Ahead of the opening in the second half of this year, Fotografiska Berlin – the new museum for photography – reveals Fotografiska DAYS: a three-day event program titled CULTURAL FABRIC — Rereading the Relationship Between Fashion and Art Practices. Taking place at Berlin’s Atelier Gardens, the event connects people across the city in a weekend-long programme of group shows, panel discussions, workshops, portfolio reviews, film screenings and more.
Unfolding across three days (March 23 – 25), CULTURAL FABRIC — Rereading the Relationship Between Fashion and Art Practices aims to examine the power of visual language as it relates to art and fashion, by rereading the creative and subversive potential of diverse image and brand-making strategies. Part of EMOP (the European Month of Photography), the event program is dedicated to proposing new ideas and fostering essential dialogues in the field of contemporary visual culture.
With only a couple of weeks before Fotografiska DAYS begins, SLEEK speaks to Director of Exhibitions Marina Paulenka about Fotografiska, its new event and why critical dialogue is crucial in creative spaces.
SLEEK: Fotografiska is not a traditional museum or gallery. Without permanent exhibitions or artwork for sale, Fotografiska aims to provoke conversation. It also believes that “photography is an inclusive medium with a unique ability to shape emotions, convey stories and effect change.” How do these principles translate into Fotografiska DAYS?
Marina Paulenka: Fotografiska DAYS brings together artists and visitors to exchange on relevant and inspirational topics of current importance. This multidisciplinary event will touch upon exhibitions, film and music with four DJ sets and conferences. This multidisciplinary approach mixing art, music, food and thought reflects the world of Fotografiska. We aim to be open, inclusive, inspiring, thought-provoking and enjoyable. This festival will hopefully translate the experience of coming to Fotografiska.
S: Fotografiska DAYS is a three-day long program that will be held at Berlin’s Atelier Gardens. Why this satellite space? Why not in the walls of one of Fotografiska’s buildings?
MP: Before the Fotografiska Berlin museum officially opens, we would like to take the opportunity to collaborate closely with local and international artists, cultural workers and organisations. We see collaboration with Atelier Gardens, with whom we share the same energy and values, as a very logical move for this program to come to life in one of the most attractive new locations in the city. We believe that it is important to present our program not only in our museum but also to continue cooperation with different local institutions and in this way to support and develop each other and jointly shape the cultural landscape of the city.
S: The theme is CULTURAL FABRIC — Rereading the Relationship Between Fashion and Art Practices. Why was it important for you to combine art and fashion together? What is the importance of having the two in a dialogue with one another?
MP: Fashion and art have always been in dialogue with one another and today, we have some great examples of this collaboration. However, living in the system and society we know today which shapes different demands, creative economies and market rules, it is important to critically reflect on contemporary visual culture.
It is also interesting to discuss these topics here in Berlin, where various creative practices intertwine and different audiences participate in creating these narratives. Exhibition and discursive programs defies the idea that fashion is art’s other, but rather that the crossover of the two systems opens new perspectives on how we can understand contemporary visual culture.
S: With a line up of group shows, panel discussions, workshops, portfolio reviews, film screenings and more, Fotografiska DAYS is placing importance on education and critical dialogue. Why was such an approach crucial for the program?
MP: Education, meditation and critical thinking could bring us growth and positive changes. I believe that the critical potential of artistic production is significant. Today’s system poses obstacles to critical knowledge. It is important to constantly ask questions about how some knowledge becomes legitimate, and another does not. It is necessary to learn to look at and repeatedly discuss and hear diverse and underrepresented voices so that we can create different concepts to reflect and create our reality.
S: Alongside the international lineup of artists, the program also provides clusters of free space in between programming for local collectives, studios and organisations. How do you hope local talent will utilise the spaces?
MP: This will be an exciting and spontaneous opportunity to find out the needs and desires of the local protagonists, and we believe that by watching and listening, we can develop some new creative formats together. In this way, we can always hear and learn about our audience, hear their voices, needs and thoughts about the future of society, art and museums – inclusively and openly. We are curious to see how they will use this dance floor.
S: The event aims to disrupt the commercialisation of fashion and art while exploring themes of aestheticization, appropriation and tastemaking. How can audiences participate in these dialogues?
MP: The commercialisation of these two fields is irreversible and existing. Still, we want to open a dialogue and be a platform for discussion, spreading our knowledge, changing beliefs, taking responsibility and integrating into everyday life and activities. Invited guests work in the broad field of visual production (photographers, artists, curators, fashion designers, theoreticians, critics, magazine editors) and together, they’ll discuss the complex roles images play in the world of fashion and visual art to uncover potential for critical interpretation and reflexive consumption. The audience is here with us and invited to participate in these dialogues during panel discussions, curatorial tours and informal conversations. Everyone is invited to exchange experiences and opinions. The change is not immediately visible but I believe everyone will take something meaningful away from this event.
Find more about Fotografiska DAYS: CULTURAL FABRIC — Rereading the Relationship Between Fashion and Art Practices, running from March 23 – 25 here.