Dialogic film program curated by Aïda Adilbek
EN
With 8 extended portraits, the Kunstverein für Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in Schwerin is presenting an exhibition that focuses on the work of Austrian photographer Cora Pongracz (1943-2003). Through the medium of photography, Pongracz's works open up a dialog about identity and diversity-sensitive representation. In order to reflect on the significance and potential of Pongracz's artistic work in the context of today's social discourses, a number of contemporary artists have been invited to react to and relate to Pongracz's work through their own photographic works, texts, performances and other forms of critical intervention over the course of the exhibition.
For the Days of Exile, the DAVRA collective is curating a dialogical film program that deals with exile both in relation to flight, persecution and expulsion and as an experience of the loss of an ideological-cultural frame of reference. The film program thus also addresses an important aspect of Cora Pongracz's biographical experience. Due to her mother's Jewish origins, the Pongracz family, originally from Vienna, had to flee into exile in Argentina and were only able to return to Europe after the end of the Second World War. Her own experience of exile - Cora Pongracz was born in Buenos Aires in 1943 - thus also forms a formative context inscribed in her artistic work.
The DAVRA collective works from a feminist-decolonial perspective on researching, documenting and passing on Central Asian culture and knowledge and is directed against colonial appropriations and (post)Soviet interpretations of others. In this context, the conceptual horizon of exile points to flight, persecution and expulsion, as well as to experiences of the loss of an ideological and cultural frame of reference. The collapse of the USSR led to the formation of new nation states and at the same time to feelings of " homelessness in one's own country". A similar moment can be found in the history of the GDR: in East Germany, too, the political upheaval meant the loss of a familiar social reference system for many people.
EN
With 8 extended portraits the Kunstverein für Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in Schwerin presents an exhibition that places the work of Austrian photographer Cora Pongracz (1943-2003) in focus. Through the medium of photography Pongracz's works open a dialogue about identity and a politics of representation that is sensitive towards diversity. In order to reflect both the significance and the potential of Pongracz's artistic practice in the context of current social discourses, a number of contemporary artists have been invited to respond and relate to Pongracz's work through their own photographs, texts, performances, and other forms of critical interventions, throughout the exhibition.
For the Days of Exile, the DAVRA collective has curated a dialogical film programme that deals with exile in terms of forced migration, persecution and displacement, as well as the experience of losing an ideological and cultural frame of reference. The film program thus also addresses an important aspect of Cora Pongracz's biographical experience. Due to her mother's Jewish background, the Pongracz family, originally from Vienna, had to flee into exile in Argentina and could only return to Europe after the end of the Second World War. Her own experience of exile - Cora Pongracz was born in Buenos Aires in 1943 - therefore also constitutes a formative context that is inscribed in her artistic work.
The DAVRA collective works on the exploration, documentation and dissemination of Central Asian culture and knowledge from a feminist-decolonial perspective and opposes colonial appropriations such as (post-)Soviet foreign interpretations. In this context, the concept of exile refers to forced migration, persecution and displacement, as well as to experiences of losing an ideological cultural frame of reference. The collapse of the USSR led to the emergence of new nation states and, at the same time, to feelings of 'homelessness in one's own country'. A similar moment can be found in the history of the GDR: in East Germany, too, the political upheaval of the (Berlin) Wall falling meant the loss of a familiar social reference system for many people.
