Curated by Katerina Valdivia Bruch

Curatorial projects by Katerina Valdivia Bruch

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“Mapping Space and Time” at Forum Transregionale Studien and Bardo Projektraum

Inaugural event of the European Network on Latin American Art Studies (ENLAAS), 4-6 June 2025

Mapping Space and Time connects the idea of cartography and its  temporality, and sheds light on how maps – once created to give  orientation and divide territories, as part of colonial and imperialist  agendas – have been changing in time due to different political and  social circumstances, becoming more porous and fragile. One of the aims  of this project is to reflect on current geopolitical shifts, such as  the ones resulting from wars or climate change, which have given rise to  migration movements in different parts of the world. At the same time,  these movements have created new unofficial maps and routes, which are  in constant transformation. We are interested in recalling historical  accounts in which maps were intimately associated with colonial history,  which started in the Americas in the fifteenth century, marking the  beginning of modernity.

The programme included a workshop, an artists' talk, and a two day lecture series.

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“Between Personal Chronicles and Collective Memory” at Instituto Cervantes Berlin

Artists: María Linares, Daniela Lehmann Carrasco, Ana María Milán, Yoel Díaz Vázquez

Opening: 2 June 2021, 19:00 h

Exhibition dates: 2 - 9 June 2021

What do we remember? Are memories a reconstruction of the real? Are they built upon real facts or merely fictional stories? Is it possible to create a historiography based on personal narratives?

The exhibition “Between Personal Chronicles and Collective Memory” acknowledges the ephemerality of memories, examining their veracity as well as their inaccuracies and ambiguities. One of the ideas of the show is to portray different methods, such as collecting material, tracing paths, recording or reproducing oral histories, and address the importance of personal experiences in the (re)construction of an event. It also considers the recollection of multiple memories as valuable material for rewriting a history that has not been recorded by the official narratives. In this way, it brings to light personal stories that have generally remained unnoticed.

“Between Personal Chronicles and Collective Memory” focuses on oral history and the production of knowledge transmitted verbally over generations. It reflects on the circulation of memories and how these are kept alive through orality. Part of the process is the creation of a collective memory, often marked by experiences of resistance, violence, or traumatic situations.

Curated by Katerina Valdivia Bruch

Additional programme: 5 June 2021, 11:00 - 14:00 h

Workshops in the public space with María Linares, Daniela Lehmann Carrasco and Yoel Díaz Vázquez

Registrations via E-mail: contact (at) artatak.net

The exhibition is part of the programme of Rethinking Conceptualism: Avant-Garde, Activism and Politics in Latin American Art (1960s-1980s)

Address: Instituto Cervantes Berlin, Rosenstr. 18, 10178 Berlin

Photos: San Felipe, © Yoel Díaz Vázquez, 2005-2018; Le Glück Quantitativ, Video Still © Daniela Lehmann Carrasco, 2010; Elevación, Video Still © Ana María Millán, 2019; RENOMBREMOS EL 12 DE OCTUBRE, © María Linares, 2019

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Rethinking Conceptualism: Avant-Garde, Activism and Politics in Latin American Art (1960s-1980s)

Between the 1960s and 1980s, several Latin American countries were under military rule. At that time, there was a wave of mass awakening, a surge of social awareness in Latin America calling for more social justice, influenced mainly by the Cuban Revolution (1953-1959), amongst other socialist initiatives. At the same time, there was a need to find new ways to maintain local economies without accepting the monopoly and profit of international enterprises. In this context, socialist ideas spread across the hemisphere, primarily focused against U.S. imperialism.

This political upheaval created a sense of unity among many Latin American countries. And, despite the fact that these states had different levels of foreign intervention and diverse social and cultural developments, they were unified by a social element: the fight for social justice and longing for change was understood as something relevant to the whole subcontinent. The common spirit of correspondence and the internationalism, arising from this sociopolitical context, paved the way for the establishment of a number of networks for solidarity and protest.

Under these conditions, a number of artists across Latin America turned to art as a tool for demonstration, aiming to foster social change. During this period, some artists and critics also looked for ways to describe this artistic production, identifying aspects they considered characteristic of the Latin American subcontinent.

Within this framework, the symposium on conceptual art from Latin America “Rethinking Conceptualism: Avant-Garde, Activism and Politics in Latin American Art (1960s-1980s)” presents an overview of conceptual art practices in Latin America from the 1960s to the 1980s, showing its characteristics and particularities that set it apart from the mainstream conceptualist art canon in Europe and the U.S. One of the aims of this event is to spread awareness of this lesser-known moment in art history in Germany, showing how Latin American artists explored the potential of art, politics and the avant-garde.

Additionally, the project strives to make visible the links between Latin America and Germany, by showing the work of the protagonists of that period and their ties to Germany, and by presenting an exhibition of works by Latin American artists living in Berlin, who depict their view of Latin America from the diaspora.

