consonni at documenta fifteen
In February 2020, the Indonesian ruangrupa art curators responsible for the 15th edition of the renowned art exhibition documenta, visit the CAV through the Etxepare Institute and as part of the ZABAL program in collaboration with the Arteingenium office. They visited 15 artist and collective studios. Subsequently, consonni is chosen to participate in documenta fifteen that opens in June 2022 in Kassel (Germany). documenta fifteen focuses on the idea of collective work, and they do so on the concept of lumbung. lumbung is the name of a system of collective collection and storage of rice, frequently used in Indonesian communities, to dispose of rice as a shared resource in the future. In this way, the edition addresses the current wounds that have their roots especially in colonialism, capitalism or patriarchal structures, and confronts them with models of collaboration that allow people to have a different vision of the world. consonni participates with his habitual form and way of working, bringing an intersection between art and literature to documenta. consonni's participation is diverse and multiple.
CATALOGS / GUIDES documenta
As artistic editor of the international exhibition guides. consonni works with the documenta curatorial team to formulate the concept that structures the two documenta fifteen catalogues. On the one hand, a general guide Handbook to understand the concept of the exhibition, illuminating central aspects and presenting the artists and groups participating in the exhibition. On the other hand, Walking, Finding, Sharing an illustrated book aimed at families and groups to dream collectively. We have the complicity of illustration, writing and imagination professionals: the Rotopol publishing house in Kassel (Julia Kluge, Nadine Redlich, Malwine Stauss, Carmen José and Rita Fürstenau); from Portugal, Isabel Minhós Martins and Bernardo P. Carvalho; from Argentina, Jules Inés Mamone (Femimutancia); from Mexico, Verónica Gerber Bicceci, and Innosanto Nagara from Indonesia. Learn more about documenta fifteen publications on their website.
LUMBUNG STORIES / RELATOS LUMBUNG
We also participate with an ambitious project that we have presented in the form of a literary book.
This project reconsiders the ways of publishing books in the world of art and not only affects the content, but also intervenes in the forms of editorial production and distribution.
Lumbung Stories is a book of fictional stories and essays about collective work, about the ways and possibilities of collaborating. There are various ancestral terms to describe this community practice: tequio in Mexico, auzolan in the Basque Country, lumbung in Indonesia, ubuntu in different African countries, minga in South American countries, mutirão in Brazil, allmande in Germany... We have located these terms and implicated publishers and writers from those places so that they reflect on the collective and how it is understood in each culture. The same book with multiple authorships and multiple editions according to each country.
Writers like harriet c. brown who prefaces the book, Yásnaya Elena Aguilar from Mexico, Azhari Aiyub from Indonesia, Nesrine Khoury from Syria, Uxue Alberdi from Euskal Herria, Panashe Chigumadzi from South Africa, Cristina Judar from Brazil, Mithu Sanyal from Germany... imagine about the possibilities of collaborative practice. It is published simultaneously by 8 independent publishers from different territories who share their resources and experiences. Dublinense from Brazil in Portuguese, Marjin Kiri from Indonesia in Indonesian, Txalaparta in Basque in Euskal Herria, consonni and Almadia in Spanish, the first in Spain and the second in Mexico, Hatje Cantz from Germany in German, Al Mutawassit in Arab countries in Arabic, Cassava Republic Press in Nigeria in English… combining hegemonic and minority languages.
LUMBUNG OF PUBLISHERS
We are also part of the lumbung of publishers meeting. Within the cultural sphere, independent publishers and editorial collectives depend on solidarity and the collaboration of resources to survive. During documenta fifteen, lumbung of publishers offers independent publishers the chance to meet each other and share knowledge. The goal is to create a network that exists beyond the 100 days of documenta. Two representatives from each publisher will travel to Kassel to participate in a two-day workshop. During the first Meydan* (from July 8 to 10) the participating publishers will develop a public program with presentations, workshops and readings. lumbung of publishers offers visitors to documenta fifteen the opportunity to learn about publishers, their programs and their ways of working. The participating editors will show their publications and productions. From consonni we will make a public presentation on the editorial and our work processes during that weekend; and we have coordinated a performative reading of the book Relatos lumbung / Lumbung Stories by the choreographer and dancer Idoia Zabaleta.
The publishers and collective lumbung publishers are the following: Abdul Halik Azeez, Alice Yard, Bananafish Books, BOLOHO, consonni, Cooperativa Cráter Invertido, David Kaiza, Erick Beltrán, HAMBRE, Jalada, Kayfa-ta, kuš!, Kutikuti, La Impresora, Marjin Kiri, microutopias press, N'fana Diakite, Nieves, Relámpago, Rotopol Press, Strapazin and Stripburger. Lumbung of publishers is supported by The Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia.
*Meydan means “market” or “public space” in Turkish and Arabic and refers to the public program that accompanies documenta fifteen, which seeks to engage in exchanges with the public.
LUMBUNG RADIO
lumbung radio is a community online radio project at documenta fifteen. It started in April 2022, before the opening of documenta, and will be broadcasting 24/7 during the 100 days of documenta fifteen. From consonni we propose for lumbung radio a series of podcasts to learn more about the authors who participate in the publication Relatos lumbung / Lumbung Stories. The writer María Bastarós together with harriet c. brown, who prefaces and edits the book, introduces us to lumbung cosmologies through interviews and readings from the book Relatos lumbung / Lumbung Stories. In each episode we will learn more about each of the authors that are part of the book and we will be able to listen to the first 300 words of each of the stories, read by each author* in their original language. The podcast was coordinated by consonni and produced as part of documenta fifteen for lumbung radio. It is conducted by María Bastarós, edited by Alberto de la Hoz and music from Enternet: Untilted, Aloes: Water intro, Cois agver: LR-RL, Enternet: Geo and Enternet: Beyond. This podcast has the support of Etxepare Euskal Institutua and Acción Cultural Española.
More information about lumbung radio at documentafifteen.de; and listen to lumbung radio, here.
