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Grant Kester, Conversation Pieces. Cristina Centelles and Claudia Baixeras
GRANT KESTER, CONVERSATION PIECES
CRISTINA CENTELLES AND CLAUDIA BAIXERAS
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ABSTRACT
In 2004, Grant Kester introduced in his book Conversation Pieces the concept of politically coherent communities, referring to those that are born through the discovery of some a priori essence - the origin of which is found in specific historical moments and in particular constellations of political and economic power - and which is materialised through a process of dialogue and consensus-building. Thus, the artist no longer only delegates certain competencies for the realization of a project, but now has a role in empowering selfexploration of the very members of the community to provide them with a creative experience that allows them to become participants in their own claim.
This way of understanding art and its social impact has been gaining ground above all since the beginning of the new millennium, as can be seen in the curatorial objective of Documenta 15 (2022) which, in addition to giving importance to the collective, places special emphasis on the value of transdisciplinarity, cooperation and solidarity. Thus, through the most current artistic initiatives -and delocalized in the global world- we will explore the creative capacity of interaction and dialogue and investigate the processes of community artistic creation.
BIOGRAPHY
Cristina Centelles graduated in Humanities from the UPF and holds a Master's degree in Advanced Studies in Art History from the UB and is dedicated to heritage management. With a career in the museum sector, she currently works in the Registry and Exhibitions Department of the National Museum of Art of Catalonia. Her line of research deals with cultural policies, interculturality and participatory art.
Claudia Baixeras is a cultural manager in several projects and teaches at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya. She is developing a doctorate in The Dialogical Turn in Global Contemporary Art (2000-2020). Conversational, participatory, collaborative and cooperative art practices by the University of Barcelona, within the research group Art, Globalization, Interculturality.