Katerina Valdivia Bruch

Artistic director and curator  

The project comprises a symposium, an exhibition with workshops, and a regular online programme (since May 2020) with reading sessions and theoretical workshops.

Symposium: 10 - 25 March 2021

Exhibition: 2 - 9 June 2021

In collaboration with Ibero-Amerikanisches Institut, Instituto Cervantes Berlín

Funded by Hauptstadtkulturfonds, Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen

With the support of Embassy of Uruguay in Germany, Embassy of Chile in Germany

Follow us online >> Blog, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram (@rconceptualism)

Podcast “Rethinking Conceptualism” (available via anchor.fm and Spotify)

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“Critical Moves: Latin American Visual Narratives” at Ballhaus Naunynstraße

Screening of videos and panel discussion with the artists

2 June 2016, 8 PM (in English) at Ballhaus Naunynstraße

Critical Moves: Latin American Visual Narratives* presents works by artists from the Latin American diaspora. The project explores a series of fictions and socio-political assumptions about Latin America, as well as seeking to challenge and discuss preconceptions with the audience.

Curated by Katerina Valdivia Bruch, the programme brings together topics such as exile and memory, political hip-hop, discrimination and stereotypes, as well as the day-to-day struggle for survival and precarious working conditions.

Four videos will be screened and discussed with the respective artists at Ballhaus Naunynstraße – Tía Gladys (2014) by Juan-Pedro Fabra Guemberena; Ruido (2005-2010) by Yoel Díaz Vázquez; Video Portraits (2008) by María Linares; and Dodgy (2012) by Elkin Calderón.

Afterwards there will be a party with DJ Peoples. We invite you to come and celebrate with us!

The event will be held in English.

Address:

Ballhaus Naunynstraße Naunynstraße 27, 10997 Berlin

* Critical Moves: Latin American Visual Narratives is an ongoing project by Katerina Valdivia Bruch

Photo: Video stills of Ruido by Yoel Díaz Vázquez

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“Critical Moves: Latin American Visual Narratives presents Elkin Calderón” at IL KINO

Screening of videos and discussion with the artist

Saturday, November 7th 2015 at 7.30 pm (sharp) at IL KINO

Critical Moves: Latin American Visual Narratives presents fictions on Latin America created by artists of Latin American origin, whose work has been developed outside the Latin American subcontinent. Its aim is to offer an introduction on some topics related to Latin America’s sociopolitical concerns and how artists have been addressing these through their practice. The idea behind it is to portray  fictions that have been created around Latin America, put into question these real or fake assumptions, and discuss them with the audience.

This ongoing project, curated by Katerina Valdivia Bruch, starts as a series of video screenings in different venues in Berlin. With these events, we want to open a platform to present video art from Latin America and offer other presentation formats, besides galleries and museums. It is planned to do these encounters on a regular basis and in different locations throughout the city. Each time we will do a presentation that will end with a final discussion with the artists.

The first session will take place at IL KINO. It will be dedicated to the work of Elkin Calderón.

Programme:

Centro Espacial Satelital (2015), 12:04 min.

Created in collaboration with Diego Piñeros García – German Premiere

The Centro de Comunicaciones Espaciales de Colombia (Centre for Spatial Communications of Colombia) was inaugurated on March 25th 1970, less than a year after the arrival of the man on the Moon. It was located at the municipality of Chocontá in Cundinamarca, amidst the rural landscape of the region. The centre was responsible for microwave radio and television transmissions. Commonly known as “Ciudad Satélite de Colombia” (Satelital City of Colombia), the centre hosted a number of tours and public visits during almost two decades. Today, 45 years later, the building has been abandoned and left to its decay.

In the video, the Children’s Symphonic Orchestra of Chocontá – comprised by young musicians  between seven and fifteen years of age, who have never been able to visit the centre during its period of glory – has been invited by the artist to play the piece Arullo (Lullaby) by Colombian composer Victoriano Valencia in this nowadays historical building. With this song, the orchestra literally “brings  the antennes to sleep”, so Calderón, to give an end to this particular period of time. Centro Espacial Satelital pays an homage to these monumental architectonic structures, but also to a bygone era in the history of technology. It evokes a glorious past, depicts an agonic present and leaves it open to an uncertain future.

Dodgy (2012), 23:12 min.

Dodgy is a word that in British English has different meanings: suspicious, badly made, something that does not work properly or is badly presented. Dodgy is a dodgy film. It is a political tragicomedy based on real experiences of the artist as an immigrant worker in London.

Synopsis by Angela María Rodríguez Rojas: “Give me liberty or give me death” is the motto of the Sandwich Man, who represents all those who appear in Calderón’s video. Dodgy relates the experiences of a migrant in London from his own perspective. The journey to Bocas de Ceniza is the end of a migrant’s tale, which began with the wish to emigrate to London in order to learn English and escape from the lethargy of his homeland. Once in London, the artist gets in touch with British culture, while living with two different host families. Later, through the encounter with other migrants, he starts to share similar experiences. With humorous illustrations, the viewer is confronted with the everyday hardships that involve living in a foreign country. Following a failed attempt to earn some money as a sandwich man, the artist finds a job delivering sandwiches. At the same time, he creates  a music band as one of his futile attempts to increase his income. At one point, he ponders the meaning of the British word “dodgy”. Here, the artist lets the narrative and reflective threads meet. The amateurish quality of the images emphasises the blurred boundary between reality and fiction. What the word “dodgy” means is conveyed by the atmosphere of this tale, which leaves open the question about which one of the two predominates, the documentary or the fiction.

