Salzburg International Summer Academy of Fine Arts 2011

PROGRAMME OF EVENTS

"What is art?" - this is the motto of the 2011 Salzburg International Summer Academy of Fine Arts. The question is posed in one way or another in all the various events. It is not so much a matter of differentiation between art and non-art, but of asking what constitutes the specific quality of contemporary art, what works of art tell us about the world we live in, what are our experiences in encounters with art, what insights we can gain from looking at art, and what role art plays in different social contexts.

Lectures and discussions
The symposium Global Art with guests from countries including Egypt, India, Cuba and Germany will explore the question of whether contemporary art is always global art, and if so, what is in fact global art? Art that is universally comprehensible? Art devoted to global questions? Art traded worldwide?

Branka Stipančić locates the topic of "What is art?" historically in the 1970s and geographically in Zagreb. She reports on the post-conceptual Group of Six Artists, one member of which was Mladen Stilinovi?, who is teaching at this year's Summer Academy.

One evening is devoted to Living with climate change. Friedrich von Borries, architect, Raimar Stange, art critic and curator, and sociologist and social psychologist Harald Welzer will discuss this topic both theoretically and specifically in relation to artistic projects. The further question arises, of what role art assumes in the face of burning social and political problems, and how artistic methods can be applied.

Finally, under the title On attitudes to form and so on. Art and its communication as contemporary history, Patricia Köstring and Stephan Maier
have invited for an open debate two protagonists, Hans-Joachim Müller and Rolf Ricke, who have not only observed the art business since the 1960s, but have actively participated in shaping it.

Lunch Talks
This year the teaching artists will again present themselves and their work in Lunch Talks (held at the course locations), focusing on individual themes. They will discuss their current projects and topics and give a survey of their work, always bearing in mind the motto "What is art?" or "What is art capable of?"

Exhibitions
In exhibition rooms in Salzburg and Hallein, some of the teaching artists will offer insights into their work: Dénes Miklósi in the Galerie der Stadt Salzburg, Hubert Maier and atelier le balto in the kunstraum pro arte, Tanja Boukal in the Galerie Eboran, and Summer Academy assistants, under the curatorship of Bärbel Hartje, in the Series Schauraum I and II in the Galerie der KG Freiräume; Katrin Plavcak is represented in the thematic group exhibition Sense and Sensibility in the Salzburger Kunstverein.

Open Days
Anyone interested in seeing the results of this year's Summer Academy, learning about the concerns of artists today and what works were created during the courses, is cordially invited to visit the Open Days in Hohensalzburg Fortress, the Alte Saline Hallein and the Kiefer quarry in Fürstenbrunn. These occasions, on which the Summer Academy opens its doors to the public, offer an ideal opportunity to see the working methods of teachers and students and to experience the unique atmosphere in the various classes and locations.

Artists in Residence
After a very promising start last year, we have invited two further guests in interdisciplinary fields. The Summer Academy will be accompanied by the author Clemens Berger, whose latest novel Das Streichelinstitut was highly acclaimed, and by Jay Caboz, a young photographer from South Africa. Their subjective view of activities in the classes and at the public events will appear in a text and a series of photographs.

Exploring Salzburg - collections
The series Exploring Salzburg, which began last year with visits to art galleries, will be continued, with visits to public and private art collections in Salzburg. Private and public collections are decisive factors for the continuing function of the art business. What is it that motivates collectors to purchase art? Why do they purchase which art, and what does it mean for them to live with art? Is it important to maintain contact with artists? Do they purchase in art galleries? Do they buy from galleries, directly from the studio or at auctions? All this and more will be revealed to the participants in this unique series of events.