On One Side of the Same Water

The Jahresring 59 is devoted to examples of artistic practice in the Mediterranean region, or, more precisely, the southern and southeastern regions, otherwise known more for being arenas of crises, conflicts, or revolutions.Beginning in the nineties, European cultural scientists started rediscovering the Mediterranean region as an area of culture and knowledge, not lastly against the backdrop of migration and energy policies. Both perspectives evade the practice of contemporary artists. In Tirana, Algiers, Istanbul, Beirut, Alexandria, or Tangiers, artists reflect on the here and now at a high level of cognition and apply new, non-institutionalized models to intervene in the processes of shaping civil societies. This volume, whose title is borrowed from a work by Lawrence Weiner, does not seek to inventory circumstances in each nation, but employs artistic stances and research to construe a conversation about the spheres of activity involving art and artists today. Edited by Brigitte Oetker on behalf of the Cultural Committee of German Business within the Federation of German Industries (BDI) e.V. See more