About the artist: Elkin Calderón was born in Bogotá, Colombia. He completed his studies in Fine Arts in 2003, with a focus on media arts. In 2007 he finished a M.A. in Creative Documentary at the Universidad Autònoma de Barcelona. His work has been exhibited internationally, among others at the Stenersenmuseet in Oslo (2013), the AC Institute in New York (2011), and in Germany at nGbK Berlin (2007) and the international video art festival Videonale 14 at Kunstmuseum Bonn (2012). Back in Colombia, besides working as an artist, he has been working as a lecturer for several universities, including Universidad de los Andes, Universidad Javeriana and Universidad Jorge Tadeo Lozano. Calderón lives and works in Bogotá and Berlin.

Address: 


IL KINO

Nansenstraße 22,

12047 Berlin

Photo: Centro Espacial Satelital © Elkin Calderón and Diego Piñeros García

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“Zeitgeist” at KUNSTBÜROBERLIN

Curated by Katerina Valdivia Bruch for the exhibition ZEIT UNZEIT

Our human relations have changed through communication technology, as media and communication somehow rule our lives in the cities. While some people research on media ecology – the study on how media and communication might affect our ways of behaving in society and influence social change –, others prefer to follow the news as a mode of being 'informed' and a way to live in the present.

But, what if the newspapers would not say anything? No more bad news about killings, drone attacks, massacres, wars, diseases, natural disasters or inequalities among people. Oh, what a  feeling! However, our current time is filled with mass communication, not only via printed media or public broadcast, but also through online media (blogs, Facebook, Twitter or other social media) – sometimes, they might even happen simultaneously. For better or worse, we are overwhelmed by information all the time.

In an era of excess of information, at least we are now in the position to decide whether we want or not to be part of this information overload. Nowadays, we are able to produce or comment 'our' personal news in our own way. Social media has made us capable of being able to send our news to the world, no matter where we live. In this age, it is a sort of 'revolution' to turn off the computer, television and all media devices, and simply enjoy the moment.

No news is good news? News is actually the title of the ongoing series of over-worked newspapers by the artist Yoel Díaz Vázquez (1973, Cuba), a series that he has been working on since 2011, using newspapers from Mexico, Cuba and Germany. For the exhibition ZEIT UNZEIT, Díaz Vázquez has created a collage of newspapers, that was originally inspired by the work of Argentine artist Jorge Macchi.

Similar to the work of a censor, the artist cuts out actual news' texts, creating with this action new documents that are reminiscent of silhouettes and convey unclear or unfinished messages. A newspaper extract is placed over the other and presented in layers as a sort of grid or window, which we regard from outside in a voyeuristic manner. What is behind it? New messages arise from these paper shavings that are left open to the reader to interpret them.

Zeitgeist portrays in a simple way how information might be adapted, according to the needs to inform (or disinform). The artist's selection of news are reflections on current global and local political agendas and depict a particular moment in time: how contemporaneity is captured by the media. His work allows us to interpret our own news, leaving them uncut in our brain.

Yoel Díaz Vázquez' works have been exhibited internationally, including group exhibitions at the 6th Göteburg Biennial (2011), the 29th São Paulo Biennial (2010) and the 9th Biennial of Video and Media Art at MAC (Museum of Contemporary Art) in Santiago de Chile (2009). In Berlin, he is best known for his participation in exhibitions at nGbK, Ballhaus Naunynstraße and Savvy Contemporary, and for his performances at Radialsystem V. Since 2005, the artist lives and works in Berlin.

ZEIT UNZEIT – Exhibition with works by Markus Keibel, Yoel Díaz Vázquez and Leo Zogmayer

Opening: December 13th, 7 pm at KUNSTBÜROBERLIN Exhibition: December 17, 2014 - February 21, 2015

Address: KUNSTBÜROBERLIN Uhlandstraße 162 10719 Berlin

Photo: Installation view of Zeitgeist by Yoel Díaz Vázquez at KUNSTBÜROBERLIN © Katerina Valdivia Bruch

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“Aproximaciones a una poética del espacio” at FIAC Festival, León, Mexico

Exhibition curated by Katerina Valdivia Bruch for FIAC Festival in León, México

Artists: Yoel Díaz Vázquez, Laura F. Gibellini, Simonetta Fadda, Stine Eriksen, Diego Lama, Daniela Lehmann Carrasco, Sara Nuytemans & Arya Pandjalu, Reynold Reynolds

Exhibition: 30 August - 23 September 2012

“Aproximaciones a una poética del espacio“ (Approaches to a Poetics of Space) brings together video works from nine international artists and how they redefine the perception we have of the space we live in.

