Best regards, Andrew Stewart
Begin forwarded message: > From: H-Net Staff via H-REVIEW <[email protected]> > Date: February 25, 2021 at 1:21:34 PM EST > To: [email protected] > Cc: H-Net Staff <[email protected]> > Subject: H-Net Review [H-SHERA]: Biedarieva on Szczerski, 'Transformation: > Art in East-Central Europe after 1989' > Reply-To: [email protected] > > Andrzej Szczerski. Transformation: Art in East-Central Europe after > 1989. Krakow Jagiellonian University Press, 2019. 257 pp. $55.00 > (cloth), ISBN 978-83-233-4543-5. > > Reviewed by Svitlana Biedarieva (Courtauld Institute of Art) > Published on H-SHERA (February, 2021) > Commissioned by Hanna Chuchvaha > > This well-informed book by Andrzej Szczerski focuses on artists' > responses to changes in former Eastern Bloc countries after the fall > of the Iron Curtain in 1989. The author addresses how this > transformation was expressed in art and what the artists' roles were > in shaping the new social reality and agonist democracy. The book > focuses on east-central European culture after the events that marked > the beginning of the new post-socialist era: the fall of the Berlin > Wall, the "Autumn of Nations," and the consequent dissolution of the > Soviet Union. > > As new artistic idioms emerged after 1989, interpretations of > historical legacies and current turbulences in art received new life. > Szczerski opens his book with a discussion of whether the year 1989, > as a watershed that forever changed Europe, provoked a break in > artistic production in the countries of post-socialist eastern Europe > or whether it was merely a change in the plurality of artistic > expressions. He traces this discussion through numerous examples of > art practices ranging from the Balkans to the Soviet East. The book > is divided into eight chapters that together provide an extensive > overview of artistic processes that exploded in the then Soviet > republics and the countries of the Eastern Bloc after the fall of the > Iron Curtain. > > The book applies "horizontal art history," a notion developed by art > historian Piotr Piotrowski (_Art and Democracy in Post-Communist > Europe_ [2012]) as a nonlinear, diffuse, and polyphonic model, to the > context of local histories of eastern European post-socialist art. > This view is opposed to hierarchical, "vertical," art history, which > focuses on centers and peripheries of art production. The author > analyzes the new cultural developments in east-central Europe and the > appearance of new art institutions through the lens of the "political > turn" in contemporary art. He discusses the "apoliticism" of art in > the Eastern Bloc, which, according to him, was contained in a "velvet > prison" of cooperation between a censor and an artist. The book > addresses Francis Fukuyama's famous article "The End of History?" and > proposes that no such finale occurred in the history of contemporary > art in east-central Europe; instead, the emergence of new, > democratized art became possible.[1] > > Szczerski discusses socialist and post-socialist public practices > using the notion of "participatory art" as analyzed by art historian > Claire Bishop in _Artificial Hells: Participatory Art and the > Politics of Spectatorship _(2012). Bishop sees participatory art as a > powerful emancipatory tool that involves audiences in political > reflection on art production. Szczerski proposes that even though > some pre-1989 art and political events had some participatory > characteristics, such as the visit of Pope John Paul II to Poland in > 1979, the true appearance of participatory practices was linked to > the post-1989 pluralism in art. In my opinion, this position can be > contrasted with the work of some researchers who claimed that > socialism was a profoundly participatory culture. Performance > researcher Branislav Jakovljević, for example, has proposed that the > communist mass spectacle was part of the "ruling by presence" concept > rooted in the possibility of participation.[2] > > Relying predominantly on Polish historical studies, the author > proposes examples of "applied history" and "affirmative history." > "Applied history," a term coined by historian Robert Traba, links > factual knowledge of the past with the public realm and local > cultural landscape, including evidence of trauma.[3] Szczerski, > following historian Ewa Domańska, proposes the approach of the > so-called affirmative history, which, instead of focusing on > victimhood, offers a forward-looking perspective of how the knowledge > of history helps expand future social horizons.