Panel Collaborations, Coalitions, In- an
Panel Collaborations, Coalitions, In- and Exclusions
16 November 2019
Propositions #9/4 Training

“Refuge, Refuse, Refrain” & Public Program

This fourth day of the week of Propositions #9 Deserting from the Culture Wars consists of a training with Terra Critica, and a public program including a panel.


This fourth day of the week of Propositions #9 Deserting from the Culture Wars consists of a training with Terra Critica, and a public program including a panel Collaborations, Coalitions, In- and Exclusions with Jonas Staal, Natascha Sadr Haghighian, and Bini Adamczak, moderated by Sven Lütticken.
Saturday 16 November 2019
TRAINING #4: 14.30-17.30 (
READINGROOM ON “REFUGE, REFUSE, REFRAIN” with Terra Critica (Birgit M. Kaiser and Kathrin Thiele, Utrecht University, Utrecht)

Desertion means to be disloyal and to abandon. Can one desert institutions of oppression, their dis/en/abling constraints and expectations, the futures one loathes? And can desertion also mean to join anew and train together, exploring how one might relate in unforeseen ways, within (para)institutions, and struggling for desired futures? This training explores the dynamics of refusal and refuge, a dynamic in which the moves of desertion, but also those of solidarity and alliance, are caught up. What forms of politics must be invented to form coalitions among diverse people of the earth, human and non-human? Is recognition the primary tool or must one devise other methods and desires to heal the wounds of war, whiteness, and patriarchy? The session is based on a joint reading, which forms the basis of the conversation, of “Refuge, Refuse, Refrain,” from Fred Moten’s The Universal Machine (Duke University Press, 2018). During the training session, participants think together about the text and, concretely and importantly, train in relation to those present and absent during the session. One central aim is to take account of the processes of refusal and refraining, of in/exclusion that have also contributed to making this training session possible.



PUBLIC PROGRAM #4: 18.30-22.00

18.30–19.00 hrs
DOORS OPEN

19.00–19.30 hrs
WELCOME AND OPENING REMARKS
Maria Hlavajova (artistic and general director, BAK, basis voor actuele kunst, Utrecht) and Sven Lütticken (art historian, critic, and writer, Utrecht)

19.30–20.00 hrs
REPORT: READINGROOM ON “REFUGE, REFUSE, REFRAIN” TRAINING: MECHANISMS OF GROUP CONSTITUTION AND EXCLUSION

20.00–22.00 hrs
PANEL: COLLABORATIONS, COALITIONS, IN- AND EXCLUSIONS
Jonas Staal, Natascha Sadr Haghighian, and Bini Adamczak, moderated by Sven Lütticken
How, practically and structurally, can different emancipatory movements and organizations collaborate? What are the pitfalls and possibilities? What kinds of exclusion does the language of inclusivity hide or generate? How to combine the need for productive focus with the need to reach hearts and minds beyond one’s bubble? The panelists present insights, questions, proposals, and challenges from the basis of their practices and collaborations—spanning the realms of art, theory, and activism.