For the FIAC Festival, the exhibition will be presented at the library of the gallery Jesús Gallardo, in bus terminals and stations, and at KinoRoom, an artist run space dedicated to film and art.

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“Moving Images from Indonesia” at ZKM - Centre for Art and Media Karlsruhe

Lecture and video programme, curated by Katerina Valdivia Bruch as part of the sessions 'Curating in Asia' of the exhibition The Global Contemporary - Art Worlds After 1989 at ZKM.

With lectures by Katerina Valdivia Bruch, Agung Hujatnika and Krisna Murti.

Lecture programme: December 10th 2011, 2-7 pm as part of the programme Curating in Asia

Video screening: Temporary presentation of video works in the exhibition, from December 9th, 2011 – January 8th, 2012, studio at MNK (1st floor)

Exhibition with works by Wimo Ambala Bayang, Reza 'Asung'  Afisina,   Muhammad Akbar, Nala Atmowiloto, Ariani Darmawan, Yusuf  Ismail, Krisna Murti, Eko Nugroho, Anggun Priambodo, Rani Ravenina,  Prilla Tania, Ari Satria Darma, Wok The Rock and Tintin Wulia.

The use of video for artistic purposes in Indonesia dates back to the early nineties when the pioneers Krisna Murti, Teguh Ostentrik and Heri Dono began to experiment with video in order to expand the scope of their artistic creations. However, the influence of video in Indonesian contemporary art is not only the result of an innovation within the artistic field, it is rather a critical positioning towards entertainment industry and, above all, a critique of television.

After the downfall of Suharto's regime (also known as Era Reformasi, from 1998), thanks to the freedom of opinion, the primarily socially oriented focus shifted to more personal and playful works. This second and younger generation of video makers grew up with both television and internet, music videos and the use of mobile devices. Since then, initiatives related to video art and video activism appeared and experiments with video technology spread across the artistic scene.

More than a historical introduction, the talk of Katerina Valdivia Bruch will give an insight about video activism and artists' initiatives that work researching, documenting and disseminating information about video in Indonesia. Furthermore, the artist Krisna Murti will speak about the specificity of Indonesia's video art scene in the context of South East Asia. Following this, the curator Agung Hujatnika will give a review of the OK. Video - Jakarta International Video Festival, a biannual event that takes place in the capital city since 2003, and will talk about the significance of this event for the art scene in Indonesia.

Address:

ZKM - Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe

ZKM_Media Theater Lorenzstraße 19, 76135 Karlsruhe

Photo: The Bubbles © Krisna Murti, 2003

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“Catching the High Tide. Video Art from Indonesia” at Institute of Contemporary Art Singapore

Curated by Katerina Valdivia Bruch

The use of video for artistic purposes in Indonesia dates back to the early nineties when the pioneers Krisna Murti, Teguh Ostentrik and Heri Dono began to experiment with video in order to expand the scope of their artistic creations. However, the influence of video in Indonesian contemporary art is not only the result of an innovation within the artistic field, it is rather a critical positioning towards entertainment industry and, above all, a critique of television.

In the late nineties and particularly during the fall of Suharto in 1998, video plays an important role as an instrument of denunciation against unacceptable social and political events. These videos without any artistic purpose showed messages that went beyond what was presented and accepted by the government. Videos were used to document the reality that the government was hiding to the people.

After the downfall of Suharto's regime (also known as Era Reformasi) and thanks to the freedom of opinion, the primarily socially oriented focus shifted to more personal and playful works. This second and younger generation of video makers grew up with both television and internet, music videos and the use of mobile devices. Since then, initiatives related to video art and video activism appeared, and experiments with video technology spread across the artistic scene. In fact, the borders between video art and video activism are still blurred, as some artists might be in one or the other field depending on the context in which they present their works.

In this context, it is important to mention the role of internet as a means to access and disseminate information, for instance via YouTube or other online platforms such as Facebook. Many artists use these online platforms to gain international presence. Besides this, anyone can upload videos and spread them on the net, regardless of the professionalism or the quality of the recordings. A peculiar development derived from this is the phenomenon of the so-called celebrities, known in Indonesia as selebriti (celebrity). It just takes a few minutes to upload a video done with a mobile phone or a simple webcam to be noticed in the whole archipelago and beyond. In fact, video is part of the society of the spectacle, entertainment and popular culture. Its definition as 'video art' is sometimes quite ambiguous, as videos can be done using previously found footage taken from the internet.

The exhibition addresses topics such as geopolitical identity, ethnic minorities, dynamics of urbanisation, popular culture, appropriation, media criticism, environmental and global issues, but also experimentations with digital media techniques. Catching the High Tide features works by Wimo Ambala Bayang, Reza 'Asung' Afisina, Muhammad Akbar, Nala Atmowiloto, Ariani Darmawan, Yusuf Ismail, Krisna Murti, Anggun Priambodo, Ari Satria Darma, Prilla Tania, Wok The Rock and Tintin Wulia. It is a selection that covers the last ten years of creative production in the field of video art in Indonesia.

