We invite artists to explore and interpret the delicate equilibrium that exists in our modern world—examining the balance of power and the stress points that shape our society. This open call seeks to engage artists in a reflection on the nuanced dynamics between individuals, communities, and institutions, and to visualize the critical moments when this equilibrium might teeter on the edge of breakdown.
Theme: The theme revolves around the "Balance of Power and Stress Points." Artists are encouraged to delve into the multifaceted dimensions of power dynamics, societal tensions, and the precarious balance that holds everything together. Consider the forces at play, the sources of stress, and the pivotal moments that could potentially disrupt or redefine the existing equilibrium.
Art has the power to capture and articulate the nuances of societal structures, interpersonal relationships, and the tension that arises from imbalances of power. This open call challenges artists to reflect on stress points within these power dynamics, exposing the fragility and potential for transformation.
As usual for the writers section we also acept other writing themes, so alwasy look out for new work being published each month.
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Title
ከየት ነህ ይሉኛል( they ask me where I am from)
Artist name
Lidiya Zelke
Website
https://linktr.ee/lidiya_zelke
Lidiya_zelke
Bio & context
short bio
Lidiya Zelke, a multi-disciplinary artist from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, has honed her craft through diverse professional experiences, including roles as a Graphic Designer and Creative Director. Her art serves as a captivating narrative, delving into the depths of human emotions, unraveling the intricate layers of our inner selves. Through her creations, she explores the spectrum of feelings, from excitement and anticipation to the profound solitude of loneliness. Lidiya's work encapsulates the transformative journey of life, revealing how it molds and refines us in ways often imperceptible, yet irreversible.I take great pride in sharing my portfolio and a selection of my sample works with you. Each piece carries a piece of my soul, expressing my unique perspective as an artist and storyteller.Throughout my artistic career, I have been fortunate to receive recognition for my work, including the prestigious Judges Choice Award for my piece titled "Neon Girl" by Northern Light Gallery. Moreover, I have had the privilege of participating in a wide array of both local and international exhibitions. Notable among them are Heylayer's SATOSHE and the HERNFT Project, where I was selected as one of the 20 distinguished artists from across the globe. I am also proud to have been chosen as one of the five artists from Africa to contribute to the KIPAYA (What's New) exhibition, an endeavor prepared by FORMAT Festivals, FOTEA-new art city, and participated in Tropical Exhibition thoughtfully curated by De Curated Gallery. Additionally, my art has graced the stages of the 5th Pasa Festival, the African Metaverse exhibition, and "A Kind of Alchemy: The Work of Art in the Age of Artificial Intelligence" exhibition hosted by DAHJ gallery.Furthermore, my works have found their way into the pages of esteemed magazines such as Fèroce Magazine UK, En Vie Magazine, Post Script Magazine, Espacio Fronterizo Borderland Magazine, Vagus Magazine, and Picton Magazine, with a special feature on Vogue Italy's website.
In the intricate tapestry of global history, few narratives are as compelling and poignant as the Ethiopian War, a conflict that has witnessed the participation of even its youngest citizens. The very essence of humanity is tested when children, innocent and untouched by the complexities of adult prejudices, are thrust into the vortex of ethnic strife. This artwork, titled "ከየት ነህ ይሉኛል (They Ask Me Where I Am From)," offers a stark portrayal of this tragic reality, prompting viewers to confront uncomfortable truths about the state of our world.
At first glance, the image might seem paradoxical: innocent children, traditionally symbols of hope and purity, are depicted carrying weapons and immersed in a conflict they can scarcely comprehend. This juxtaposition serves as a powerful metaphor for the insidious nature of ethnic warfare, where identities are weaponized, and innocence becomes collateral damage. The young faces, bearing expressions of confusion and fear, challenge us to question how such a perversion of childhood could become commonplace.
The title itself, "ከየት ነህ ይሉኛል," resonates with profound significance. It captures the dissonance between the innocent perceptions of these children and the divisive reality of the world around them. When asked about their ethnicity, they might reply with the same naivety with which they once proclaimed their favorite color or toy. Yet, in the context of war, this seemingly innocuous question becomes a loaded weapon, determining fates and fueling animosities.
