Symposium >> Nida Art Colony
9th Inter-format Symposium on the Fluidity of Humour and Absurdity
Nida Art Colony, Lithuania
June 28-30
The participants of the 9th Symposium will share their insights on humor and absurdity in contemporary art, related theories and beyond.
Throughout 64 hours of non-stop comedy participants will explore as well as question the role and critical potential of comedy, humour and the purpose of the absurd.
The Symposium will reflect on how we employ humour as a medium to ponder social, ecological, (cultural)-political complexities as well as the absurd situations they generate. It seeks to analyse humour and its various mechanisms, their ability to transform perception of ‘reality,’ break down stereotypes, challenge taboo subjects, and mainstream assumptions. It is going to test humour as a tool to raise and discuss sensitive issues regarding race, gender, class structure, ethnicity, sexuality, violence, and personal identity.
Comic communication (irony, satire, absurd humour, etc.) can often be undervalued, misplaced by sheer silliness or made difficult due to politically correct sensibilities. We believe that comic genres are often the best tools to lay bare the various absurdities in the art and academic world, to drive us out from our ‘professional bubble’, and have a different approach to the reality governed by populism. We propose challenging the often overserious character of conversation and reflect on the potential of humour as a tool of self-critique as well as self-reflection.
The participants will investigate the ways artistic and curatorial work can work around limitations of traditional comedy by bringing in references from art and cultural history as well as explore jokes as ‘innovative actions’ commenting on cultural, political and social complexities.
Participants in order of appearance:
Olav Westphalen, Lívia Páldi & Vytautas Michelkevicius, Error Collective (Ernest Truely & Justin Tyler Tate), Gernot Wieland, Irina Gheorghe, Lisette Olivares, Janks Archive (Ben Kinsley & Jessica Langley), Julijonas Urbonas, Carla Gannis & Yuliya Lanina, Zygimantas Kudirka, Error Collective (Ernest Truely & Justin Tyler Tate & John Fail), Dafna Maimon, Lindsey White, Michal Libera, Verena Seibt & Markus Zimmermann, Masha Fomenko & Petr Laden, Paulina Eglė Pukytė , Kasia Fudakowski
Curators:
Lívia Páldi & Vytautas Michelkevičius