Opening: September 28th , 2011

Exhibition: September 28th  until October 16th , 2011

Address:

Institute of Contemporary Arts Singapore LASALLE College of the Arts Brother Joseph McNally Gallery 1 McNally Street Singapore 187940

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“Ardan Özmenoğlu: I am not a Biennial Artist” at Ekav Art Gallery

Curated by Katerina Valdivia Bruch

Inspired by a rejection letter from the organisers of this year's Istanbul Biennial, the artist Ardan Özmenoğlu created works for her latest solo exhibition I am not a Biennial Artist. The exhibition depicts a critical positioning towards the biennialisation of the art world. It is also a statement in itself, as her work will be presented a few days before the opening of the biennial.

In this exhibition, the artist focuses on the art interested audience that gives attention to biennials and travels around the world to attend these art blockbusters. Even smaller cities cannot resist the temptation of having a biennial. However, who cares about the city where the biennial is presented? Common people don't even know that this event actually exists. But, for a government, a biennial is a motor of cultural tourism that brings money to the city in which it takes place. A similar idea is behind becoming European Capital of Culture, as it was Istanbul last year.

But, what happens to those artists who don't participate in biennials? Do they have a chance to survive in a system of arts entertainment, in which well-known artist names - and not their works - become its main attractions? Do young artists have the chance to get public attention without being part of this organised network?

The exhibition I am not a Biennial Artist concentrates on Turkish popular culture and mass-mediated iconic images. For instance, the artist exaggerates typical cultural icons that have been spread by Turkish travel agencies and cultural ministries abroad. In her characteristic post-it pop art collages, Ardan shows how Turkey is seen in advertising: a striking country, between modern and contemporary culture, but still conscious about its traditions. According to this, I am not a Biennial Artist displays what people might see when they come to visit the city that hosts the biennial.

In some way, we can imagine the exhibition as a large bazaar, in which we might find doner kebab sellers and expect Seda Sayan (Turkish Oprah Winfrey) telling us stories about her country with oiled wrestlers and a group of man dancing around. All these characters, including the evil eye and the popular mini buses, are part of a colourful exhibition, that plays with kitsch and the dynamics of mass communication. The exhibition presents both urban and traditional culture in a country that is in constant change, but claims about its ancestry. It is more a question about what Turkey really is and, more than that, how Turkish people present themselves to the world.

Opening: September 12th, 2011 September 12th - October 8th , 2011

Address :

Ekav Art Gallery Askerocağı Street No.15 Süzer Plaza, Süzer Art Center, Ritz Carlton Hotel, Gümüşsuyu, Istanbul Turkey

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“Everything’s OK” by Tintin Wulia as part of “Subjective Projections” at Bielefelder Kunstverein

Invited by Katerina Valdivia Bruch (Independent curator, Berlin)

Tintin Wulia (born 1972 in Denpasar, Bali) is an artist, whose work is a reflection about borders in a wider sense. She is interested in the different qualities of borders, such as spatial-geographical borders or cultural-ethnical borders, and its connection to mechanisms of power. Accordingly, she also explores the subject of migration in geopolitical terms. The artist works with objects, such as maps, passports or official family documents. She creates interactive installations that comprise a variety of media, such as videos, murals, texts, objects and performances, and encourages the audience to take active part in them.

In the video “Everything's OK” (2003), the city of Jakarta is presented as a result of uncontrolled growth due to the construction of buildings in an indiscriminated way, without taking into account the problems that this expansion might generate. The work has been created for the OK.Video-Jakarta International Video Festival in 2003.

Using simple hand – made elements, the artist visually recreates the process and the effects of urbanisation that happen not only in Jakarta, but also in a number of cities around the world. Environmental, but also visual and noise pollution are some of the consequences of unregulated migration movements to the cities.

The video is a reflection on a reality in countries with a strong centralised system, in which big cities offer reduced spaces for nature and for living. The ideal of a life in harmony with nature becomes a nightmare of mushrooming cities, where quality of life is seen in terms of money. The title is ironic: a saturated environment full of cars, scyscrapers, large scale advertising, noise and a polluted grey sky is overlapped by new layers of much more of the same, and the process starts all over again.

Tintin's work has been presented in a number of international exhibitions, such as the Istanbul Biennial, Yokohama Triennial, Jakarta Biennale, and currently the 4th Moscow Biennial. Her work has been exhibited at the Museo de Arte Contemporánea de Vigo (MARCO) in Vigo, Espace Culturel Louis Vuitton in Paris, Institute of Contemporary Art London, FACT at Liverpool Biennial, amongst others. She has participated in a number of festivals, such as the Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival or the International Film Festival Rotterdam. Currently, Tintin is resident artist of The Global Contemporary – Art Worlds After 1989 at ZKM in Karlsruhe.

