Curated by Aleksandra Jovićević and Giulia Mastropietro
Cycle “Theatre Performance Dance. History Visions Memory Research” - 4th Edition
March 25, 2025, 16:00, Room E, Ex-vetrerie Sciarra, Via dei Volsci 122
Bojana Kunst’s doctoral lecture, titled Artist at Work. Proximity of Art and Capitalism, will focus on artistic practices, exploring the complex economic and social conditions that influence contemporary artistic labor. Drawing from her essay Artist at Work (published in Slovene in 2012, in English in 2015, and in Italian (Bojana Kunst, L’artista al lavoro. Prossimità tra arte e capitalismo – Luca Sossella Editore 2024)), Kunst analyzes the radical changes in the concept of artistic labor, highlighting the emergence of increasingly precarious, flexible working conditions structured around project-based logic. Her work reflects on the transformation of the artist within the context of a globalized market, influenced by nationalist movements, geopolitical conflicts, and the rise of cultural and economic populism. A special focus will be placed on the role of political art, with attention to the increasing demand for engagement and its social function in recent decades. Kunst explores the contrast between this new demand for commitment and the daily reality of artists, who are increasingly immersed in self-management and project planning, yet simultaneously vulnerable to precariousness and resource scarcity.
The seminar will include an analysis of performances that challenge traditional conventions, questioning the social and political role of dance and performance in the current global context.
Bojana Kunst is a performance and dance theorist, dramaturg, and professor at the Institute for Applied Theatre Studies at Justus Liebig University in Giessen, where she directs the Master’s program in Choreography and Performance. Her research focuses on contemporary performance, the body in performative practice, and the relationship between art, politics, and society, with particular emphasis on the artist’s work, collaborative artistic processes, and the social and political role of performance and dance. A prolific author of numerous essays and monographs, and a member of editorial boards, her work has been translated into several languages. Among her publications are Impossible Body (Maska, Ljubljana, 1999), Dangerous Connections: Body, Philosophy and Relation to the Artificial (Ljubljana, 2004), and Artist at Work, Proximity of Art and Capitalism (Zero Books, 2015). Her most recent book, The Life of Art. Transversal Lines of Care, has been published in Slovene, German, and Croatian.
The event can be followed remotely via this link: https://meet.google.com/mfo-rzoh-gmd