Landscape and Representation with Transylvania Retouched
An exhibition project of the Romanian Cultural Institute in Berlin with the support of CHB - Collegium Hungaricum Berlin
June 24th, 2019On June 25th, from 7 to 10 pm, at ICR Berlin, will take place the opening of the exhibition Transylvania Retouched.
Curated by Daniela Duca & Virág Major, the exhibition addresses the theme of natural landscape representation and the social and cultural implications of these representations. It intends to draw attention to the subjective human eye and mind that plays a major role in creating the landscape. Therefore, the exposition tries to demystify the Transylvanian landscape as neutral, objective and innocent. According to Svetlana Boym, « by exploring the dynamics of power behind Transylvania’s landscapes, the act of allegedly “neutral” nostalgic contemplation is replaced by a methodology of an inquisitive, 'reflective nostalgia’ ».
The exposition brings together artists of Romanian and Hungarian origin: Aladár Garda, Anca Benera & Arnold Estefan, Zsolt Fekete, Károly Elekes, Lehel Kovács, Mircea Nicolae, Radu Băieș, Szabolcs Kisspál, allowing them to confront various modes of artistic engagement with the landscape such as painting, photography, documentation of land, documentary-fictional and curatorial approaches. It provides original materials (photo, video and text) from the personal archives of the founders of the land-art artistic movement MAMŰ.
Moreover, the exhibition questions the notion of what it means to be a 'Transylvanian' artist, how can cultural heritage and traditions possibly be restaged and how can one restate traditions, so that they do not promote the idea of nation, but envision instead a way of healing traumas in a potentially transnational and transcultural future.
The exhibition will last till the 20th of September. During the vacation period (1.07- 30.08), it can be visited only by registration at office@rki-berlin.de.
References:
- - https://www.icr.ro/berlin/transylvania-retouched-a-matter-of-landscape-and-representation
- - https://www.facebook.com/events/431678494344884/