By Heidi Trautmann
The art scene during the months of July and August in Cyprus is very quiet. Nothing can be reported, all exhibition venues are left entirely to the tourists such as the Eaved House, Bellapais Crypt, etc. Artists go on holidays, visit cooler places in Europe, we should have advised them to take winter cloths with them, and perhaps go to Kassel to see the great show of Contemporary Art, dOCUMENTA (13). The weather is right!
The dOCUMENTA was founded in 1955 and takes place every five years, now, it was four years in former times. Opened on June 9 it will be open for visitors from all over the world until September 16.
The thirteenth edition of documenta involves more than 300 participants. The exhibition in Kassel is presented at eight main venues, with many other projects located at sites throughout the center of the city.
“dOCUMENTA (13) is dedicated to artistic research and forms of imagination that explore commitment, matter, things, embodiment, and active living in connection with, yet not subordinated to, theory. These are terrains where politics are inseparable from a sensual, energetic, and worldly alliance between current research in various scientific and artistic fields, both ancient and contemporary. dOCUMENTA (13) is driven by a holistic and non-logocentric vision that is skeptical of the persisting belief in economic growth. This vision is shared with, and recognizes, the shapes and practices of knowing of all the animate and inanimate makers of the world, including people.” So speaks Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev.
For the second time a woman has been chosen to be the curator of the most important art show of contemporary art. In 2008 Christov-Bakargiev was curator of the 16th Sydney-Biennale. Since 2002 she is the director of the Museum of Contemporary Art “Castello di Rivoli” in Turin/Italy.
Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev is a curator of high standard familiar with international contemporary and modern European art. She studied literature and art history in Pisa and graduated magna cum laude with a thesis on the relationship of contemporary art and poetry. She has managed many important art projects and participated in biennales of other disciplines as a member of jury. She also curated exhibitions with internationally re-known artists.
The artists represented at documenta (13) have been chosen by her and although there was no theme given, the main message was determined by her. If you want to check the list of artists participating, please check with the following link:
http://universes-in-universe.org/eng/bien/documenta/2012/documenta_13_artists
What is contemporary art, so many would like to know. Actually, a piece of art of today’s understanding is no longer a decorative piece of furniture to hang on the wall and go with the colour of your sofa. The public is often disappointed and think the artists would just entertain themselves. In many ways it seems so, superficially seen. The modern artists understands his profession as an admonisher recording the developments of the present political, sociological and environmental situation around him, and the work he produces is a sort of mirror for us to see.
It is us that we see, our world, and at dOCUMENTA (13) many such artists get together to show their worlds, the problems of their world, and I think we should all listen to them.