Text: Katerina Valdivia Bruch

Opening: September 9th, 2011

Exhibition: September 9th -October 13th, 2011

Bielefelder Kunstverein im Waldhof Welle 61 33602, Bielefeld

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“Very Contemporary! A solo exhibition by Ardan Özmenoğlu” at Macka Modern Gallery, Istanbul

Curated by Katerina Valdivia Bruch

If I have to talk about the work of Ardan Özmenoğlu, I will need to go back in time and check what has been happening in the formation of Turkey since the Otoman Empire until today. A lot has been changed during that time towards the development of the Turkish nation and I am not able to summarize it in this paper. What I am able to do is to connect Ardan´s work in relation to Turkish contemporary art.

For this exhibition, the artist recreates in silk screen prints historical images of sultans, undercovered behind x-rays. We might not be able to see the sultan, but we know that the image depicts one. Commonly used in medicine for research and diagnostics, the x-rays are literally 'scanning' the sultans to see what is behind in the interior of their bodies. X-rays make people look the same, thus we all become anonymous. What happens today if we put a big head-dress on our head? Do we also become a sultan? This question remains open as dresses do not necessarily make people play a major role in society.

Another silk screen print shows a portait of the first president of Turkey and popular icon Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, with an enlarged background inscription Don´t forget me, formerly Atatürk´s hand-written phrase. Best known for his efforts towards the modernisation of Turkey as a democratic and secular nation-state, Atatürk was aware of the importance of literacy and education for all Turkish inhabitants. During his administration, he introduced the new Turkish Latin based alphabet that replaced the Arabic script. He was influenced by Dewey´s teaching methods and gave more space to women in public matters, such as politics and education. As a result of secularisation, he abolished the use of the veil. He was also influencing the arts scene by creating in 1927 the first state art and sculpture museum, against Muslim tradition of avioding idolatry, but corresponding to his idea of a secular state. Atatürk considered that art production, either traditional or modern creations, belong to the Turkish heritage and therefore had to be shown. Ardan reminds us of his achievements that are related to her own body of work. The artist studied at the Bilkent University in Ankara, got an English and Turkish diploma, that she is selling to the public as a result of her own survey about the state of contemporary art in Turkey. She does not need a diploma to become an artist, as the artist resides inside her. She prefers to work with prints and installations, rather than doing paintings. 

Ardan moves out from the institutional work as a graduated artist, does street walks and observes a space full of meanings. She takes phrases written on walls, such as God knows, or phrases on crinkled papers posted on doors with adhesive foil that tell us to wait, I went to Friday pray, I will come back soon, or a simple phrase such as Do not put trash here. These phrases remind us of a social behaviour, of a living city with a religion and certain civic manners, that the artist recovers and writes on neon light tubes to express the importance of common life and of personal beliefs.

But, what is contemporary here? The fact that painting and sculpture are still playing a major role in contemporary art in Turkey makes Ardan think about institutions and how art is being taught. The works Oil on canvas and Ink on paper are the clues to understand this exhibition. These two works are making a parody of the tradition of teaching art techniques in university: the artist literally exhibits oil on canvas and ink on paper, and that conceptualisation of the method is what we might call Very Contemporary!

Opening: April 7th, 2011 at 7 pm

Exhibition: April 8th – May 4th, 2011

The exhibition has been produced and conceptualised in Berlin, for which the artist worked at the silk screen print studio at Bethanien, in close collaboration with the curator Katerina Valdivia Bruch.

Address:

Macka Modern Art Gallery

Macka Caddesi 24/1

Tesvikiye, Istanbul 
Turkey

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“MEDIATOPIA, Krisna Murti's works 1993-2010” at Semarang Contemporary Art Gallery, Indonesia

Curated by Rifky Effendy Catalogue text by Katerina Valdivia Bruch

Officiated by Garin Nugroho

Vernissage: Friday, December 3rd, 2010 at 7 pm   Artist Talk: December 5th, 2010, 7 - 9 pm Exhibition: December 3rd - 23rd, 2010 Address: Semarang Contemporary Art Gallery Jl. Taman Srigunting no 5-6 Semarang 50174 Indonesia

[artatak-projects]

