Since the beginning of the 19th Century, artists, philosophers, writers, scientists… have left the city to seek inspiration in the utopian landscape. The locus of contemplation and creativity versus the bustle of the city. Although it is rooted in a longer tradition, the solitary workplace may be best known in the form of Heidegger’s Hütte, his timber-shaggled cabin in the Black Forest in southern Germany. But while these retreats were once an endeavor of creative solitude, contemporary residencies have shifted to a more social and collaborative model. Today, academics and artists apply for international residencies less for isolation but more for social interaction, both with peers and with the local communities. An evolution which is stimulated by local and international funding opportunities.
Program
19:30: Intro
19:45: Film ‘Die Hütte’ by Sophie Nys
20:00: Keynote John Tresch (Warburg Institute): ‘Being Alone Together: The Informalities of Neo-Monasticism’
20:30: Pascale Hurtado (IMéRA Foundation) (presentation in French)
20:45: Discussion with Jan Ritsema (PAF/MASSIA), Amy Porteous (Bothy Project) and Haseeb Ahmed (artist), moderated by Alan Quireyns (AIR Antwerpen)