Unity in Diversity Through Art? Joseph Beuys’ Models of Cultural Dialogue

This essay proposes the artist Joseph Beuys and his work as paradigmatic for art that through its own diversity of approach can show possibilities for addressing diverse audiences, diverging receptions and modes of participation. It arises from a symposium on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the artist’s death held at the Goethe Institut Dublin, 23 January 2006. The argument focuses on Beuys practice from his Ulysses-Extension to the Migration Workshop at documenta 6, 1977, the FIU, as well as his work (and legacy) in Ireland. Relevant theories include Ecos openness and Adorno’s negative and positive representation, since Beuys works relationship to the Holocaust and trauma turns out to be central. Beuys is offered as predecessor of current discourse such as Bourriaud’s Relational Aesthetics and Documenta11. The article concludes with a new theoretization of participation in culture, Irit Rogoff’s Looking Away. It is supported by Beuys multi-layered, diversity-sustaining practice.Cultural Dialogue, Joseph Beuys, Diversity, Reception, Participation, Migration, documenta, FIU, Ireland, Openness, Holocaust, Trauma, Relational Aesthetics

Accepting Love and the Paradoxes of (Political) Art in Northern Ireland: Sandra Johnston

Brendiranje gradova s nasilnom poviješću obilježeno je srcima, no kakva ljubav pogoduje uspostavljanju i unaprjeđivanju demokratskih zajednica – i kako umjetnici ovoj temi mogu pristupiti na vjerodostojan način? U Belfastu, u Sjevernoj Irskoj, dužnosnici su odlučili srušiti zgradu umjetničke škole, nazvanu po Orfeju, prvome umjetniku i graditelju mira koji je riskirao smrt za ljubav svoje žene i bio brutalno ubijen. Ovaj esej bavi se radom Sandre Johnston, koja se tamo školovala, a kasnije i predavala. Sama žrtva nasilja, svojim hrabrim performansima, instalacijama i videografijom analizira i prikazuje ljubav koja prihvaća: nešto što Martha Nussbaum ističe kao vjerodostojan odraz zrelog, demokratskog stava.City branding of contested cities with violent histories has taken hold of hearts, but what kind of love is conducive to establishing and furthering democratic communities - and how can artists approach this subject matter in a credible way? In Belfast, Northern Ireland, officials decided to demolish the art school’s building, named after Orpheus, the first artist and peace-builder, who braved death for the love of his wife, and was brutally murdered. This essay reflects on the work of Sandra Johnston, who studied and then taught there. Herself a victim of violence, her courageous performance, installation and video work analyses and models accepting love: that which Martha Nussbaum put forward as credible reflection of a mature, democratic attitude

Ethnic Minorities Rewarded: Ethnostratification on the Wage Market in Belgium

Several previous researches have confirmed the hypothesis of ethnostratification, which holds that the labour market is divided into different ethnic layers. While people of a European origin are over-represented in the top layers (the primary market), people with non-European roots and/or nationalities are more concentrated in bottom layers (the secondary market). Relative to the primary market, this secondary market is characterized by a higher chance of unemployment, lower wages, poorer working conditions and greater job insecurity. This paper deals with a very important condition of work: the wage. Does origin have an impact on the level of wage? We make a distinction between nine origin groups: Belgians, North en West Europeans, South Europeans (from Greece, Spain, Portugal), Italians, East Europeans, Moroccans, Turks, Sub Sahara Africans and Asians. The first part of this article briefly describes the database used for the analyses and presents a few general figures for the total Belgian population. In the second part we examine the impact of origin on wage levels. For each origin group we will give an overview of the average daily wages and the partition over the wage classes. For the weaker populations, gender and age are taken into account. Finally, by means of a regression analysis, we will examine the influence of origin while controlling a few other variables that may influence the wage level