FORUM #5 
European Cultural Exchanges 2004

[conference] [exhibitions] [projects] [ongoing 2000-2010]

About FORUM European Cultural Exchanges

Ongoing platform for the development and promotion of European cultural exchanges –with emphasis on Southeastern Europe– aiming towards the support and diffusion of contemporary artistic creation. Founded in 2000 in Thessaloniki by Apollonia european art exchanges (Strasbourg) and ArtBOX, and coordinated by ArtBOX, Forum includes annual events, conferences, meetings, exhibitions and networking activities, as well as the Forum Artists-in-Residence program (F.A.R., 2005-2008).

2000 - 2010
Organized by:
ArtBOX, Thessaloniki, Greece
Apollonia, Strasbourg, France
Founding Directors:
Dimitris Konstantinidis (Apollonia)
Christos Savvidis (ArtBOX)
Coordination: ArtBOX
Advisory Committee:
Efie Strousa, Denys Zacharopoulos, Nikos Xydakis

Forum 2004

Forum 2004's conference focuses on the subject of artistic residencies - a tool ideal for fostering artistic exchanges, networking and encouraging artistic production that engages with the local circumstances. The discussion led to the founding of F.A.R. - Forum Artists-in-Residence program, organised in collaboration with Action Field Kodra - annual visual arts festival, for the next four years (2005-2008).   

This year's exhibitions present contemporary artists from Poland, in collaboration with Apollonia's “Contemporary identities” project. The exhibitions have been already taken place in France and following Thessaloniki will be presented in Belgium. They are part of the celebrations of the 50 years’ anniversary of the Cultural Convention of the Council of Europe. 

Thessaloniki, Greece
18 December 2004 - 18 February 2005

Organization:
Forum European Cultural Exchanges
Hellenic Ministry of Culture

Coordination:
ArtBOX

Partners:
Council of Europe
European Cultural Foundation
French Ministry of Foreign Affairs
French Ministry of Culture
Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art



Artists residency programs 
[conference]

World wide cultural policy today rapidly imposes an inflationary and competitive creation of mega-museums of contemporary art, together with relative cultural branches, that at times tend to eliminate in an almost narcissistic way both the art work itself and the artist’s contribution. The contemporary artist’s need to be released from the imposed and institutionalized presentation of her work in museums, leads her towards the search of parallel alternative and flexible patterns, beyond the geopolitical boarders of predetermined space, towards a new “borderline” space, free from administration constrains, that exceeds the limiting frameworks of institutions. We realize that residencies programmes are only a few, isolated cases world wide, compared to Museums, Contemporary Art Centres and Galleries. How do these prolific spaces of hospitality, dialogue, communication and creation work today? Who supports them, what do they offer to the artist and to what extend do they allow the creation of action fields and interaction with the social reality or with the social web of a city? Why are residencies programmes completely absent in Greece and in what ways is it possible to secure their creation? What is the role and position of the Greek Fine Arts Schools towards such programmes? 

Discussion Panel 1: The role and importance of residencies in the international artistic reality; how they work, what they offer and how they affect the development of artistic practices
The big question is whether institutions (in this case residencies) are able to meet the artists’ needs for understanding, support and recognition in the framework of differentiation in a professional society of an economy of the market (even decisively); or whether on the contrary, in a democratic society, they ensure the place of art and the art work, beyond the understanding and tolerance of society itself and its institutionalized organization, as a legitimate fortification of the independent function of art and artistic creation (where residencies act as research units and as lawful means of development and advancement) beyond every acceptable measure of engagement or publicity, where through residencies the position itself of the artist is fortified as a clear position of researcher and producer of meaning, not only as a producer of cultural products or goods. To what extend therefore, do residencies act as autonomous and independent organizations, not only financially and practically, but also in regards to the artistic and intellectual context itself, or do they just add up as supplementary stops to the production and diffusion of art and culture in a society ruled by trade and economic factors. At this point only, artistic residencies coincide and identify with each other, almost regardless of whether they exist in rich or poor states, or on the other hand become differentiated and separate in between academic or trade factors or preconceived tourist or commercial routes. The role of artistic residencies today is the price that a democratic and progressive society pays to surpass the role and boundaries of every sponsor or patron (honoring in this way the fundamental role of true sponsors and patrons) securing the unselfish and unimpeachable relation between the free use of the work’s production means in the context of the economic reality of the market and the unrestricted negotiation of the boundaries of meaning in the cultural life of society.

Discussion Panel 2: Residencies: Greek reality and perspectives
Discussion Panel 3: Acting and reacting through international residencies. Artists' views, experiences and proposals.
Three Greek artists from Thessaloniki (Fotini Kariotaki, Vangelis Pliarides, Evanthia Tsantila), that live and create in and out of the country, will talk about their experience and views regarding the residencies programmes they have participated in. The aim of this panel is to make specific suggestions towards the creation of residencies in Greece through Forum, through the Contemporary Art Centre of Thessaloniki, and through the Fine Arts School, in connection and collaboration with relative institutions in SE and the whole of Europe.

Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art
Thessaloniki, Greece
18 December 2004

Organization:
FORUM European Cultural Exchanges
Hellenic Ministry of Culture

Coordination:
ArtBOX

Speakers:
Nada Beros (art historian, curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Zagreb), Els van Odijk (Director of Rijksakademie, Amsterdam), Elaine Bowen (Director of Residency and Development program, Apex Art, New York), Denis Zacharopoulos, Dimitris Konstantinidis (Director of Apollonia, Strasbourg), Katerina Koskina (art historian, Kostopoulos Foundation), Vangelis Ioakimidis (Photography Centre of Skopelos), Stamatis Mavros (President of the Hellenic Culture Organisation), Zoe Kazazaki (Greek Ministry of Culture), Evanthia Tsantila (artist), Vagelis Pliarides (artist), Fotini Kariotaki (artist)

Moderators:
Christos Savvidis (ArtBOX, FORUM co-founder), Efie Strousa (art critic, FORUM advisory committee), Sania Papa (Contemporary Art Centre of Thessaloniki)

Simultaneous Translation in Greek & English

Exhibitions

Contemporary Identities. Current Artistic Creation in Poland
Part 1: Video Art

[video art exhibition] [projected visions project]

Photo and video are two relatively recent media in Polish visual arts. The issue of identity is a central, not to say predominant theme in most artistic approaches. It is an issue that is either tackled head-on, through works dealing with the body or portraits, or more indirectly, by working in subjects such as habitat, social space or consumer objects and daily life. It is an identity which is deeply rooted both in the distant memories and the more recent history of the country, which is going through a spectacular transition, as it (re)joins the European community. 
The work that went into setting up these projects was based on information gathered by Apollonia in the course of various visits to the country and thanks to the permanent contacts that exist between the association and the Polish art scene. Moreover, these events owe much to fruitful collaboration between several art critics, curators and theorists, and in particular thanks to the contributions made by Magdalena Lewoc, Anne Laval and Ryszard W. Kluszczynski.
A major publication on the contemporary art scene in Poland, as well as the establishment of artists’ and critics’ residences in various French cities complement the exhibitions and video art programmes.

Dimitri Konstantinidis
Director, Apollonia european art exchanges
Co-founder, Forum European Cultural Exchanges

Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art
18-19 December 2004
Goethe Institute
20-23 December 2004
Thessaloniki, Greece

Curated by:
Ryszard W. Kluszczynski

Artists:
Kinga Araya, Anna Baumgart, Barbara Konopka, Jozef Robakowski, Piotr Wyrzykowski

Parallel Event

Manderley

[Artists interventions in Hotel Astoria]

So, the story goes as follows: a timid young girl (Joan Fontaine) marries a handsome yet troubled Cornish Landowner (Laurence Olivier) only to realize very soon that her life is dominated by the image and memory of her husband's first wife, Rebecca. In fact she almost feels as if Manderley, the estate they move to after the wedding, is haunted by the ghost of her predecessor: Rebecca’s bedroom remains untouched, her clothes are still in the wardrobe while her monogram features on every single item in the study...

Welcome to the new Manderley, the Hotel Astoria in Thessaloniki. During the three days of your stay here you will be forced to share your room with the work of a Greek artist! But that’s not all. Switch on your TV and you’ll find there’s an all Greek-video-art channel for your eyes only! There is no escape. Even if you attempt to flee to the lobby area or when you visit reception to pick up your room key there’ll be more works waiting for you. This is your chance to experience contemporary Greek art in your own privacy, dressed in pajamas or while brushing your teeth. This is your cheap excuse to visit another guest’s room to check out... the works!

Taking as a starting point the common practice of parallel exhibitions featuring the work of artists from the host country of an internationally profiled event, Manderley is an exhibition that encourages diverse situations. There is no opening night, there are no invites and it is not to be open to the public. It is aimed exclusively at you... Forum Guest. 


Xenia Kalpaktsoglou
Curator

Hotel Astoria
Thessaloniki, Greece
17-19 December 2004

Curated by:
Xenia Kalpaktsoglou

Artists:
Athanasios Argianas, Kostas Bassanos, Martha Dimitropoulou, Dora Economou, Dimitris Foutris, Vasso Gavaisse, Aikaterini Gegisian, Dimitris Ioannou, Lakis & Aris Ionas, Eleni Kamma, Dionisis Kavallieratos & Sifis Lykakis, Vassilis Kehagias, Nina Papaconstantinou, Nikos Papadimitriou, Eftihis Patsourakis, Georgia Sagri, Yorgos Sapountzis, Vassiliea Stylianidou, Dimitra Vamiali, Yannis Varelas, Kostis Velonis, Apostolos Zerdevas

Gazet'art #2 
[publication]

The second issue of Forum's parasitic, nomadic magazine focuses on Art & Politics, aiming to contribute to the global discussion, through relevant articles by committed artists and institutions involved in the setting up of the european cultural policies.

Hosting magazine:
Polystyrène, France, p.20 (English)
May 2004

Editorial chief:
Dimitri Konstantinidis

Editorial committee:
Judit Angel, Nada Beros

General coordinator:
Milana Christitch

Texts:
Nada Beros, Emese Süvecz, Attila Zongor,
John Phillips, Judit Angel, Dimossios Ergasia

Thanks to the kind collaboration of Bruno Chibane