[4] In his discussion > of the work _Communism Never Happened_ (2006) by the Romanian artist > Cirpian Mureşan, the author writes about a_rs memorativa_ and _ars > oblivionis_ as two perspectives that constitute and challenge > cultural memory through the strategies of forgetting and distorting > history. Through several examples, he contrasts the concepts of > "storage memory" and "functional memory" and expresses an explicit > interest in the role of mythology in post-socialist Europe. > Interestingly, Szczerski rarely employs the notion of an "archive," > preferring to refer to a more non-objective definition of cultural > memory. An archive as historical agency is of major importance for > research on political art practices because it helps to establish a > continuous critical dialogue between an artwork and its historical > and political context.[5] > > Further, the book proposes that post-1989 art production was, by and > large, conditioned by the use of grotesque interpretations of the > political and social reality. Szczerski traces the relationship > between expressionist and surrealist traditions of central and > eastern Europe and the postmodern irony that permeated works by the > artists in question. Deconstruction of the socialist narrative > provoked the carnivalization of art in the years following 1989, > which was expressed in extensive development of performance art. > > Along with the questions of history, the book pays attention to the > local context and the territorial importance in developments of > national identity and the role of artists in the reflection of > democratization processes. Szczerski proposes that "national cultures > provide the grounds for stability and subjectivity in the > contemporary globalized world" (p. 173). He also critiques the newly > emerged national cultures (as in the work _Compsognation_ [2013] by > Hungarian artist András Cséfalvay). Other examples briefly address > artistic reflections on the unity and difference in Europe. This > includes the focus on different definitions of European identity, > boundaries, and the metapolitical symbolism in the works of > east-central European artists. The main question remains, however: > what are the fundaments and criteria one can use to compare the > varied contexts, from the reflection upon the "ghost cities" built to > host the 1988 Armenian earthquake victims (Vahram Agasyan, _Ghost > City_ [2005-7]) to the revival of Soviet communal living in Warsaw > (Maciej Kurak, _Puszczyka 20b_ [2007])? > > The author reflects on the polyphony of local "horizontal" contexts > in a thematic comparison. One of the main focuses of the book is > architecture, as living space, a habitat, a deprivation of freedom > and barriers, and, finally, an environment where subversive and > alternative ideas can develop. Architecture, by default, is one of > the most durable legacies of any historical period. It is a long-term > reminder of the style, preferences, and tastes of a particular regime > or society. For the author, socialist architecture, the anonymizing > housing blocs that can be equally found in Prague, Warsaw, and Kyiv, > is a permanent flashback to the limitations brought about by > socialism. Szczerski frequently refers to the projects that work with > this tangible legacy. > > With a more detailed focus on Polish artists, which produces a > certain imbalance in the analysis, the author contextualizes the > creative processes of memory, amnesia, and overcoming of trauma in > the post-socialist condition. Moreover, he challenges the idea of > forgetting as a third option that is neither remembrance nor > oblivion. It is the mythologization of the past and the creation of > alternative history that substitutes the lived experience. > Architecture is a particular legacy that prevents amnesia but can be > inhabited with an alternative past. > > This inhabitable mythology employed by Szczerski intersects with > various contemporary research perspectives: from Jane Rendell's > architectural "space between" (_Art and Architecture: A Place > Between_ [2006]) to Svetlana Boym's "in-betweenness" (_Another > Freedom: The Alternative History of an Idea_ [2018]) or Edward Soja's > "thirdspace" (_Thirdspace: Journeys to Los Angeles and Other > Real-and-Imagined Places_ [1996]). This desire of avoiding oblivion, > as well as challenging memory, is particularly strong in the text. > That is why the author pays so much attention to practices that aim > at creating an alternative narrative. The extensive number of works > that address the socialist past through the balance between > remembering and forgetting prove that the ghost of communism in > east-central Europe has already become part of a museum exposition. > The historicization of art, when an artist turns to the work with the > historical trauma that is common for the countries of the former > Eastern Bloc, is an essential link between otherwise localized > practices. The idea