text:
Manifesta - European Biennial of Contemporary Art
That Never Happened:
Deleted Subjects and Aborted Objects
"The exhibition is a tool of thousand-and-one purposes,
and half of them have not yet been discovered."
Kenneth Luckhurst, The Story of Exhibitions (1957)
In one of the earliest attempts to see exhibitions in all their complexity and as objects for theoretical reflection and analysis, in the study entitled The Story of Exhibitions written half a century ago, Kenneth Luckhurst constructed a historical framework in order to examine different modes of using exhibitions as cultural forms since their birth in the late XVII century. Luckhurst's analysis offers a wide scope of potential functions that exhibitions were created to perform, from aesthetic to economic, social, cultural, political, ideological, and educational ones. The most important point of his analysis is summarized in the quote at the beginning of this page, underlining the fact that purposes and functions of exhibitions are constantly being transformed and negotiated according to specific circumstances, hence a need for a critical eye to keep a close look into this cultural form in order to examine ongoing processes of shifts and modifications. These shifts are culturally and historically embedded hence it becomes possible to get a specific insight into the context that produces exhibitions in the first place. Exhibitions of (contemporary) art are specific sites that are permanently 'under-construction', where new narratives and meanings are produced with every next show, every next exposure.
The Western art world is still embedded in the modernist construction of a 'white cube' as a guarantee of its separation and independence from the outside world(s). This white and sterile form of exposure came to be considered also a guarantee for an objective gaze in a neutral space out of time, and, as Brian O' Doherty argues in his influential essay from 1976, a space that functions as a "stabilizing social construct" and a guarantee of social stability (O' Doherty, Inside the White Cube, 1999:74).[1] Nevertheless, this notion of independence and neutrality becomes complicated with the entrance of the main agents of the relationship constructed within the exhibition space: of art objects, on one side, and the viewers on the other. Through them enters the outside world: art objects are not part of some Immaculate Conception but products of specific circumstances and loaded with different meanings through the act of exhibiting; from their side, the viewers bring into this space the complex networks of relations and visual regimes of perceiving the exposed objects. Therefore, the aim of the following analysis is to show the ways in which 'neutral' space of exhibitions comes to be influenced by the surrounding social, economic and political system, an influence that is performed by various and dispersed agents and means.
I will focus my analysis on Manifesta - European Biennial of Contemporary Art in order to define current transformations of contemporary art exhibitions. This art manifestation was developed as itinerary and nomadic biennial at the beginning of the 1990s, as an initiative of the Dutch government and, although based in Amsterdam, it travels to different host cities with each new edition. Manifesta was created as
A response to the political and economic changes brought about by the end of the Cold War and the consequent moves towards European integration, it aspired to provide a moveable platform that could support a growing network of visual arts professionals throughout the region. (Manifesta Official Website, visited October 23, 2006)
There have been six edition of Manifesta up to this date from which the sixth one never happened due to severe escalation of confrontation between the curators and officials of the city of Nicosia where it was planned to take place and I will return to this example later in my analysis.[2] What is important here is that this manifestation entails two important concepts in its name: 'European' and 'contemporary art', where the first refers to the political aspects of its activities and latter to the aesthetic ones. Therefore, at the example of this biennial, it becomes possible to examine current definitions of both of these concepts as proposed by Manifesta, as well as shifts in political and aesthetic paradigms and their mutual interconnectedness.
The main point of departure of this analysis will not be the analysis of what is being intentionally exhibited, but the quest to detect what usually stays hidden behind this act, or rather, what agents involved in the production of Manifesta discourses believe stays hidden or invisible. I will follow the notion by which the exposed objects have a double function of pointing out the discrepancy between the story they are supposed to tell and the story that they actually tell when seen within a wider framework, as proposed by Mieke Bal in her study on exhibitions entitled Double Exposure (1996). In the case of the last edition of Manifesta, a biennial that never happened, I will focus on what would have been exposed in the exhibition whose curatorial concept have aborted artworks even before they were conceived. Using the perspective of narratology as a way to read exhibitions, undertaken to locate the constituted and potential speakers within this constellation, the following analysis will pose the question: what can silenced, aborted, or censored subjects and objects tell us about this constellation of power relations to which they simultaneously remain implicit?
