ART AND/AS/FOR SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT

Date September 17th, 2013 Venue Haliç Congress Center

Art, artists and art institutions have had a long and complex dynamic with the social and political realms. In contemporary art, this relationship is even more pronounced given its premise of critiquing and dismantling power and highlighting social and political norms and realities. More than ever, artists are crossing over into other territories of practice including anthropology, sociology, science, marketing and education to name a few. The processes and products of socially engaged and political art are also increasingly blurring the boundaries between documentation, testimony, advocacy and activism. How do these realities play out during times of deep social upheaval? What function does art have, if it has one at all, in times of crisis? How do politically charged times impact artists, critics, art educators, patrons, collectors and cultural institutions?

This seminar, composed of two distinct panels, brings together speakers that represent a broad spectrum of contemporary art expertise and perspectives. The panelists will provide a rich set of examples from their own contexts, which include Lebanon, Palestine, Egypt, Turkey and the U.S.

PANEL 1:
Rolling With The Punches: Art In Times Of Crisis

Speakers: Marwa Arsanios, Heba Farid, Dr. Tina Sherwell
Moderator: Moukhtar Kocache

This panel will host speakers, who have been involved in critical nonprofit art institutions in the region. What strategies have they developed over the years to keep their organizations relevant, responsive and flexible in times of turmoil and unpredictability? What patterns do they ascribe in terms of artistic production to their particular national and regional contexts? How have they managed to engage with their audiences and the public during times of crisis? How have their missions and goals been stretched to accommodate shifting political realities? How have they juggled artistic projects and creation with citizen engagement and activism? What lessons can they offer others facing with similar pressures and circumstances?

PANEL 2:
Balancing Acts: Critical Times, Critical Work, Critical Institutions

Speakers: Saruhan Doğan, Jack Persekian, Nato Thompson
Moderator: Moukhtar Kocache

Increasingly, and especially during times of deep socio-political intensity, artists and their work tend to be more polemical and controversial. As engaged citizens and social critics, their political views and perspectives become are more intertwined with their work and personal activism as engaged citizens and social critics. For many artists, artistic production is moving away from object-making or the creation of a final product, towards work that is more participatory, performativity, process oriented and takes place in the public realm - with the goal of altering people’s minds and inducing some sort of social change. How are art institutions enabling this kind of work? What conditions need to be created for such work to be effectively supported? What challenges and opportunities does socially and politically engaged artistic practice bring to cultural institutions? What role is there for funders, and what dynamic is created by funders, individual 43 patrons and collectors in order to for supporting such work within established institutional frameworks? How institutions to manage the various expectations of their partners are while remaining critical and responsive to the needs and aspirations of their communities?