Hey, what do we have to lose? Archiving as an act of collective resistance
International Symposium and exhibition | “Hey, what do we have to lose? Archiving as an act of collective resistance” | organized by Press to Exit Project Space | Museum of Contemporary Art Skopje | May 31st - June 1st 2019
This symposium is first of a series of activities that will be realized by Press to Exit as part of the ongoing program “(Un)disciplined: A Construction of an Archive” produced in the frame of a two-year project “Collective Domain of Cultural Memory” (cdcm.eu) - an international project on the ethics of cultural heritage and the capacity of artistic practices to unfold new relations and understandings of history developed in collaboration between Suns and Stars (The Netherlands) and Loose Associations (Croatia).
The prelude of the “(Un)disciplined: A Construction of an Archive” is an incident from April 21st, 2017 when a fire destroyed the Institute for Town Planning and Architecture in Skopje. Located in a set of barracks from the 60’s, the institute housed an archive of the post-earthquake reconstruction of Skopje (1963). The archive contained plans, memoranda, reports, brochures, books, urban studies and models relevant to the history of Macedonian identity, already badly damaged by flames, smoke and water, was left in the ruins of the Institute and exposed to accidental passers-by. In absence of civilian duty for organizing and clearing, the damage was of enormous dimension.
A few weeks after the fire, during the 6th International Symposium “Curating Exchange: Spaces, Functions, Fictions and Other Commons” (May 2017), the team of Press to Exit Project Space along with local and international artists, and with the support of significant institutions and associations such as the State Archive of the Republic of Macedonia, Museum of the City of Skopje and the Association of Architects, organized an action for clearing and collecting some of the documents and objects from further damage and depositing it largely to the State Archive of the Republic of Macedonia. This gesture and the collected documents will be the starting point for the Macedonian program within the framework of the "Collective Domain of Cultural Memory" project.
The program of Press to Exit Project Space apart from the two-day symposium – understood as an elastic and performative model of content presentation - will also include a residency program and an exhibition. The focus of all activities is on the collective processes, policies, tools and technologies of archiving, by exploring citizen strategies of taking responsibility for the collective cultural heritage and the future of collective memory.
More information about the list of participants and invited guests, the timetable and content can be found in the program attached.
Join us, we are expecting you!
With respect,
the team of Project Space Press Exit
Symposium
Day I
31.05.2019
Program
Museum of Contemporary Art Skopje
Working language:
English
20:00 Welcome address and Introduction of the program and guests by Yane Calovski and Hristina Ivanoska
20:15 Panel I
Presentations and discussion
Sabina Sabolović (HR),
Charles Esche (NL),
Sebastian Cichocki (PL),
moderated by Yane Calovski (MK)
22:00 DJ Set / Party with Sonja Ismail
Day II
01.06.2019
Program
Museum of Contemporary Art Skopje
Working language: English and Macedonian
12:00 Welcome coffee with the artists Antonis Pittas (NL) and Tjasa Kalkan(HR) /
Registration for the day
12:30 Panel II
Presentations and discussion
Nataša Bodrožić (HR), Marjoca de Greef and
Anastasija Pandilovska (NL/MK),
Yane Calovski and Hristina Ivanoska (MK)
13:30 Book launch
“Consumer Culture Landscapes in Socialist Yugoslavia” by the project Motel Trogir
14:15 Short break
14:30 Panel III
Presentations and dissension
Jasminka Namicheva, Museum of the City of Skopje (MK)
Representative from the State Archive of the Republic of North Macedonia (MK),
Vase Amanito Petrovski, photographer (MK)
Lidija Pajevikj photograph conservator (МК)
Vlado Danailov, architect (MK)
Noemi Chausidis, architect (MK)
17:30 End of program