CuMMA

A new text by Elham Rahmati is published in 'disputes' section of our blog!
The paper "Notes on the Archeology of the Final Decade
Retracing a Utopian Stage: Festival of Arts, Shiraz—Persepolis (1967-1977)" is written as a response to Vali Mahlouji’s confrontation of the controversial Festival of Arts, Shiraz – Persepolis (1967-77) under the ongoing curatorial platform of the Archeology of the Final Decade.

Please, follow the link to read Elham's text:
https://cummastudies.wordpress.com/disputes/notes-on-the-archeology-of-the-final-decade-retracing-a-utopian-stage-festival-of-arts-shiraz-persepolis-1967-1977/

and see Mahlouji’s project Elham is writing about here: http://www.archaeologyofthefinaldecade.com/

Notes on the Archeology of the Final Decade Retracing a Utopian Stage: Festival of Arts, Shiraz—Persepolis (1967-1977) The Shiraz Festival of Arts was held annually for 11 years from 1967 to 1977 in the city of Shiraz in central Iran. Accompanied by symposia and debates, the festival program included music, dance, …

Excited to announce that the 28th CuMMA paper —“The Bright Lights of the Institution” — is out!
The following compilation of texts is an attempt to approach the framework built for the CuMMA seminar ‘Theoretical Frameworks of Curating and Mediating Art’ in autumn 2016. The installation The Bright Lights of the Institution—A Framework for Being Together was created by Freja Bäckman, who is doing doctoral studies at the Department of Arts. This issue is published with a foreword by Nora Sternfeld and you are invited to read the paper here:https://cummastudies.files.wordpress.com/2018/05/cumma_paper_28.pdf

Happy to announce a new publication on CuMMA blog!

"Honour silence as a form of presence" - a text by María Villa is out in our 'disputes' section.

In María's own words "This essay responds to a series of discussions on the role of text in exhibitions, that is, how narratives are built around the works displayed, which is both a reflection on collective creative processes, and the mediations that curators, artists, and other professionals inevitably perform when they put together a show. Faced with an exhibition of contemporary painting that was rich in content and very scarce in contextualising information, the author tries to track down the decisions and ideas that were behind it, and provide a narrative for it. In the process, her text brings forward a reflection on curating, mediation practices, and the many ways in which painting operates in the contemporary"

read the essay here:
https://cummastudies.wordpress.com/disputes/honour-silence-as-a-form-of-presence/

image credit: Maunu Markkula, Installation view, from right to left?: Trees in Evening Light (n.d.), Building (n.d), The Brink of the Meadow (n.d.), On the Road to Alexandria (n.d.). From the Esko Jääsalo Collection. Image: María Villa.

CuMMA paper #27 is out!

Happy to announce that “The curator as arsonist” — an interview with a London-based curator and writer Vali Mahlouji is published on CuMMA blog. In the conversation with CuMMA students Mahlouji discusses his research, curatorial and educational platform Archaeology of the Final Decade (AOFTD), the questions it raises and the methodology it employs. In particular, Mahlouji speaks about the aspects of his curatorial practice that involve themselves with issues pertaining to power, radical democracy, conflict, activism, and art and cultural projects that evince social and political commitment.

Follow the link to read the interview:https://cummastudies.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/cumma-papers_27_super-final.pdf

image credit: Kaveh Golestan, Untitled (Pr******te series), 1975-77, Tehran; © Kaveh Golestan Estate; Courtesy Archaeology of the Final Decade