The Estonian Contemporary Art Development Center (ECADC) invites to a talk by curator and critic Jurriaan Benschop on Saturday, October 25 at 1pm at Tallinn Art Hall (Vabaduse Square 6, Tallinn).
The talk is being held at the exhibition CAN´T GO ON, MUST GO ON curated by Elin Kard and Mihkel Ilus, showing works by Mihkel Ilus, Kristi Kongi, Katrin Koskaru, Mihkel Maripuu, Anna Škodenko, and Mart Vainre. The talk is included in the Art Hall ticket price.
Jurriaan will address some of the specifics of his curatorial practice as well as introduce the painting scene in Berlin. As a curator, he has a longstanding special interest in painting, and has worked with both well-known and young, emerging painters.
Jurriaan Benschop will discuss the work of various Berlin-based painters and point out the variety of attitudes in contemporary painting that can be found in the city. The artistic climate in Berlin has been defined by the changes in Europe after 1989, and an influx of artists from all over the world since the mid 1990’s. While artists were initially attracted by low rents and the space to experiment, Berlin has now reached its coming of age moment. As it attempts to evolve from a city that relies heavily on government support to one with sustainable industries, what does this mean for the artists working in the city and for Berlin’s legendary art scene?
Jurriaan Benschop is a Berlin-based writer, art critic, and curator who was born and raised in Amsterdam. He contributes on a regular basis to Artforum, DAMn, Arterritory, and other publications. He has authored a book on Berlin’s development as an art centre after 1989 (in Dutch: ‘Wonen tussen de Anderen’ 2009) and a collection of essays on painting and photography (De Berg van Cézanne, 2006). His most recent exhibition project was ‘Geist und Form. Ten painters from Berlin’ at the Grunwald Gallery at Indiana University Bloomington, USA in 2013. As an advisor, he is affiliated with the Van Eyck Academy in Maastricht, a multidisciplinary institute for fine art, design, and research.
Jurriaan is visiting Tallinn as part of the Visiting Curators Programme and will be exploring the art scene in Tallinn and Tartu as well as visiting several artist studios for further research. The programme is funded by the European Regional Development Fund.