Ethiopia, a nation rich in culture and history, finds itself at a critical juncture. The echoes of ethnic divisions threaten to drown out the harmonious melodies of its diverse traditions. As these children navigate a world marred by conflict, their innocence becomes a casualty of a larger, more insidious struggle. The artwork compels us to reflect on the tipping point of our collective humanity, urging us to recognize the urgent need for unity and reconciliation.
The artist's choice to depict children in this context is a bold yet necessary intervention. By confronting viewers with the unsettling juxtaposition of innocence and conflict, the artwork challenges us to confront our complicity in perpetuating cycles of violence and division. It serves as a poignant reminder that the future of Ethiopia, and indeed humanity, rests in our ability to protect and nurture its most vulnerable members.
In conclusion, "ከየት ነህ ይሉኛል (They Ask Me Where I Am From)" transcends the boundaries of traditional artistic expression to confront viewers with the harsh realities of ethnic warfare. Through its powerful imagery and thought-provoking title, the artwork serves as a catalyst for dialogue, reflection, and ultimately, transformation. As we bear witness to the haunting faces of these children, we are reminded of our shared responsibility to create a world where innocence is preserved, identities are celebrated, and peace prevails.
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Vinay Hathi
Website
https://vinay.mozello.com
https://www.instagram.com/vinayhathi
Medium:
Past up Digital Art
Conceptual Approach:
Economics, social structures & relationships.
Narrative Element:
While returning from Ilford town centre, I encountered an individual who approached me desperately requesting 50p. I provided him with the money and observed as he hurriedly entered a Paddy Power to place a bet. Within a few minutes he reemerged, once again imploring passersby for 50p. This repetitive behavior persisted for weeks, and it served as the inspiration behind this work.
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Title
Of Shrew Taming
Artist name
Mark Fearbunce
Website
https://markjamesbunce.wixsite.com/website
@fearbunce
Description
An artwork in two parts: a 53-page collage restructuring every word of Shakespeare's 'The Taming of the Shrew' into alphabetical order, and a three-and-a-half-hour digital reading of the collage.
Excessive analysis of classic texts can detract from the reasons they became classics in the first place.
Here I've attempted the ultimate analysis! In reconstructing the play into a kind of Dadaist or concrete poetry.
I hope to draw attention to the absurdity and arbitrariness of the structures that govern our culture. Linguistic and logical structures are most obvious here, but this project sits in a broader context of embedded normativity.
The choice of play, 'The Taming of the Shrew' is suggestive of this: a play in which ownership and behavioural expectations of women are forefronts.
While this work illustrates the absurdity of patriarchal structures (which persist despite decades of robust challenge), the tipping point is not only a painfully slow realignment of a gender power balance but also a hasty submission to technological power.
The cutting, sorting, and pasting of this collage has taken several years. Human labour holds a certain power here as does human error.
Anomalies in the alphabetising of the play are there to be found. Flaws are embedded.
While we might think an AI could produce more perfect results in seconds, it is not able to do so (I've tried) and that belief in the potential flawlessness of technology is a trap in our contemporary world.
To that end, the collage is complimented by a computerised reading of the alphabetised play, itself containing errors and misreadings of the text.
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Title
Ten Days of Something
Artist name
robert lauchlan brown
Website
www.idonthaveawebsiteyet.com
@roblockbrown
Bio & context
Rob Brown (b. 1984, London) is a conceptual artist who uses various methods to remove
decisions during the act of making. Sometimes the method is more intuitive, using objects
themselves to suggest a set of rules to work from and sometimes they are designed using
the ‘Iching’ or ‘Book of Changes’, as a framework for generating unexpected things.
Ten Days of Something
2023
Ten inkjet prints on archival paper
42 x 44cm
Ten Days of Something started as a plea to the Iching for freedom from slow progress.
The book, an ancient oracle, answered clearly; ‘do not act’. The rest is an attempt to follow this simple instruction with great intention.
A set of rules required the artist to sit for sixty-four minutes a day for ten consecutive days
in the same place and at the same time.
The piece seeks to encourage the most radical of contemporary states; doing very little, and
provides space to see what happens when time is allowed to act on subject and object.
