Descrizione del progetto
Indagine sulle dinamiche di normalizzazione nella pratica artistica della diaspora
La migrazione verso il Nord globale è sempre stata inquadrata come «nuova» o straordinaria e le opere di artisti non bianchi sono descritte, nella stragrande maggioranza dei casi, in modo tale da distinguerle da quelle prodotte nel resto della società. Il progetto TODO, finanziato dall’UE, si domanda cosa accadrebbe se, al contrario, applicassimo una prospettiva normalizzante alla letteratura e all’arte contemporanee nella diaspora, concentrando l’attenzione in particolare su Germania, Regno Unito e Stati Uniti. Alla luce del declino degli imperi, del neo-imperialismo e della più recente ascesa della Nuova destra, TODO esamina come l’estetica queer possa aiutare a riconoscere le emozioni e gli effetti negativi derivanti dal razzismo e come l’arte possa contribuire a un nuovo concetto di comunità e a contro-archivi, che superano le limitazioni nazionali ed eteronormative.
Obiettivo
Migration is almost always framed as the result of exceptional circumstances, as in the 2015 refugee crisis for instance. This impacts the reception of narratives produced by those living in the diaspora. Works by Black and ethnic minority artists are overwhelmingly associated with labels that set them apart from the unmarked norm. These frameworks favour generational models such as the Windrush generation in Britain, so-called guest worker literature in Germany, and ethnic and area studies designations in the US. Such formulas reinforce an understanding of migration as perpetually new. By turning to what we call Tales of the Diasporic Ordinary, this project asks what happens if we instead apply a ‘normalising’ perspective to the study of contemporary diasporic art. Extending PI Haschemi Yekani’s pathbreaking work on entangled tonalities in the rise of the British novel, TODO mobilises three conceptual terms: aesthetics, affects, and archives. This, firstly, disrupts models of national canon formation and considers (queer) diasporic artistic practice and aesthetics as entangled with post-World War II global histories of the decline of empire, neo-imperialism, and the more recent rise of the New Right. Secondly, drawing on innovative methods from autotheory and queer diasporic critique, TODO stipulates that “ordinary” diasporic texts promote an affective bearing that exceeds the binary of romanticising the homeland of once and neoliberal ideals of assimilation and integration. Thirdly, the analysed texts complicate official historiographies and contribute to an archive of the lived experiences of migrants and their children across generations, exposing the continuity of racism. Artistic practice can acknowledge negative affects and contribute to a reimagination of community that goes beyond national and heteronormative constraints. Thus, the project underlines the relevance of Tales of the Diasporic Ordinary to challenge racism and foster new modes of belonging.
Campo scientifico
Programma(i)
- HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC) Main Programme
Argomento(i)
Meccanismo di finanziamento
ERC - Support for frontier research (ERC)Istituzione ospitante
10117 Berlin
Germania