1 (edited by simon dunne 22-06-2006 16:27:50)

Topic: Protest Legal Action against Manifesta Curators

Dear all:

Apparently Nicosia For Arts has initiated legal action against the curators of Manifesta 6 as individuals, and has gone as far as to have scheduled a court appearance without ever serving them legal papers properly.

It appears that the intention of this legal action is to prevent them from continuing their professional activities, and to dismantle any possibility for the realization of their original project elsewhere (independently of Manifesta and Cyprus)

I really hope that both the Cypriot Cultural Community as well as the European Cultural Community take some actions against this; it is hard to believe that a cultural event is being subjected to this degree of prosecution.

To remain indifferent to this actions and to allow them to go forward would set a terrible precedent for all kind of  International Cultural Events --it will basically mean accepting that artists and cultural producers can be prosecuted legally for their intellectual stance--

This is an issue that potentially affects us all, and cannot be accepted. Artistic autonomy and freedom of speech must be protected, not only on behalf of Manifesta, but on behalf of a sane society and the advancement of cultural development. If this kind of censorship succeeds, any artist or curator that is working with contested political subject matters, is potentially liable for prosecution. (Think about Catherine David, Okwi Enwezoor, The Withney Biennial of 1993, the work of artists like Leon Golub, Martha Rosler, Paul Chan, Hans Haacke, Alfredo Jaar, Harun Farocki, etc....) Does this mean that we have to abandon the idea of art as a critical tool in order to avoid political consequences, and refrain ourselves to working on the production of commodities and aestheticallly pleasing platitudes?

It is frightening to realize that these people are being taken to court for an idea --Manifesta 6 was cancelled, so since the project never took place, they are actually being legally atacked on ideological grounds --- This modus operandi seems to me like that of a totalitarian regime..... shall we accept this as the way to address international cultural events in Europe and elsewhere? I truly hope not.

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Re: Protest Legal Action against Manifesta Curators

Dear Simon, you are totally right. If the cultural community on Cyprus is content to stand by as this is unfolding without any protest, public comment, without taking any position whatsoever, it means that they tacitly support the most horrific type of censorship: one that proposes a global censorship precedent in which an artist or a curator from china or korea can be persecuted for work he or she would like to do in germany if a government objects to their views. This should not be allowed to stand, if it succedes then we are all in serious trouble.

It also raises serious issues about intellectual property - who but the artists and curators could claim any rights to the ideas and projects they developed for this school? How is it possible for a municipal government in Nicosia to try to ban them realizing their work in other countries or cities?

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Re: Protest Legal Action against Manifesta Curators

Dear Frank, is it ok to post your reply to my posting on the Manifesta forum? I am very troubled by the implications of this action and the way they can potentially affect all kinds of cultural initiatives as you are mentioning, so I would like to share the conversation on as many platforms as possible.

thanks!

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Re: Protest Legal Action against Manifesta Curators

yes of course Simon, please go ahead.

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Re: Protest Legal Action against Manifesta Curators

Frank wrote:

It also raises serious issues about intellectual property - who but the artists and curators could claim any rights to the ideas and projects they developed for this school? How is it possible for a municipal government in Nicosia to try to ban them realizing their work in other countries or cities?

So Frank where do you come from? America? The land of the free?

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Re: Protest Legal Action against Manifesta Curators

Yes Petros, I write from America, you have a problem with that?

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Re: Protest Legal Action against Manifesta Curators

No! no problem

8 (edited by simon dunne 22-06-2006 20:37:54)

Re: Protest Legal Action against Manifesta Curators

Dear Petros, do you understand that your comparison is completely off-topic?  A biennial exhibition is very different from Guantanamo bay, you know.

It is very important to discuss the implications that this terrible instance of censorship can potentially have in regards to artistic freedom. This is way beyond the feud that greek and turkish cypriots have with each other, this is about protecting cultural autonomy, yes? As far as I am concerned, art is a critical activity that is not supposed to alineate itself with any given political agendas....

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Re: Protest Legal Action against Manifesta Curators

Dear Simon, actually I think what Petros is trying to say that the Republic of Cyprus is entitled whatever to whoever, because we americans are misbehaving in Guantanamo. I fully understand his point - its one of a simplistic, badly educated person. A person who sees no difference between all the people who live in America or does not know or care that there are many different political positions here: ranging from Bush to Chomsky. Perhaps he thinks so because of his Cypriotic experience and the education he received.

10 (edited by simon dunne 23-06-2006 06:12:03)

Re: Protest Legal Action against Manifesta Curators

Dear Frank, the problem here is that -for example- I am not from the USA (nor is any of the curators, or Manifesta Foundation for that matter) and the majority of the participants come from countries such as Colombia, Mexico, Sweden, and even un-recognized states such as Kosovo.  I don't think that there is any logic on the argument of saying that since the US army misbehaves in Guantanamo, therefore Nicosia for Art can legally prosecute a cultural project.... even badly educated people have an understanding of logical processes, fairness is fairness, I believe....