“Art for a New Civics”: a joint project between the Monira Foundation and the International Artists’ Museum.
The Monira Foundation, in conjunction with the International Artists’ Museum, plans to initiate a new meeting of artists from across the globe under the title “Art for a New Civics”. The project will explore speculative futures in the realm of civic life. The aim is to have leading artists and thinkers react to topics that are at the forefront of local and international concern over the changing rights and obligations of citizens in society. The uniqueness of the project lies in the fact that it foregrounds the perspective of artists rather than the interests of the formal art establishment of galleries and institutions–and it stresses involvement of local communities.
The International Artists’ Museum has been holding artistic get-togethers for over forty years, an idea that grew out of the “Construction in Process” project. Among the founders and dominant participants were members of the Fluxus artistic movement. The meetings were held every few years around a chosen conceptual theme, each time in a different location across the globe.
The current collaboration between the Monira Foundation and the International Artists’ Museum will be composed of four main parts:
a. Artists who will work together in around 20 of the permanent studios at Mana Contemporary in Jersey City (local artists who will host guest artists in their studios).b. Select participating artists will collaborate with artists and stakeholders living and working in neighboring communities (e.g. Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens, Jersey City) to realize special projects that address civic issues at the neighborhood level.c. An exhibition of leading artists from the International Artists’ Museum. This will be both a retrospective and an update. To facilitate this, three teams have been set up – one in Israel, one in Europe and one in New York. The exhibition will be held at Mana Contemporary in conjunction with the other parts of the project.d. A four-day summit on speculative civic futures, bringing together prominent artists, academics, and practitioners.
The project will be accompanied by a long list of additional activities, such as an around the clock laboratory and media center that artists from around the world can connect to, video marathons, workshops, performances and installations.Production of the project involves tremendous efforts by the producers and curators involved and it is clear that we must enlist help and support for its budget. We are currently working on setting up a “circle of friends” that support the idea, whose role it will be to help realize the project. We ask that you help in any way you can and lend a hand in turning it into a reality.
Sincerely,
Eugene Lemay, Yigal Ozeri, Doron Polak, Michael Lazar / Initiators and Producers of Art for a New Civics
