The CCCB presents “Under Siege”
The exhibition’s two audio-visual installations can be seen from the 17 of September to the 9th of November and will be accompanied by a series of conferences
As part of the tercentenary celebrations, the CCCB presents Under Siege, a programme which includes two artistic installations as well as a series of conferences. Based on the 300th anniversary of the siege of Barcelona in 1714, the project is both a reflection on the continuing sieges being suffered by cities in the world today as well as a proposal for individual and collective strategies for resistance.
Curated by Chus Martínez, the programme includes installations by Mariam Ghani (New York, 1978) and Omar Fast (Israel, 1972). Ghani presents a double-projection entitled A Brief History of Collapse, which explores the connections between the Dar ul-Aman Palace, in Kabul, and the Fridericianum Museum, in Kassel, Germany, home of the art event, Documenta. The two buildings share architectural characteristics as well as similar historical dynamics.
The Omer Fast film, Five Thousand Feet is the Best is based on two encounters with an operator of a ‘Predator’ drone, the type currently in use in conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. The operator’s explanations changed radically depending on whether he was on camera or off and, on one occasion, he brusquely put an end to the interview. Instead of using documentary images to complement the story, Omer Fast hired an actor to play the role of the operator interviewed. On the 16th of September the installations will be accompanied by a conversation between the Afghan film maker Mariam Ghani and Chus Martínez, in which they will discuss artistic practises in the context of a siege.
The programme includes three parallel debates dealing with specific contemporary sieges such as those of Kabul, Homs and Gaza. Israeli Ahron Bregman will discuss one of the most well-known of these in Gaza. The permanent siege (25/09), while in Drones. The long-distance siege (2/10), Chris Woods, Tonje Hessen Schei and Jordi Pérez Colomé will discuss the way in which technology has transformed the concept of siege, a subject that will also be discussed by Leila Nachawati and Lali Sandiumenge in Syria. The information siege (3/10), in which the two journalists will reflect on the advances being made in social networks and journalistic censorship in Syria today. The conversations can also be seen in a programme entitled Soy cámara, which will be televised from the CCCB.
The Under Siege installations can be seen from the 17th of September to the 9th of November in the CCCB. Entry is free and more information is available here.