Dark Matters. Recasting Darkness with Contemporary Latin American Art foregrounds the largely unrecognized potentialities of darkness through a close reading of six materially dark contemporary... Show moreDark Matters. Recasting Darkness with Contemporary Latin American Art foregrounds the largely unrecognized potentialities of darkness through a close reading of six materially dark contemporary artworks from Latin America. It departs from the premise that from the 1980s onwards—that is, in the decades still under the shadow of military dictatorship, forced disappearance, organized crime, and structural racism—artists such as Cildo Meireles (Brazil), Carlos Martiel (Cuba), René Peña (Cuba), Maya Watanabe (Peru), Belkis Ayón (Cuba) and Maria Isabel Reuda (Colombia) developed artworks literally composed of dark matter that defy racist and colonial associations of darkness with irrationality, ignorance, barbarism, and mischief. Their installations and performances in pitch or partial darkness, photographs and prints of black skin or ink, and videos of obscure environments, reveal that darkness more so than having a theoretical and inert existence, flourishes as a vibrant matter that is capable of making things happen and producing effects. Among other things, this study demonstrates that darkness has the capacity to protect realities that elude capture, generate greater freedom, and resist, interrupt and disturb. It revolves around two complementary research questions: How do specific Latin American artworks recast the notion of darkness? And, to what degree does this recasting convey a counter-narrative to the modern perspective on darkness? Show less
This dissertation investigates the fabric and the infrastructure of contemporary artistic production. The focal question is how the contemporary field of institutional artistic production is... Show moreThis dissertation investigates the fabric and the infrastructure of contemporary artistic production. The focal question is how the contemporary field of institutional artistic production is organised and how the relations between its actors and functions: artists, curators, institution, governance and theory are structured, and how the artistic object that results from their interaction is produced. The backdrop of this investigation, is the condition of cognitive capitalism. Production and working-relations in late capitalism as analysed by Paolo Virno, are characterized by the primacy of communications. It presumes that no longer there is a clear demarcation between aesthetics, labour and politics in the general make-up of production and economy.The second backdrop is the postconceptual condition, as formulated by British philosopherPeter Osborne. He describes how the authorship of the art-object has shifted to the institutional platform (museum, presentation-space) and how the ‘project’ has become the general form of production. This situation particularly affects artistic production and the relationships between the main actors in regards to who holds the authorship over the artistic object. Both these movements have led to significant changes in how to consider the status of authorship in artistic production. Together they shape the theoretical basis for the research. Show less
Why should we look at art when we talk about nuclear power? Nuclear power, military and civilian, has been framed as a solution many times: a solution to end war and sustain global peace, a... Show moreWhy should we look at art when we talk about nuclear power? Nuclear power, military and civilian, has been framed as a solution many times: a solution to end war and sustain global peace, a solution for growing energy demands in rich countries, and more recently, a solution to climate change. All of these solutions soon produced a number of new problems, or turned into problems themselves, contributing to the wicked complexity of the techno-human condition. Yet, it is a mistake to turn away from complexity and seek answers in the form of certainties. After all, the ‘solutions’ listed above are a product of creating certainties where there are none, of trying to overcome complexity and ambiguity.In this study, I argue that art is relevant to the nuclear debate not despite, but because the answers it offers to the societal questions raised by nuclear technologies suggest other problems. Drawing on Braden R. Allenby and Daniel Sarewitz’s notion of ‘intelligent muddling’ as a strategy to navigate the techno-human condition, I show through a series of close readings of recent artistic responses to nuclear energy production and its ‘by-products’ that art points towards ways of muddling through nuclear complexity. Show less
De werken op de internationale hedendaagse kunsttentoonstelling ‘Global Imaginations’ (Leiden Museum De Lakenhal/De Meelfabriek, 26 juni – 4 okt. 2015) laten zien dat het is de kracht van kunst om... Show moreDe werken op de internationale hedendaagse kunsttentoonstelling ‘Global Imaginations’ (Leiden Museum De Lakenhal/De Meelfabriek, 26 juni – 4 okt. 2015) laten zien dat het is de kracht van kunst om de wereld ook anders te denken, andere verbanden te leggen, alternatieve configuraties neer te zetten. Daarin zijn zij wereldvormend – zij benoemen aspecten van onze complexe wereld en openen daarmee nieuwe, andere manieren om betekenis te geven aan of te vinden in de natuur, de kunst en de geschiedenis van de mensheid. Show less
The artworks at the international contemporary art exhibition ‘Global Imaginations’ (Leiden Museum De Lakenhal/De Meelfabriek, 26 June – 4 Oct 2015) show how important art can be to think the... Show moreThe artworks at the international contemporary art exhibition ‘Global Imaginations’ (Leiden Museum De Lakenhal/De Meelfabriek, 26 June – 4 Oct 2015) show how important art can be to think the world differently, to make other connections and create alternative configurations. In that respect, they literally shape the world – they reveal aspects of our complex world in opening up new, alternative ways to give meaning to the world surrounding us, to nature, history and humanity at large. Show less
Installation art is one of the most common forms of contemporary art. Installations constitute themselves both in space and time. They are made of multiple media and materials. Often they are... Show moreInstallation art is one of the most common forms of contemporary art. Installations constitute themselves both in space and time. They are made of multiple media and materials. Often they are compared to stage sets, which the viewer can enter physically. Well-known installations are the site-specific works created by Carsten Höller, Doris Salcedo and Olafur Eliasson for the Turbine Hall of London’s Tate Modern. Installation art is particularly known for the kind of spectatorship that it has brought about. Installations are said to turn passive viewers into active participants. This dissertation aims to analyze this spectatorship: How do we experience works of installation art, what is so particular about this spectatorship, and how does it reflect on the ‘experience society’ we are supposed to be living in? The aim of my research is to contribute to the theoretical reflection on spectatorship. I contend that installation art transforms the viewer into a ‘performing observer’. In experiencing an installation viewers revert to their own memories, associations, wishes and dreams. Inadvertently they are writing themselves into the ‘play’ that is suggested by the scenario in which they find themselves. Performing an installation means entering into a playful yet reflective interaction with one’s surroundings. Show less
