Press Release: Contested Histories, Shared Futures

Conference of the European Alliance of Academies in Amsterdam, 28/29 June 2022

Akademie van Kunsten (KNAW) Amsterdam
Streamed live at www.allianceofacademies.eu

Art and cultural institutions across Europe have begun to re-examine their own
history – a process that is also instituting lasting change in cultural and artistic
practices. Be it the content of collections, the significance of monuments in public
spaces or the renaming and reconfiguration of art institutions – the debate about
levels of meaning, past and future, is becoming increasingly political and heated.
The reasons for this are manifold, as are the ways in which the debates are being
conducted. The conference “Contested Histories, Shared Futures” invites
artists, writers, curators and political leaders to discuss the contentious issues on
the basis of concrete examples.

Illuminating the cultural significance of historical events can contribute productively
to shaping new shared perspectives. The European Alliance of Academies is
convinced that artistic approaches can contribute substantially to a re-appraisal of
narratives and our own practices so that the future challenges of European
societies can be met.

With, among others, Bruno Alves de Almeida, Liesbeth Bik, Vasyl Cherepanyn,
Charles Esche, RAAAF Rietveld Architecture Art Affordances, Andreja Kulunčić,
Jeanine Meerapfel, Amina Menia, Joanna Rajkowska, Wendelien van Oldenborgh,
Fernando Sánchez Castillo, Paul Spies and Aleš Šteger.

The public programme will be streamed live at www.allianceofacademies.eu.
An event of the European Alliance of Academies, organised by the Akademie der
Künste and the Akademie van Kunsten (KNAW). Funded by the German Federal
Agency for Civic Education (bpb)

You can download this press release here.