of alternative histories presents one of the most > interesting perspectives on post-socialist culture as a necessity to > rewrite traumatic history and to create an alternative world where > ideological confrontations turn to harmony and the emptiness of > socialist realty turns into plentitude. The examples used by the > author bridge fantasy and reality, from the creation of fictitious > biographies to artistic falsifications of historic events. > > Szczerski proposes three conclusions for his detailed study. First, > he argues that the art that exists "on the margins" plays the key > role in transcending national borders and geopolitical hierarchies of > center and periphery. He refers to the critical regionalism developed > by Kenneth Frampton to describe cultural models that are tied to a > particular place. This connection to place reveals the reason for > Szczerski's deep interest in the architectural and spatial legacies > of socialism as characteristic for the locus of his analysis. Second, > he highlights the increasing role of participatory and activist art > practices. And finally, he emphasizes the "civilizational unity" of > eastern and western Europe. > > The book could have benefited from a larger focus on artists from the > post-Soviet Southeast, such as Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan. It > would also be interesting to trace the differences between the > processes of the post-communist dissolution in former Soviet > countries and the countries of the former Eastern Bloc. While the > book pays much attention to the latter, the examples of the former in > many cases stay out of scope, with relatively few works from Ukraine, > Belarus, and Moldova. > > One of the important questions that this responds to is why > contemporary art in east-central Europe is so widely seen through the > lens of its political statements rooted in the past. It thus > encourages further questions. Is there contemporary art in the region > that is forward-looking rather than constantly reinterpreting what > has happened? If so, is there sufficient space for nonpolitical art, > given that the plurality and polyphony highlighted by the author are > characteristic of post-1989 art? Also, beyond the common past, what > is the general pattern that forms the possibility of comparison > between art practices in east-central and southeastern Europe? > > The book is highly recommended for those interested in the emergence > of political contemporary art in post-socialist spaces and its > development as an answer to democratization. This is a great source > for selected information on art that transcends post-Cold-War > divisions. One of the main strengths of this book lies in > recollection and thorough analysis of the works spanning three > decades after the fall of the Iron Curtain. > > Notes > > [1]. Francis Fukuyama, "The End of History?," _National Interest_, > no. 16 (Summer 1989): 3-18. > > [2]. Branislav Jakovljević, "Handworks: Yugoslav Gestural Culture > and Performance Art," in _1968/1989: Political Upheaval and Artistic > Change_, ed. Claire Bishop and Marta Dziewańska (Warsaw: Museum of > Modern Art, 2009), 38. > > [3]. Robert Traba, "Historia stosowana jako subdyscyplina akademicka: > Konteksty i propozycje," in _Historia - dziś: Teoretyczne problemy > wiedzy o przeszłości_, ed. Ewa Domańska, Rafał Stobiecki, and > Tomasz Wiślicz (Kraków: Universitas, 2014), 143-64. > > [4]. Ewa Domańska, "Miejsce Franka Ankresmita w narratywistycznej > filozofii historii," in _Frank Ankersmit, Narracja, reprezentacja, > doświadczenie_, ed. Ewa Domańska (Kraków: Universitas, 2004), > 5-27. > > [5]. See Charles Merewether, ed., _The Archive_ (Cambridge, MA: MIT > Press, 2012); and Paul Clarke, Simon Jones, Nick Kaye, and Johanna > Linsley, eds., _Artists in the Archive: Creative and Curatorial > Engagements with Documents of Art and Performance _(London: > Routledge, 2018). > > Citation: Svitlana Biedarieva. Review of Szczerski, Andrzej, > _Transformation: Art in East-Central Europe after 1989_. H-SHERA, > H-Net Reviews. February, 2021. > URL: https://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=55591 > > This work is licensed under a Creative Commons > Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States > License. > > -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Groups.io Links: You receive all messages sent to this group. View/Reply Online (#6726): https://groups.io/g/marxmail/message/6726 Mute This Topic: https://groups.io/mt/80909451/21656 -=-=- POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. -=-=- Group Owner: [email protected] Unsubscribe: https://groups.io/g/marxmail/leave/8674936/21656/1316126222/xyzzy [[email protected]] -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
