Kunst- und Kultursektion Cindycat unterstützt geprellte Kolleg_innen des Projekts StartPoint Prize
Die Kunst- und Kultusektion Cindcat der FAU Dresden unterstützt aktuell Künstler_innen die auf der StartPoint Prize ausgestellt haben. Bei dieser Ausstellung werden jährlich die besten Abschlussarbeiten europäischer Kunstakademien in der Prager Nationalgalerie gezeigt.
Aufgrund inakzeptabler Organisation und Arbeitsbedingungen auf der Ausstellung rasierte FAU-Unterstützerin Irène Mélix ihr Kunstwerk, eine behaarte Wand aus Protest ab. Dem Protest schloss sich ein Großteil der Ausstellenden an und formulierte folgenden Protestbrief:
Dear StartPoint Prize Team – Curator, Organising Committee, Jury Members, National Gallery of Prague,
The StartPoint Prize for emerging European artists occurs annually in Prague with the positive intention of supporting young, promising artists. It provides them with a high-profile opportunity to exhibit their work at the National Gallery of Prague Trade Fair Palace and for three of the exhibiting artists there is the chance to win a residency and catalogue.Unfortunately at this point in time we are far from happy with how the exhibition has developed in relation to many factors.
We collectively demand the following, for ourselves and for future artists of the StartPoint Prize exhibition:
1. Respectful Communication – Timely responses to individual email queries.
2. Budget Transparency – Clear outline of funding available for production costs.
3. Professional Organisation – Concerning transport and accommodation, caring for the works during the exhibition period, catalogue details and all aspects of communication.
4. Refunds – Refund of costs incurred by artists towards materials, transport and accommodation.
5. Professional Return/Shipment – Of all artworks and borrowed materials within the promised timeframe.
6. For the future artists of StartPoint Prize – Basic artist fee for installation labour.
As young, emerging artists we have become aware through participation in this exhibition that we need to fight for respect for our labour, in both creative and financial terms. This concerns the cultural industry as a whole. With this collective stance we are doing our part to find solution to the negative treatment we have experienced here and to end exploitative and unprofessional treatment of artists across this industry.
Our concerns are for various members of our group who have been treated unfairly and we wish to raise these issues so that future participants of the StartPoint Prize will not have to face these same issues again. We collectively demand that each of us and our work is treated respectfully and that communication and monetary issues are resolved without delay.
Several of us have attempted to rectify our individual situations by making contact with staff to which we have received unsatisfactory responses. If we do not receive appropriate responses, collectively and/or individually, we will have no option but to make a public statement about our experiences throughout this exhibition. We are ready and willing to do this, and also to communicate our concerns to our respective schools so that future participants will have adequate support throughout their experience.
Artists of the Startpoint Prize 2017:
Aga Beaupré, Otto Byström, Céline Ducrot, Pachet Fulmen, Michelle Hall, Elina Jonina, Oskar Jakobsen, Tomasz Kobialka, Selina Lampe, Anna Madenska, Irène Mélix, Martina Ruzickova, Jana Shostak, Anastasija Sosunova,Morten Jensen Vågen, Oscar Erik Yran
Es solidarisierte sich bis jetzt unter anderem das Rektorat der HfBK Dresden, der Landesverband Bildende Kunst Sachsen berichtete darüber.
