A must-read for anyone interested in how art in society functions
TM, 2024
and who is curious how this will continue.
M.O. Art at arm's length, is the companion volume to KVADRENNALEN, PLATFORM FOR CONTEMPORARY ART TO RESPOND TO POLITICAL THREAT (2022), written by Thierry Mortier - as initiating artist - with contributions by Anna Koch, Efva Lilja, Joana Maria Pereira, Peter Mills, Conny Blom, Nina Slejko Blom.
The companion volume presents an insider’s perspective of what KVADRENNALEN was all about, why it was thought necessary to set up, how the larger art scene in Sweden received it, and what it did and did not accomplish.
It also anchors KVADRENNALEN in the larger (inter)national socio-economic and political context and functions as the catalogue for the 154 art events that populated the KVADRENNALEN calendar from January 11th to September 11th 2022 (election day) in Sweden.
Although KVADRENNALEN was not set up as a test case, the insights and experiences highlighted in the companion volume function as exactly that: a real-life case where artists and art organisations came together to spread one message to society at large, namely that art is essential in society.
KVADRENNALEN is a national initiative that aims to show the role of art in a free society, and the necessity of a free cultural life. The initiative includes all art forms and all parts of the art field. The goal of KVADRENNALEN is to elevate art, and give its representatives a voice in the debate about the role of culture in our society.
Konsthall C, Feb. 2022