Secrets of the Manifesta Archive
Creators of Manifesta consider it to be a democratic institution and its publicly accessible archive as a guarantee of democratic principles. This archive is announced to be an open resource, "a mobile, growing and partially interactive documentation project accessible on the Internet and available for public consultation" at its Manifesta at Home office in Amsterdam. Since my main interest was in the curatorial practices of Manifesta biennials, during my visit there I asked permission to have insight into the documents on the selection procedure of curators and host cities. However, I was denied any access to these documents, for the reason, so I was explained, of "protecting the rights of curators". To the email correspondence between the board members about the selecting of the last host city, Nicosia in Cyprus, I was given limited access. Instead of curatorial proposals, I was offered the proposals of rejected artists since their interests, as it seems, are not the ones to be protected. While being denied access to most of the things I was interested in researching, I was introduced, by the director herself, to a recent Manifesta's publication, a luxurious and impressive 300-pages-long monograph on the history and mission of this manifestation, published by Manifesta itself and entitled The Manifesta Decade. This publication offers a wide historical overview and analysis of the influences this manifestation had in the past, including as its final chapter an overview of the archive as well. According to one of the editors, the archive is able to give "an act of re-experience" even to those who have never seen the exhibitions (Barbara Vanderlinden, 2005:232). Having in mind the obstacles in researching the 'real' archive, I decided at that point to focus on this particular segment, testing the Lacanian notion that if there were some symptoms, they must be visible in every event produced by the subject in question.
In practical terms,
cultural analysis is based on close reading, as an
active exchange of positions with the observed object that is allowed to
back' and lead the analyst to a direction she would never take on her
own. This
also means paying attention to details that can question previously
status and identity of the object in question and test a particular
discourse through which it is being examined. In his approach to explore
archive, Jacques Derrida advices us to look for an event, a momentum
that will
open up the archive for critical reading through specific archeological
practice, when "the origin then speaks by
itself" (Derrida,
The Archival Fever, 1995: 58). Beside
this initial similarity between Derrida's attempts, following Freud, to
for archeological moments, the practice of cultural analysis, as
proposed by
Bal, brings in an important additional element. In the first case, the
the "archeological stone speaks by itself" (Derrida: 58) without
being aware of the theoretical framework that brings it
into discourse, while following Bal, the object that speaks back becomes
'aware' of the theoretical discourse: it is put in dialogue with it and
even contradict or break it up. In this case, the objects are never
pure, never
clean and innocent as Derrida (and Freud) wanted them to be. From the
moment of
their reappearance on the historical surface, the objects are already
into the specific theoretical discourse and one of the duties of the
analyst is to make this visible.
In the space of the Manifesta archive in the publication, among 'miniature' representations of the artworks from previous biennials, I had an unexpected encounter with something, or rather someone I did not expect to meet. This someone grabbed my attention at first glance and, since we have not been introduced before, soon became my main theoretical obsession. On numerous photographs of Manifesta curators and board members at official press conferences and 'informal' meetings in cafes, there was someone whom the caption referred to as 'unidentified'. This unidentified person took on different shapes - on some pictures it was a woman, on others it was a man, and on some it duplicated itself. It moves freely from city to city, from country to country, following this itinerary art manifestation as a shadow. What shocks the most is the fact that these Unidentified persons are engaged in very close conversations with the main protagonists of the Manifesta decade, being part of panel discussions or just giving a friendly hug to the identified ones as a way to show their belonging to the depicted group. When encountered in the space of the archive, whose main function is to preserve memory, what the Unidentified immediately brings is not only the shortness of memory of those who were identifying these fairly recent pictures, but the failure of the archive to perform its function for which it was created at the first place.[3] As a consequence, I decided to follow the Unidentified one who has taken me to the direction I initially did not plan to go, to the analysis of the concept of the archive itself. Therefore, what I propose here is to read this unusual deletion, this unusual hole in the memory of the Manifesta archive side-by-side with the context that has produced it, the Manifesta's official rhetorics and put its presumably democratic principles in a dialogue with Derrida's accounts on the archive. My main question here is what this Unidentified one can 'speak back' about: at the very beginning, it clearly deconstructs the intention of this manifestation to have a full control over its historical image. As we can see, things (can) always slip out of control.
Deleted Subjects
In his attempt to bring out the archive of the Greek word Arkhe as the origin of the present uses of this term, Derrida reminds us of its double meaning, or two principles entailed in it: the principle of commencement and the principle of commandment. According to this, the archive is located in the house of the ones who command, who are not only the documents' guardians but they are also the ones who are given "hermeneutic right and competence" that gives them the power of consignation: of unification, identification, classification and interpretation of the archive (Derrida: 10). This position means the power not only over physical objects, but over the historical discourse or the discourse of the commencement, of the origin based on the material traces guarded in the archive.
