Open Debate: Open Call2
7 March 2008, time 18:00

Panelists: Dita Ethemi, Alban Muja, Agon Hamza
Moderator: Era Krasniqi

Stacion - Center for Contemporary Art Prishtina as part of the project "Politics and  Contemporary Art" and the program planned for implementation during the end of this project, has planned two time based modules, reserved for artist projects that are carried out through an open call procedure.

Open Call2 is based on the principle of "division of labour". It is based on the decentralization of decision making, where these three roles (artist, curator and critic) work for a final product, which in this case is an exhibition. The exhibition becomes a place for the production of content.

In this case Stacion - Center for Contemporary Art Prishtina is an open space - in a specific time and place - a necessary space for decision-making, fundamental for reflections, re-formulation and the "place for making mistakes".

Dita Ethemi is the first artist selected though Open Call2. The curator of the exhibition Open Call2: Dita Ethemi, is Alban Muja. Agon Hamza has supplied this collaboration with critical texts about art, position and thoughts on contemporary art. Era Krasniqi is the coordinator of the exhibition and the meeting point of Stacion's structure with the artist and the cooperative that has produced this exhibition.

The open debate: Open Call2 will explore issues that this collaboration of people were challenged with during the production process. Some of the issues identified for discussion from the moderator of the debate are:

- The Debate will attempt to deconstruct the present idea that in this context art practices are tight and romantic, with the genius artists who is always waiting to be discovered by others

- The Identification of the qualities of each other, in the collaboration and the usage of those qualities

- From the critic's position, which have been the critical points of this collaboration? How did this influence the final product?

- The collaboration through the process: have there been any self-censoring tendencies from all three parties involved or has the process produced content.

- The Role of critique in developing contemporary art and creating a more critical public regarding contemporary art works.

The Debate is open. The participation is free.

Stacion CCA info@stacion.org

P.O.Box 262, 10000 Prishtina, Kosova

Parts of the announcements of the panellists

"Individualism - even though the subject of the presentation, conditionally let's say is "borrowed", from a person (marginalized) in this case his reaction is not important, since this   reaction is spontaneous".

Dita Ethemi, Artist

"Individualism in the artist Dita Ethemi, somehow provokes us with the question, how important is an artistic act. This can be applied even when this act is done far away from the public eyes or exhibition spaces".

Alban Muja, curator of OpenCall2: Dita Ethemi

"Contemporary art (in Kosovo) exists as something fragile, contentless, fully stripped from any social and political context of the place. L'art pour l'art is the existing formula of action and artistic work.

Agon Hamza, invited critic for OpenCall2: Dita Ethemi