas is curated byToril Johannessen and Anne Szefer Karlsen. Seminar producer: Azar Alsharif. Thanks Bergen National Academy of the Arts, Creative Curating.

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B-open is an organisation which initiates and coordinates the bi-annual event of open artist studios in Bergen and Hordaland, and annually organises a seminar, thus creating a forum for a diverse discussion on contemporary art. B-open organises monthly Study Circles in collaboration with artists in Bergen.

B-open wants to take part in the debate and reflection surrounding the artist as contributor to society at large, and aim to organise challenging, interesting and memorable events for both art professionals and the general public.

B-open was initiated and is run jointly by the two artist unions Bildende Kunstneres Forening Hordaland (BKFH) and Norske Kunsthåndverkere Vest-Norge (NKVN), in collaboration with Hordaland Art Centre (HKS).