“Recorded Waves. Moving Images from Indonesia” at Para/Site Art Space, Hong Kong

Curated by Katerina Valdivia Bruch Artists: Muhammad Akbar, Tiong Ang, Nala Atmowiloto, Wimo Ambala Bayang, Ari Satria Darma, Henry Foundation, Krisna Murti, Eko Nugroho, Anggun Priambodo, Wok The Rock, Prilla Tania and Tintin Wulia. Para/Site Art Space, Hong Kong Opening: November 19th, 2010, 7 pm Exhibition: November 20th, 2010 - January 16th, 2011 The exhibition Recorded Waves. Moving Images from Indonesia is presented simultaneously with Third Realm, a solo exhibition of Indonesian artist Kuswidananto aka Jompet, curated by Para/Site´s Executive Director and Curator Alvaro Rodríguez Fominaya. Curatorial text The use of video for artistic purposes in Indonesia dates back to the late 1980s, when pioneers Krisna Murti, Teguh Ostentrik and Heri Dono, began to experiment with video in order to expand the scope of their artistic creations. However, the influence of video in contemporary art in Indonesia is not the result of innovations within the artistic field; rather it is a critical positioning towards the entertainment industry and, above all, a critique of television. During Suharto’s dictatorship from 1967 to 1998, the government television channel Televisi Republik Indonesia was manipulated and controlled for propaganda purposes. However, with the growing market in Indonesia in the late 80s and early 90s, the entertainment industry grew and new television channels appeared. Video rental stores and video readers for private use also began to proliferate. Thus, home cinema emerged as an alternative to the unilateral view presented by the government. In the late 1990s, and particularly during the fall of Suharto in 1998, video played an important role as an instrument of denunciation against unacceptable social and political events. These videos showed messages that went beyond what was presented and accepted by the government, and documented the reality that the government was hiding from its people. In Indonesia, both in politics and in art, video has been used as a means of documentation and as a means of creating images that respond to specific social and political contexts. Since 2003, the artists’ initiative ruangrupa has been organising the OK. Video – Jakarta International Video Festival, which takes place biannually in Jakarta. One of the aims of the festival is to raise awareness of video in a creative sense and to introduce the medium to mainstream audiences. The festival is thematic and, since its first edition, internationally conceived. It also gives particular emphasis to the content rather than technical experimentations of the medium, echoing the origins of Indonesian video art. The social and political context of the work is important for the selection of videos featured in the festival. The exhibition Recorded Waves. Moving Images from Indonesia includes highlights of this festival, as well as ground-breaking positions of video art from Indonesia with works by pioneer video artist Krisna Murti, as well as emerging and established artists, such as Tiong Ang, Muhammad Akbar, Henry Foundation, Nala Atmowiloto, Wimo Ambala Bayang, Ari Satria Darma, Eko Nugroho, Anggun Priambodo, Prilla Tania, Wok The Rock and Tintin Wulia. About Para/ Site Para/Site Art Space is a contemporary art space located in Hong Kong Island and founded in 1996. It hosts an ambitious programme of exhibitions, screenings, talks and events that bring into Hong Kong some of the leading practitioners in the international arena, encourage the visibility of artists from Hong Kong, and facilitate East-West dialogue. Para/Site has a satellite venue located at Hanart TZ Gallery which showcases a younger generation of artists. Para/Site Art Space has organized the official representation of Hong Kong in Venice Biennial in years 2003 and 2009, has also participated in Gwangju Biennial, Guangzhou Triennial, among others. Para/Site Art Space exhibitions and programmes have traveled to Germany, Thailand, Korea, Taiwan, United Kingdom, Singapore and Australia. Para/Site Art Space is run by a Executive Director/Curator, a Manager, a Programme Coordinator and an Education and Development Officer and governed by a board of directors. Para/Site is supported by the Hong Kong Arts Development Council as well as vital contributions from patrons and Founding Friends of Para/Site. Address: Para/Site Art Space G/F 4 Po Yan Street Sheung Wan Hong Kong Curator’s research supported by Goethe Institute (grant for curators). Special thanks to ruangrupa for their collaboration.

[artatak-projects]

“OK.Video - Jakarta International Video Festival. A Retrospective” at art & culture international

Curated by Katerina Valdivia Bruch Vernissage: Thursday, September 2nd 2010, 7 pm Muhammad Akbar · Wimo Ambala Bayang · Tiong Ang · Reza 'Asung' Afisina · Nala Atmowiloto · Henry Foundation · Andry Mochammed · Krisna Murti · Ari Satria Darma · Anggun Priambodo · Prilla Tania · Tintin Wulia Exhibition: September 3rd – October 16th, 2010 Programme: Talk about artists´ initiatives and the video art scene in Indonesia. A talk by Hafiz and Katerina Valdivia Bruch September 7th, 2010, 7.30 pm Address: art and culture international e.V. c/o KunstBüroBerlin Uhlandstraße 162 D-10719 Berlin www.art-cult.org Opening hours: Wed-Fr. 12-7 pm, Sat. 1-4 pm, and by appointment This project is supported by Goethe Institute (grant for curators), IfA (Institute for Foreign Cultural Relations), Kunst Magazin Berlin, Indonesian Embassy in Berlin and KunstBüroBerlin. Organised by art and culture international e.V. Parallel programme at the Indonesian Embassy in Berlin and Kunstmuseum Bonn: Presentation of the project 9808, video works related to ten years of Reformasi. A talk by Hafiz, Artistic Director of OK. Video - Jakarta International Video Festival  and Director of Forum Lenteng, Jakarta Friday, September 3rd, 2010, 6 pm Address: Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia Education Section Lehrter Str. 16/17 D-10557 Berlin Click here for more information about the project 9808 Elektronenströme, Videonale at Kunstmuseum Bonn Artists´s initiatives and the video art scene in Indonesia A talk by Katerina Valdivia Bruch Wednesday, September 8th, 7 pm Address: Videonale e.V. im Kunstmuseum Bonn Friedrich-Ebert-Allee 2 53113 Bonn www.videonale.org The OK. Video - Jakarta International Video Festival and the video art scene in Indonesia A talk by Katerina Valdivia Bruch Sunday, September 26th, 11 am Address: Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia Lehrter Str. 16-17 10557 Berlin More information: ruangrupa OK. Video - Jakarta International Video Festival Download invitation             Exhibition text EN Exhibition text DE

