23 Oct 2014

Hidden Economies: A seminar on economic possibility

Hidden Economies: A seminar on economic possibility
Organized by Brett Bloom, Bonnie Fortune and Lise Skou

Pre-seminar event: 22 October
Artist led dinner workshop. Hosted by Andrea Creutz and Elizabeth Ward
Seminar: 23-24 October


'How to smash capitalism at home in your spare time...' - J.K. Gibson-Graham

Hidden Economies: A seminar on economic possibility raises a discussion about hidden economies–existing within, next to, beside, and around capitalism. The seminar is inspired by the work of feminist, economic geographers JK Gibson-Graham (Julie Graham and Katherine Gibson), who worked on several publications and projects that sought to destabilize the 'monster' of a capitalist economy. Today, Katherine Gibson continues the work she and the late Julie Graham began with projects like Community Economies (co-founded in 2009) and the publication of Take Back the Economy: An Ethical Guide for Transforming Our Communities (2013, University of Minnesota Press).
Capitalist processes shape our daily experiences but do they define them? How and where are people creating economies that ignore the dominant economic system? How do these economies–shared, exchange based, micro-local, etc.–function and what do they look like? Are they temporary or are they sustainable?
Hidden Economies consists of presentations and workshops from artists, activists, and scholars focused on issues of economy within their work. The seminar focuses on how cultural work may contribute to shedding light on economic difference and articulating new economic realities. Central for this project is the idea that economies are always diverse and in the making.
Hidden Economies is extended through partnerships with three organizations: Pixelache–Finland, The Centre for Ecological Economics and Ethics–Norway, and Connectors Malmö/Tapori Tiffins–Malmö. These three organizations will host events to share the Hidden Economies newspaper and video program in Fall/Winter 2014-2015. The curated video program focuses on failed, lost, and new economies. The newspaper includes articles and images from seminar participants among others and will first be available during the seminar.

Seminar participants:

Leone Contini (IT)
Geoff Cox (DK)
Andrea Creutz (SE)
Esra Erdem (DE)
Andrea Francke (PE/UK)
Melissa Gordon (UK)
Zeenath Hasan (SE)
Susan Jahoda (US)
Jakob Jakobsen (DK)
Vladan Jeremic (SRB)
Sandy Kaltenborn (Kotti & Co.) (DE)
Rena Rädle (SRB)
Reneé Ridgway (NL)
Maliha Safri (US)
Marina Vishmidt (UK)
Elizabeth Ward (AUT/US)
Caroline Woolard (US)
Florian Wüst (Haben und Brauchen) (DE)