Special Questions in History of Art and Architecture: X-cene. A Oral History Project

Abstract

The seminar will reflect on and experiment with different forms of interviews. The interviews will take place in the context and on topics of the "X - cene Matinee" in the wind tunnel of the ZHdK. This series of events will deal with the current discourse on the Anthropocene, Pyrocene, Capitalocene, Plantationocene and Chthulocene in artist's talks.

Objective

Students will deal with central current discussions on the Anthropocene and get to know forms of artistic engagement with it. They will also learn about the methods and techniques of interviewing and about oral history as an instrument of research.

Content

In recent years, the interview has become omnipresent in architectural discourse, but also in art. The seminar examines and reflects the manifold forms and uses of the interview, both in the media and in scientific research, especially oral history. In the seminar we will explore different forms of interviews. The interviews will take place in the context and on topics of the "X - cene Matinee" in the wind tunnel of the ZHdK. This series of events will deal with the current discourse on the Anthropocene, Pyrocene, Capitalocene, Plantationocene and Chthulocene in artist's talks. We will interview the artists of the series, but also security, cleaning staff, facility management, students, visitors, etc. In this way, the wind tunnel will be recorded as a living laboratory, production and meeting place. Besides classical forms of interview recording we will experiment with other techniques such as I-phone, livestream cameras. The resulting interviews will become part of the Oral History Archive of Contemporary Art and Architecture. X cene - Matinee The X - cene Matinee is a series of events dealing with the current discourse and its manifold manifestations about the Anthropocene, Pyrocene, Capitalocene, Plantationocene and Chulocene. In the wind tunnel we try to discover new forms of communication by translating scientific data and psychological states into visual, audible and tangible experiences. Together with those invited and the audience, we try to ask the right questions about interdependent life and the human role in the new era. Through individual and collective encounters, the answers we find can be esoteric, spiritual, dramatic, inspirational, fictional, aesthetic, analytical, intellectual or no answers at all. Invited guests: Isabel Nolan, Clemens Krauss, Ari Benjamin Meyers, Isabel Lewis, Stefanie Hessler, Leslie Thornton

Resources