Although conceived and considered to be a nomadic, itinerary art manifestation, Manifesta has its home in Amsterdam and so does its archive. Created in the same decade when the informatic revolution took place and when the digitalization of archives was in its high, it seems unusual to encounter this retrograde tendency sustained by the argument that it would be impossible to move the enormous content of Manifesta's archive from one host city to another.[4] Following Derrida, the physical location of the archive can be seen as the location from which power is being distributed, giving or denying the symbolic mandate to the ones who want to enter and interpret it. The need to control this process might come from the fact that, although Manifesta constructs this recent decade as remote history, it is run by the agents still very active and influential within the art scene, therefore the need to protect any document that could deconstruct their desired projected image. According to Derrida,
There is no political power without control of the archive, if not memory. Effective democratization can always be measured by this essential criterion: the participation in and the access to the archive, its constitution, and its interpretation. A contrario, the breaches of democracy can be measured by (…) Forbidden Archives" (Derrida: 10-11 in the footnote).
As previously noticed, my first steps into the 'real' archive of Manifesta were limited with the detection of invisible borders not to be crossed and, as a consequence, the democratic principle of this institution becomes severely compromised with the discovery of the Forbidden Archive. Instead, through this attempt to control the archive, Manifesta shows a desire to control the image of its recent past as well and immediately profit from this self-created historical mandate. This practice is not unusual or expressed by this institution only, but when presented in the guise of democratic principles, it becomes problematic.[5]
The ideal archive every archivist attempts to create is one that exists and functions as a single corpus, as a coherent body that nothing can divide or destroy. Archivist's power of consignation treats the historical documents as part of a larger, coherent story, of a singular picture without cracks. Or, in Derrida's words, "in an archive, there should not be any absolute dissociation, any heterogeneity or secret which could separate (secernere), or partition, in an absolute manner." (10) This desire of the archivist to have the absolute power over the corpus of the documents it 'guards' and to present history as a narrative without tensions or contradictions, becomes destabilized by the appearance of the Unidentified one. Hidden within the surrounding homogenous discourse, the Unidentified one manages to pass through its cracks and speak out. As we have learned, "the archive always works, and a priori, against itself" (Derrida: 14) and the Unidentified one embodies exactly this sickness, this desire of the archive to destroy itself.
The reason for this desire of the archive to destroy itself is in its hypomnesic character, since it has been constructed as exterior technical model of the psychic apparatus. Defined this way, Derrida argues that archive cannot escape the drive that originally haunts human psychic apparatus – the death/aggression/destruction drive. Therefore, the archive is built on the unstable ground constantly endangered by its inherent contradictions of the desire to remember and the drive to erase from the memory. Nevertheless, "this contradiction is not negative, it modulates and conditions the very formation of the concept of the archive" (Derrida: 90). If we go back to the Unidentified one, she is born exactly in this void, at the place where she still exist as a trace of a deletion, as a phantom between two worlds. What follows is that this secret of Manifesta archive and its failure to preserve past events from the deletion becomes exposed, as well as the accuracy of its historical narrative constructed on this ground. Thanks to the Unidentified one, to this phantom of the archive, we are allowed to enter it and gain this insight without the control of its guardians.[6]
According to Derrida, we live in times when everybody burns with the desire to archive, where each of us is possessed by le mal d'archive or archival fever (14). What this sickness means is "to have a compulsive, repetitive and nostalgic desire for the archive, an irrepressible desire to return to the origin, a homesickness, a nostalgia for the return to the most archaic place of absolute commencement." (57) What can the Unidentified one, as a resident of the place where the archive anarchives itself, tell us about the nostalgic spot to which the archive of Manifesta wants to go back? The answer seems clear and simple, if we search for the moment Manifesta takes as the moment of its birth: it is the year 1989, the year of its arkhē, of its beginning of counting time.[7] Nostalgia also occurs as the effect of the significant even traumatic events and, following this, the year 1989 can be read as a traumatic moment in the Western art discourse, as a moment of major political and social changes in recent European past. If seen this way, Manifesta becomes a strange monument for the times before the occurrence of this trauma, revealing the nostalgic mourning for the times already gone. Following the Unidentified one through the archive and its symptoms, we have arrived to the political level of activities of Manifesta or the primary reasons it was created for - to assist the encounter with the Others in the new chapter of European history.
