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Arnolfini - est 1961

Friday & Saturday 19 – 20 November 2004

Opening event: 18 November

Situations conference

The Wrong Place: Rethinking Context in Contemporary Art

Exploring the significance of context in the commissioning and production of artworks, this two-day conference examines notions of the ‘wrong place’. What is the significance of context in a biennial of contemporary art and to whom? Do the specifics of location override the specifics of artwork? What kinds of new approach have been developed to address the issue of itinerancy (artists as temporary visitors)? Or is parachuting artists into given situations a positive outcome of the globalisation of art production?

The conference will include presentations, responses, dialogues, screenings and performances including presentations by the following participants:

Nicolas Bourriaud, Co-director and curator, Palais de Tokyo, Paris and author

Miwon Kwon, Assistant Professor of Art History at the University of California, Los Angeles and author

Declan McGonagle, Chair of Art and Design and Director of ‘INTERFACE’, Belfast

Doris Salcedo, artist

A full conference schedule will be available on the Situations website www.situations.org.uk in September.

The conference is supported by the University of the West of England, Arts Council England and the Institut français du Royaume-Uni.