The Crisis and Alternatives

Social inequality, unemployment and poverty continue to grow all over Europe. A new cycle of privatization is aimed towards the remaining legacies of the welfare state - subsidized healthcare and education, social benefits and public spending. Neoliberal austerity politics, instead of the expected prosperity, is only provoking waves of protest all over the continent. The opposing interests of the European center and the periphery aggravate political conflict while fostering nationalism, chauvinism and racism. The crisis has left the Balkans suffering disastrous consequences. Floods of discontent manifested themselves on the squares of Ljubljana, Maribor, Sofia, Sarajevo and other cities protesting against corruption, an increase in living expenses and poverty. Discussions on political alternatives, however, only take place on the margins, while communication between the social movements in the Balkans and Western Europe is only being established.

Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung is inviting you to participate in "A Week of Talks on Perspectives for the Balkans" where through eight panel discussions with numerous international guests we will try to explain the causes and consequences of the socio-economic state of the European Union and the Balkans; how the European left discusses the crisis and possible alternatives; how do protests on the Balkans look like and how problems and demands are articulated; how the Balkan left is doing and what perspectives does it have? The entire program can be found here (in Serbian).

The program will be followed by the exhibition titled "It's the Political Economy, Stupid", which brings together a group of critical international artists. Through videos, installations and prints, this exhibition opens the question whether the time has come to resist the disciplining dictate of the capitalist logic and with the help of art we start in saving the very notion of the social. The exhibition was created by the Viennese artist, Oliver Ressler and curator and author from New York, Gregory Shollete. "It's the Political Economy, Stupid" will premiere in Serbia after successful performances in Greece, the United States and Finland. The entire catalog of works can be found here (in Serbian).

Artists: Zanny Begg & Oliver Ressler / Filippo Berta / Libia Castro & Ólafur Ólafsson / Julia Christensen / Paolo Cirio / Noel Douglas / Field Work / Yevgeniy Fiks, Olga Kopenkina, Alexandra Lerman / flo6x8 / Melanie Gilligan / Jan Peter Hammer / Alicia Herrero / Institute for Wishful Thinking / Sherry Millner & Ernie Larsen / Isa Rosenberger / Dread Scott

Venue:

Center for Cultural Decontamination - CZKD,

Paviljon Veljković

Birčaninova 21, Belgrade

Program:

Monday, September 30th

18:00-19.30: Opening of the exhibition "It's the Political Economy, Stupid"

Introduction of the program, exhibitions, artists and talks on the politics of visual representation of the crisis and protests

Participants: Noel Douglas (London), Collective ŠKART (Belgrade), Association Kurs (Belgrade)

Moderated by: Boris Kanzleiter, Vladan Jeremić

Simultaneous translation: English - Serbian

Tuesday, October 1st

12:00-18:00: Exhibition "It's the Political Economy, Stupid"

18.30-20:30: Panel discussion "The Economic Crisis in Europe and the Peripherization of the Balkans"

Participants: Michel Husson (Paris), Marko Kostanić (Zagreb), Gabriel Sakellaridis (Athens)

Moderated by: Alpar Lošonc

Simultaneous translation: English - Serbian

The reason for this panel is the publication of the extended edition of the collection of works titled "The Crisis, Responses and the Left"

Wednesday, October 2nd

12:00 - 16.30: Exhibition "It's the Political Economy, Stupid"

17:00 - 19:00: Panel discussion "Protests in the Balkans - Problems of Articulation"

Participants: Sašo Furlan (Ljubljana), Mariya Ivancheva (Sofia, Budapest)

Moderated by: Vuk Vuković

Simultaneous translation: English - Serbian

20:00 - 21:30: Presentation of the study "Serbia's Working Class in Transition 1988-2013"

Participants: Goran Musić (Vienna, Belgrade), Branislav Markuš (Zrenjanin)

Moderated by: Krunoslav Stojaković

The study "Serbia's Working Class in Transition 1988-2013" can be found here

Thursday, October 3rd

12:00-18:00: Exhibition "It's the Political Economy, Stupid"

18:00-20:00: Panel discussion "Wealth and Poverty: Studies on the Social Polarization in Slovenia and Macedonia"

Participants: Primož Krašovec (Ljubljana), Zdravko Saveski (Skopje), Artan Sadiku (Skopje)

Moderated by: Vladimir Simović

Simultaneous translation: English - Serbian

The complete studies can be found here

Friday, October 4th

12:00-18:00: Exhibition "It's the Political Economy, Stupid"

18:00-20:00: Panel discussion "Reproductive Labor and the Consequences of the Economic Crisis on the Position of Women"

Participants: Lilijana Burcar (Ljubljana), Dora Levačić (Zagreb), Vedrana Bibić (Zagreb)

Moderated by: Ksenija Forca

Simultaneous translation: English - Serbian

Saturday, October 5th

12:00-16:30: Exhibition "It's the Political Economy, Stupid"

17:00- 18:30: Discussion "The Crisis in Europe and Left Alternatives"

Participants: Klaus Sühl (Brussles)

Moderated by: Boris Kanzleiter

Simultaneous translation: English - Serbian

19:00-21:00: Panel discussion: "Media strategy and critical media in Croatia"

Participants: Boris Postnikov (Zagreb), Andrea Milat (Zagreb)

Moderated by: Ana Veselinović

Sunday, October 6th

12:00-18:00: Exhibition "It's the Political Economy, Stupid"