[artatak-projects]

“Lihat! Video Art from Indonesia” at Gallery Jesús Gallardo, Instituto Cultural de León

Curated by Katerina Valdivia Bruch Exhibition in Guanajuato and León, Mexico The exhibition Lihat! (which means look, see, watch in Indonesian language) highlights experimental, but also socio-politically oriented video works. It is an overview of some of the latest video art productions in Indonesia since 2001 until the present. The exhibition is about current established and emerging Indonesian video artists and comprises works that have been selected in the cities of Jakarta, Yogyakarta and Bandung. One part of the exhibition is dedicated to the OK. Video Festival, a biannual event dedicated to video, held in Jakarta since 2003. Artists presented in León at gallery Jesús Gallardo: Nindityo Adipurnomo Wimo Ambala Bayang Reza 'Asung' Afisina Muhammad Akbar Nala Atmowiloto Henry Foundation Andry Mochammad Krisna Murti Eko Nugroho Anggun Priambodo Prilla Tania Tromarama Ari Satria Darma Wok The Rock Tintin Wulia In Guanajuato, the exhibition will take place at Plaza de las Artes. This part of the exhibition includes a selection from OK. Video Festival. The selection of videos has been done in collaboration with Ade Darmawan and Hafiz, from ruangrupa. Screening: April 23rd, 2010, 8 pm Plaza de las Artes, Guanajuato Exhibition: Opening: April 29th, 2010, 8 pm Exhibition until July 11th, 2010 Gallery Jesús Gallardo, León Address: Galería Jesús Gallardo Videosala y sala blanco y negro Pedro Moreno 202, esquina Hermanos Aldama Centro Histórico, León. Gto. C.P. 37000 México Parallel programme: April 22nd, 5 pm Conference on artists´s initiatives and the video art scene in Indonesia by Katerina Valdivia Bruch in the context of the First Art and Culture Symposium, organised by the University of Guanajuato. The talk will give a short introduction on the origins of video art in Indonesia, focussing on the first installation works, which included video. Later on, it will give an overview on some artists´s initiatives dedicated to video and focus on the OK. Video Festival. Address: Universidad de Guanajuato Lascurain de Retana 5 Centro C.P. 36000 Guanajuato, Gto. México With kind support from Goethe Institute´s curators programme and ruangrupa Exhibition text (Spanish version)

[artatak-projects]

“Fragments of Feminity” as part of BAC! Festival 
Barcelona at CCCB, Barcelona

Curated by Katerina Valdivia Bruch The exhibition Fragments of Feminity reconsiders some topics of the feminine imagery in the work of three artists: Branka Cvjeticanin (Croatia), Ardan Özmenoglu (Turkey) and Emmanuelle Rapin (France). Branka Cvjeticanin explores Balkan war with her video War Fields. The work is going back to three generations of women in her family history. Stories about women, but also about war phenomena and how they are transferred from one generation to the other. Emmanuelle Rapin uses embroidery to depict unsatisfactory male models and to present schizofrenic views towards the feminine body. Embroidery is for her a means to connect her work with her personal history and her childhood memories. She considers it a sort of combination between feminine and male traits. Sewing itself is a gesture; it is not merely a feminine act, rather a way to do graphic work. For instance, in the embroidery on paper Lieu du Crime (Tatort) or in the drawings with pointillist perforations, Grotesque Code 9026 and Grotesque Bicéphale, the artist incorporates violent images such as guns, knives and scissors,  which are part of her childhood memories, having a father who is a hunter and a veterinarian. In Ardan Özmenoglu´s installation A Dream of a Man, a number of ceramic women´s breasts are placed on walls and on the floor to accentuate, but also exaggerate male fixations about the feminine body. The artist deliberately shows breasts in different sizes and forms to overdraw the attention of women as erotic power, as possible nurturing mothers, but also as mother earth, creating a topographic image of a breast landscape.

Fragments of Feminity: Branka Cvjeticanin, Emmanuelle Rapin and Ardan Özmenoglu

BAC! Festival 
Barcelona at CCCB (Centre for Contemporary Art in Barcelona), Dec. 1st, 2009 - Jan. 3rd, 2010

Address: CCCB c/ Montalegre 5 08001 Barcelona Spain