Conference

Longing for freedom from contradiction: Culture and the public 1
1 May 2024

In recent years, confrontations with sexism, racism and other forms of misanthropy have led to a critical examination of the programmes and attitudes of cultural institutions. By today, however, these demands seem to have fallen into a trap. The term »cancel culture«, originally introduced by right-wing actors, is being used more and more frequently, calls for boycotts and protests arise against collaboration with people or institutions because of their positioning, the idea of criticism threatens to turn into conformism. Based on a campaign against the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen, supporters, opponents and observers of this and similar campaigns discuss the question: Does the greatest danger for critical discussions about how to deal with political issues within the cultural sector come from the cultural sector itself?

1 May, 13 h, Eisenlager im Altenberg

Keynote Bazon Brock
13:00 h

Panel Cultural Theory
Bazon Brock, art theorist
Sara Rukaj, writer
Lea Wohl von Haselberg, film scholar and festival director
Moderated by Ute Cohen, writer and journalist
13:30 h

Panel The Cultural Scene
Sergio Edelsztein, curator
Ruth Herzberg, writer
Andreas Hoffmann, managing director documenta
Ronya Othmann, writer and journalist
Moderated by Ute Cohen, writer and journalist
16:30 h

Panel at the Festival Opening Ceremony
Lars Henrik Gass, festival director
Alexandra Schauer, sociologist
Rüdiger Suchsland, film critic
19:30 h, Lichtburg Filmpalast