“What is missing in art” sounds from a megaphone. A couple of meters ahead, a man empties a bottle of milk in the Dommel River, next to the Van Abbemuseum. He walks up to the man with the megaphone and receives a piece of paper. The paper goes into the bottle, the bottle is closed and the next question already resounds over the water of the Dommel.
“The lights dim slowly, but I am also very slow”, says German Roger Buergel before he starts his keynote lecture Beyond Identity and Difference. Is the artistic director of the famous contemporary art event Documenta XII (2007) referring to the fact that he was delayed and the timeschedule had to be changed? Or does he refer to the tempo in which he gives his lecture? He speaks slowly and gentle, and that’s a good thing.
Italian-born multimedia artist Mario Rizzi is slightly hidden behind his laptop when he introduces himself to the audience. The 35 participants of the Be[com]ing Dutch Eindhoven Caucus have just had lunch and a short break to clear their minds from brain teasing discussion points brought in by the morning panel. They listen silently to the man that has acquired international recognition by collecting other peoples life stories.
Sober room, black chairs and a white table. The speakers blend right in with their semi-formal outfits. Their stories and interactions are more colorful.
Charles Esche recaptures what was discussed in yesterday’s panel, how it went and what will be (one of the) subjects today. The three speakers today: Grant Watson, Dmitry Vilensky and Shepherd Steiner talk about the inheritance of communism. Or so it started out.
What is Be[com]ing Dutch? What does becoming Dutch mean in this Age of Global Democracy? The first guest-speakers of the Caucus, professors Paul Scheffer and Louk Hagendoorn have a very different approach to answering this question. Is there even an answer, seems to be the general idea.
“Who are we in this world, how do we live together and most importantly how can we improve it?” These are the questions director Charles Esche hopes to answer during the Be[com]ing Dutch Eindhoven Caucus. He believes the Caucus is an experiment of collective decision making, in which the speakers are ‘intellectual food’ for the audience and the participants.
Artist have a political responsibility, according to project leader Annie Fletcher. ,,I have high hopes, this Caucus is a great opportunity to learn from one another.”
Finally, the participants of the project have arrived. In the empty old school on the Kanaalstraat in Eindhoven artists from all over the world came together to have dinner and to celebrate the beginni
ng of the exciting and challenging Eindhoven Caucus as part of the project Be[com]ing Dutch. Although most of them were a little nervous, soon everyone felt more comfortable when Charles Esche and Annie Fletcher welcomed them. Continue Reading »
Today the Eindhoven Caucus starts, the second phase of the award winning project Be[com]ing Dutch by the Van Abbemuseum. November 9 through to December 6 we will discuss cultural identity, with world renowned speaker and the audience.
We want to share this debate with the world. We have asked 10 students of the Hogeschool Utrecht to report on the Caucus, via this blog. Please read and see their experiences. Languages will be mixed, and media will differ. So add this page this page to your favourites and come again.