Artalk Revue, 4: The Return (2020) [Czech/English]

“The fourth issue of Artalk Revue on the theme of return is devoted to a critical examination of the consequences of colonialism and imperialism and the requirements of decolonization that translate into the representation of non-European cultures and exhibitions in ethnographic and archaeological museums. In her editorial, Vjera Borozan takes on the discussions on the return of artifacts to the countries of origin and the situation in cultural institutions. The other contributors outline the post-revolutionary context in Visegrad countries (Pavel Barša), the trajectory of friendship and solidarity during anti-colonial struggles in the 19th century (Ladislava Gažiová), current criticism of post-colonial studies and identity politics (Jan Sowa), advances in the process of decolonization of educational and cultural institutions (Françoise Vergès), and finally the links between the refugee and climate crises (Denise Ferreira da Silva).”

Edited by Vjera Borozan
Publisher Artalk.cz, Brno, 2020
42 pages

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The Handbook of Courage: Cultural Opposition and its Heritage in Eastern Europe (2018)

“The Courage Handbook ushers its reader into the world of the compellingly rich heritage of cultural opposition in Eastern Europe. It is intended primarily to further a subtle understanding of the complex and multifaceted nature of cultural opposition and its legacy from the perspective of the various collections held in public institutions or by private individuals across the region.

Through its focus on material heritage, the handbook provides new perspectives on the history of dissent and cultural non-conformism in the former socialist countries of Central, Eastern, and South-eastern Europe.

The volume is comprised of contributions by over 60 authors from a range of different academic and national backgrounds who share their insights into the topic. It offers focused discussions from comparative and transnational perspectives of the key themes and prevailing forms of opposition in the region, including non-conformist art, youth sub-cultures, intellectual dissent, religious groups, underground rock, avantgarde theater, exile, traditionalism, ethnic revivalism, censorship, and surveillance.”

Edited by Balázs Apor, Péter Apor and Sándor Horváth
Publisher Institute of History, Research Centre for the Humanities, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest, 2018
ISBN 9789634161424, 9634161421
634 pages

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Third Text, 153: Actually Existing Artworlds of Socialism (2018)

“The tensions between actual and ideal versions of socialism elucidated by East German theorist Rudolf Bahro in 1977 are taken as a starting point for reconsidering East European art from the radical effervescence of the 1960s to the post-utopian twilight of the late 1970s. The special issue is premised on the concept that artistic life in Eastern Europe was profoundly shaped by the structures, conventions and workings of the overarching system, with artists and critics compelled to negotiate its productive contradictions. It examines the quotidian functioning of art scenes across the region that entailed the drawing up of tacit compromises and maintenance of calculated ambiguities in relations between party authorities and artists. Ultimately it was the latent and unrealised promise of actually existing socialism as much as its demonstrative failings that marked a crucial difference in the attitude of East European artists to the utopian reverberations of the era.”

With texts by Maja Fowkes & Reuben Fowkes, Tomáš Pospiszyl, Tomasz Załuski, Zsuzsa László, Daniel Grúň, Candice M Hamelin, Hana Buddeus, Alina Șerban, Raino Isto, Sonja Simonyi, Marko Ilić, and Armin Medosch.

Edited by Reuben Fowkes
Publisher Routledge, July 2018
ISSN 0952-8822
194 pages

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