The representation of physical labour in art has shifted from a historically aestheticised position toward something less tangible, less celebrated, and more dystopian in its critique of hyper-capitalism, and the new (and outdated) dynamics of economic production today. The WORK WORK WORK WORK WORK WORK web platform maps the past to the present day – with a view to the future.
Questioning how contemporary representations of labour differ from those of the past, the project examines how the Fordist realities of workers underpinning the (current) cheap labour market are still on the periphery of our collective consciousness, despite (and perhaps due to) a shift to an increasingly techno-capitalist, immaterial, digital economy. The content traverses themes of class, race, gender, the non-human and the post-colonial condition, all within the context of current (and historical) labour, and global economic forces.
With contributions from a range of disciplines, mediums and positions, WORK manifests itself online as an experimental web platform. New content by commissioned artists, academics and thinkers will be regularly released online, as well as a range of related exhibitions, talks, publications and other relevant content. Two current research fellows of the Helsinki Collegium, Susanna Lindberg and Henning Trüper, are among the contributors.
WORK is a project by curator David Ashley Kerr, facilitated by the Helsinki Collegium for Advanced Studies and supported by Kone Foundation. The audience is warmly invited to join for an after-work drink to celebrate the official launch of the platform on Wednesday, June 12 at 6 pm, at the Finnish curatorial agency PUBLICS (Address: Sturenkatu 37-41, 4b). The website will be launched with an introduction from platform creator David Ashley Kerr and the Helsinki Collegium for Advanced Studies. The Berlin born street journal Arts of the Working Class will also be made available in Helsinki for the first time on the occasion of the launch.
The curator David Ashley Kerr will present the project at the launch, and there will be a reception to follow. The Berlin born street journal Arts of the Working Class will also be made available in Helsinki for the first time on the occasion of the launch.
Welcome!
Links:
www.workworkworkworkworkwork.com
More information:
Project Planner Kaisa Kaakinen, +358 2 941 22493, kaisa.kaakinen@helsinki.fi