At the end of her video, Jill Scott asks “Where do we go from here?,” a question that seems to be a call to change course. But what could follow the belief in progress and growth? This chapter, which focuses on the keywords return, breakdown, and convive, brings together works that explore paths in different directions. Return – Jen Liu (*1976, lives in NYC) focuses on the nationalist fantasy of the re-industrialization of the United States by confronting symbols of power and control with texts that strive to overcome hegemonic social structures. Breakdown – Monika Funke Stern (*1943, lives in Berlin) raises the question of whether an invention that cannot be patented could lead to the collapse of possessive individualist orders—with consequences for the protagonist’s disciplined everyday work. Convive – a garbage dump, a symbol of our throwaway society, is at the centre of Tejal Shah’s (*1979, lives peripatetically) video. What happens when these nonplaces take over our living spaces, and can new relationships be forged here too?

Program:
Jen Liu, Machinist’s Lament, 2014, 17:48 min.
Monika Funke Stern, Zum Glück gibt’s kein Patent, 1985, 14:17 min.
Tejal Shah, Between the Waves, Channel II - Landfill Dance, 2012, 5:02 min.

Curated by: Kat Lawinia Gorska

Jill Scott labeled the individual chapters of her work Paradise Tossed with the terms help, hope, growth, and change. They reflect the expectations, aspirations, and visions that have shaped the twentieth century. But what remains of them today? 
The accelerated way of life defined by consumption and fast-paced communication and relationships leads to the downfall of the satirically portrayed figure of the “thinker” in Max Almy’s (*1948, lives in Malibu and Savannah) video of the same title, which takes viewers through various eras in which men dominated. Nastja Säde Rönkkö (*1985, lives in Helsinki) captures in poetic images the fragility of nature and its ongoing destruction. Her poem is directed to the next generations of species that will survive. The starting point for the work of María Alcaide (*1992, lives in Paris) is her own family, and she reflects on growing up in a patriarchal society in rural Spain by comparing the oppression of women to the exploitative conditions of meat production.

Program:
Max Almy, The Thinker, 1989, 7:39 min.
Nastja Säde Rönkkö, Milk & Decay, 2019, 9:32 min.
María Alcaide, Carne de mi carne: Entraña, 2021, 35:53 min.

Curated by: Darija Šimunović

Based on Dara Birnbaum’s (*1946, lives in New York) video Evocation, in which an everyday scene at a playground triggers transcendental experiences, the last chapter of the exhibition series examines the visionary potential of alternative psychological realities and interpersonal relationships.
As part of a trilogy inspired by the myth of Faust, Birnbaum collages introspections — evanescent memories of her protagonists — with urban landscapes in decay. Accompanied by quotes from the cultural theorist Lauren Berlant, Jiajia Zhang (*1981, lives in Zurich) tests the hallucinogenic effect of the dazzling facades of shopping districts in her video. In the spirit of Berlant, different stages of transformation and belonging to the urban environment are tested. In their life and art practice, Dani and Sheilah ReStack (*1972 / *1975, live in Ohio) establish a concrete safe space and “wild domestic” environment in which queer desire, motherhood, aging, and resulting fears and hopes are shared in their radical physicality.

Program:
Dara Birnbaum, Evocation, 1983, 10 min.
Dara Birnbaum, Damnation of Faust: Will-o’-the-Wisp (A Deceitful Goal), 1985, 5:38 min.
Dara Birnbaum, Damnation of Faust: Charming Landscape, 1987, 6:30 min.
Jiajia Zhang, Beautiful Mistakes (after LB), 2022, 8:57 min.
Dani & Sheilah ReStack, The Sky’s In There, 2022, 11:24 min.

Curated by: Nele Kaczmarek