The Old Brand New: New Subversion

How new is neo, and does ‘retro’ bring renewal?

A monthly English language lecture series in Stadsschouwburg Amsterdam revolving around the concept ‘new’ in the arts.

21 January: NEW SUBVERSION

Dr. Marina Gržinić, Michael Uwemedimo en Joep van Lieshout

In the arts, the concept ‘new’ is an ideal as well as a curse. The avant-garde has been declared dead and ‘the cult of the new’ is past its peak. The pursuit of absolute originality and total innovation has given way to concepts such as remix and postproduction, eclecticism and syncretism. Is ‘new’ still permitted, how new is neo, how innovative is retro? By looking at the term ‘new’ in light of ‘old’ subjects such as virtuosity, beauty, knowledge and entertainment, the lecture series THE OLD BRAND NEW proposes to free ‘new’ of its stale image and present it in its full complexity.

The multidisciplinary series is held from January to September 2009 on a monthly basis at Stadsschouwburg Amsterdam. The series was initiated and developed by de Appel arts centre, If I Cant Dance I Don’t Want To Be Part Of Your Revolution, Research group Art Practice and Development at the Amsterdam School of the Arts, LISA, Studium Generale of the Gerrit Rietveld Academie, DAI /Master Programme / ArtEZ Institute of the Arts and Stadsschouwburg Amsterdam.

New Subversion

The day after the inauguration of new American President Barack Obama on 21 January 2009, media theorist Marina Gržinić, writer and curator Michael Uwemedimo and artist Joep van Lieshout will speak on the topic of ‘New Subversion’. For hundreds of years, artists have confronted us incisively with art’s subversive potential, by touching on censored, banned, rejected and otherwise publicly ignored subjects. In the postmodern era, however, the transgression of taboos became an accepted form of contemporary amusement; the subversive artist could now be regarded, with some well-intentioned effort, as a perfectly tolerable and indeed subsidy-worthy citizen. With the artist apparently departed from the scene as a radical questioner, insubordinate or revolutionary, can creative and productive subversion still thrive at th e start of the 21st century?

Overview all lectures:

New Subversion 21 January

New Knowledge 10 February

New Virtuosity 24 March

New Centre 14 April

New Idealism 14 May

New Beauty 22 June

What is New? 15 September

Tickets and reservations: available at Stadsschouwburg Amsterdam, www.ssba.nl
More information: www.theoldbrandnew.nl