Gegenwart: ᕲのﾉᘉᘜ ᖻのひᖶん

Gegenwart: ᕲのﾉᘉᘜ ᖻのひᖶん dedicates itself to the fleeting phenomenon present with a recurring exhibition project. The present (Gegenwart) is always twofold: a temporal state and what is present to us, something that has a presence. The present finds its expression here and now. It refuses accessibility because in the moment of reflection the present withdraws and instantaneously becomes the past. Only with a little distance, it becomes clear what the present was all about, what made this specific present and what its potential for the future might have been. The present is the place where every change begins. The project is an attempt to make the present somewhat more tangible in the context of an exhibition and performance project. In times of acceleration, fear of the future, and coming to terms with the past, this project aims to draw attention to expressions of experiences of the present, and its reception in contemporary art. The new exhibition format for contemporary art in Hamburg operates both in the urban space and in collaboration with established institutions and project spaces. In intervals of three years, the project will look at the changing and altered present – each time with a different thematic focus. From 15-18 July 2021 various local and international artists dedicated themselves to this year's theme Youth. Youth is to be understood as a place and an episode in which the present becomes visible in a specific way. We do not assume the existence of the youth, but rather emphasize their performative production in discourses and practices. The notion of youth is often attributed with several attributions, ascriptions, commonplaces, in which expectations, functions and norms of youth are being produced. Over the course of four days, performances and exhibitions by various artists took place at the Kunstverein Harburger Bahnhof, the Hochschule für bildende Künste, the Hamburger Kunsthalle, the Metropolis Kino, the project spaces Come Over Chez Malik's, hinterconti and Neue Barmbeker Apotheke, as well as in Hamburg Kiosks, parks and other public places. The open seminar 'The Kids are Alright - Youth of the Present and the Present of Youth' was held at the Freiraum of the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe. The accompanying panel discussion attempted to connect different approaches to 'youth'. The intention was not only to talk about ‘youth’ from sociological and artistic perspectives but also to let the youth speak for themselves. A project with Jasmina Al-Qaisi, Louis Backhouse, Elisa Barrera, Claire Barrow, Hilma Bäckström, Johanna Billing, Samantha Bohatsch, Hans-Christian Dany, Yeşim Duman, Paula Erstmann, Fashion House Limanka, Fatumata, Ella Fleck, Keira J Fox (New Noveta), Gerrit Frohne-Brinkmann, Anna Haifisch, Nschotschi Haslinger, Carsten Heinze, Hans Hemmert, Daniel Hopp, Florrie James, Nadine Janetzky (Manga Hamburg), Veit Laurent Kurz, Martin Karcher, Jil Lahr, Late Bloomer (Josefina Anjou and Niklas Büscher), Kristin Loschert, Marie Lüder, Nikolai Meierjohann, Aleen Solari, Paul Spengemann, Cole Sprouse, Vindicatri Find more information about the project on Instagram (@gegenwart_ ) or on our homepage www.gegenwart.jetzt A project by Elena Malzew and Lisa Klosterkötter