Durational and repetitive actions and performance in the work bring about flow, meditative
and altered states of consciousness, the resulting art often being incidental to a much bigger
experience. It is hoped that these experiences reveal something significant with which to
transcend the dull psychic structures we so often find ourselves forced into from day to day.
Low-tech, inexpensive, and accessible processes and materials are used as an inclusive
device with which to connect with audiences. Reframing the ordinary to create entirely new
experiences and readings of objects is also a continual theme of the work.
Rob is an artist, educator, and maker working out of his studio in South London.
Hopefully, the work addresses a radical position moving away from the conditioned state that many people face today. That is the voice and psychological impact of media and advertising. The piece is a counter to this, asking people to put down their phones and share in a similar transcendent experience without the need for external stimulation or substances. It's all here waiting for us.
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Title
The artist duo has no idea
Artist name
Topp & Dubio
Website
www.topp-dubio.nl
@toppdubio
Bio & context
This Dutch newspaper article is the result of the interplay between the artists (Topp & Dubio), the curator, the gallery, and the newspaper journalist. It is the result of the galleries' refusal to cancel the exhibition at the artists' request and of the journalist's distrust of the artists' honest intentions.
Topp & Dubio is a conceptual multidisciplinary artist duo based in The Hague in The Netherlands.
Topp & Dubio study and scrutinize reality from a conceptual starting point, often arising from a desire to explore parallel worlds. Their projects flawlessly deal with fact and fiction, the search for meaning, the interaction of art and daily life, the personal and the public, observation and participation, history and documentation, the romance of imagination and subjective realities.
Topp & Dubio do public interventions, video, site-specific installations, audience interaction, books and all sorts of (audiovisual) documentation. Topp & Dubio works are temporary by nature, are never repeated and only subsist in memory and documentation.
Topp & Dubio have shown their work in The Netherlands, Belgium, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Cambodia, Indonesia, Brazil, Colombia, United States, Canada, Poland, Romania, Latvia, Estonia, Russia, Belarus and Ukraine.
HONEST EXHIBITION
The artist duo has no idea
Translation of newspaper article - How serious are you?
Striking press release in the inbox: "The Hague artists Topp & Dubio travel to Belarus without material for an exhibition project of which they have no idea why it is taking place."
Frits Dijcks and Sander de Haas claim that for the first time in twenty years they have no inspiration and are in 'a serious artistic crisis'. But yes, the tickets have now been booked, so they left for Minsk on Thursday.
Without knowing what they are actually going to do there, says Frits Dijcks by telephone, on the way to the airport.
How serious are you?
"Very seriously. Although it is not surprising that some see this as a joke. The role of the artist is often discussed with us. But this is sincere. We thought, let's say out loud that we have no idea, and see what it yields. This may well be the most honest exhibition we have ever made. Because normally we have a plan in advance. We order materials. And then leave a few things to the moment. That is professional. But somehow also unfair again. You are then the director of your own situation, now we are... well."
The Hague artist duo has been active for twenty years and works a lot in Russia. They were then invited by curators from Gallery Y in Minsk to organize an exhibition. "We met in Minsk in February. We clicked. Minsk is a very interesting city. We had a good feeling about it. Normally we come up with new ideas. But now? Nothing came. Every now and then we received e- emails from Minsk. About what they had to budget. Well."
"We tried to cancel the project. They: no, no, you really have to come. If necessary, you can get out of your crisis here."
Dijcks calls their work 'rather complicated. They work with installations and performance art, but also make less tangible projects. "We also have something going on in The Hague that actually needs to be finished. But we no longer know where to get the energy from."
For someone in a serious artistic crisis, you sound quite cheerful.
"We are not depressed either! It is not something to be sad about. Besides, it is a myth to think that art only comes from inspiration.
"It's okay to fail as an artist, but you have to do it gloriously. Suppose you fail in a very lame way, then there is no room for that."
This is not a statement about the ‘concept of art'?
"Well, that possibility is starting to grow now. Thanks to your kind of reactions, we can't avoid thinking about it. But it is possible that the lethargy will continue. The opening is scheduled for Tuesday evening, but I saw that they still did not announce this on their site."
Gallery Y in Minsk announces that the exhibition '0.00' by Topp & Dubio will open as normal on Tuesday evening at 7:00 PM.
Article published in Dutch newspaper Trouw
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