Participation, Commemoration and Public Space: German artist Jochen Gerz in an Irish context takes place on 14 and 15 November at the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA) in Dublin. Organised by the Goethe-Institut in co-operation with IMMA, this two-day conference features art historians, curators, philosophers sociologists and civil servants from four countries discussing, with the audience, works by the exceptional German artist Jochen Gerz, now living in Co. Kerry and creator of transformative public artwork spanning 50 years. The symposium will also look at how contemporary artists in Ireland and beyond might address the contested and often controversial context of commemoration.

Symposium Programme

Friday 14 November

6pm Jochen Gerz w/ Declan Long: Who cares. Thoughts about people, places and times.

Saturday 15 November

9.30 Registration

10.00 Marion Hohlfeldt (FR): Jochen Gerz as a public writer; Söke Dinkla (DE): Public authorship in public art

11.45 Guido Meincke (DE): Case Study: Square of the European Promise, Bochum

13.00 Philippe Mesnard (FR): The tiny presence of the words; Jonathan Vickery (UK): Countermonument and the materiality of memory – “Future Monument” & “Public Bench” in Coventry

14.30 Renate Petzinger (DE): Social creativity and its framework

15.30 Pat Cooke, Lisa Moran, Jenny Haughton, Ray Yeates (IE): Remembrance and Commemoration in Ireland – the role of contemporary arts practice

17.00 Jochen Gerz: Closing remarks

17.30 Reception

Organised by the Goethe-Institut in cooperation with IMMA, Participation, Commemoration and Public Space: German artist Jochen Gerz in an Irish context is supported by the National College of Art & Design, the German Foreign Office, the French Mission du Centenaire and the French Embassy.

Admission is free, but booking is essential (limited spaces). Book at http://bit.ly/11mIx9Z or www.imma.ie

Jochen Gerz was born in Berlin in 1940. He lived in Paris from 1966 to 2007 and is now based in Ireland. Gerz studied in Cologne, Basel, London (Literature, sinology, prehistory) from 1959 to 1963; Works in public space since 1967; photos/texts since 1969; installations, video, performances since 1971.

Jochen Gerz is an internationally renowned German conceptual artist. His central issue is participation and public authorship. He addresses public and individual memory by questioning the rituals of 20th century commemoration in Europe. The artist has also contributed to a new understanding of public space. He has lived in Sneem (Kerry/Ireland) since 2007. His contributions to Ireland to date include; “Amaptocare” in Ballymun (2002/2006), “Where has the tiger gone” (2012) and “Here in Paradise” (2014) in Sneem. Gerz also participated in the Rosc 1980 exhibition.

Awards: Preis der Glockengießergasse, Köln 1978; Videonale Bonn 1980; Roland Preis, Bremen 1990; Deutscher Kritikerpreis, Berlin 1996; Ordre National du Mérite, Paris 1996; Peter Weiss-Preis, Bochum 1996; Grand Prix National des Arts Visuels, Paris 1998; Artistic contribution award, Festival of films on art, Montréal 1999; 1. Preis der Helmut-Kraft-Stiftung, Stuttgart 1999; Künstlerpreis “Aus gegebenem Anlass”, Hannover 2005; Fondation Montag Art et Society prize, Bonn 2011. www.jochengerz.eu