This chapter of European history is characterized by the attempt to create a stabile and unique cultural and political identity of the European Union summarized in one of its official slogans 'United in Difference'. Nevertheless, this discourse of 'unity of differences' points out its homogenizing tendencies that are inherently undemocratic, hence the real democratic position would be 'difference in unity' or the flexibility to accommodate all the heterogeneous traits this unity contains. What connects this process with the previous discussion on the archive, according to Derrida, is the fact that both processes are impossible without violence:
The gathering into itself of the One is never without violence, nor is the self-affirmation of the Unique, the law of the archontic, the law of consignation which orders to archive. Consignation is never without that excessive pressure (impression, repression, suppression) of which repression and suppression are at least figures (Derrida, 50-51).
As discovery of the Unidentified one in the Manifesta archive testifies, the Other is not anymore at the other side of the border, somewhere in the far East. The Other has crossed the line and infiltrated within Us. The Unidentified one seems to be created at this spot where the Other is allowed to enter the official discourse but denied identity, denied a proper name, that way staying the unidentifiable Other forever. Radical deletion of the nameless Other is happening in her full presence, testifying about her existence in limbo, between two worlds, where the democratic principle of equality is being practiced only on the level of rhetoric. If we take into account the view on current political process as proposed by Giorgo Agamben, it is possible to see the Unidentified one as the embodiment of someone he names 'homo sacer', of someone who is legally dead, deprived of a determinate legal status, while biologically still alive. Thus, Agamben argues, "the so-called sacred and inaliable rights of man prove to be completely unprotected at the very moment it is no longer possible to characterize them as rights of the citizens of a state" (1998:199).[8] In the case of Manifesta, it seems that we deal with a translation of this same practice into the realm of culture where the institution created to accommodate ongoing shifts could not prevent the internalization of the processes it was trying to fight against. One seems to be not aware of its own split, of its own divisions and cracks of the picture of the ideal Self, the split necessary for it to exist in the first place .
The main mechanism of the violence, whether encountered as the archival impulse or unifying process of the Self, is repetition. According to Derrida, "the One, as self-repetition, can only repeat and recall this instituting violence. It can only affirm itself and engage itself in this repetition. This is even what ties in depth the injuction of memory with the anticipation of the future to come." (Derrida: 51) In the case of Manifesta exhibitions, the traces in the archive testify about the process of repetition:
The absence of radically different selection procedure in all five editions of Manifesta suggests that, even if the curators were not pressured to conform to a pre-established model, they voluntarily acted as if they were under such pressure. (…) [Moisdon Trembley] also evoked the ineffectiveness of repeating the intensive trans-European survey that the curators of the previous Manifesta edition had performed only a year and a half before: "An art scene, or context, does not renew itself that quickly." (van Winkel: 226)
In order to exist, Manifesta has to repeat itself, repeating the same violence against itself and against the Other, with every new edition, every new exhibition. The archive is the record of this violence but also a way to assure future developments, since the archive does not only record events, it also produces them, or, according to Derrida, it produces the criteria by which the future events will be archivable. (17) Hence, the control of the archive means not only control over the past, but control over the future as well.
Caught within this
circle of repetition, the question to be posed here
is what are the options left for the subjects to escape it as well as
inherent violence? In his analysis of the archive, Derrida gives a short
but theoretically
valuable connection between the creation of archive and creation of art
through the activity of the death drive: "the death drive tends thus to
the hypomnesic archive, except if it can be disguised, made up, painted,
printed, represented as the idol of its truth in painting." (14)
interpretation of this insight is that the repetition and the
destruction of
memory can be escaped if the death drive is turned into the "lovely
impressions" that become "memories of death" (Derrida: 14). According to
the disappearance or deletion of the art objects takes away the
possibility of
creating a difference, difference that can break the circle of
repetition of
violence. In the next part, I will take a look what are the possible
implications of the deletion of art objects as proposed in the
concept of Manifesta 6.
Aborted Objects
What would we find in the archive in the hypothetical situation in which the planned Manifesta 6 did happen the way it was planned? Similar to the previous discovery of the Unidentified ones, the trace we would have to follow is not the one behind the things or events that did happen, but the ones left as a void behind the ones that did not happen. In this case, there would be no trace left of the artworks: through this act of erasure, the art objects would incidentally and definitely disappear from the archive. Nevertheless, this occurrence should not be considered to be uniquely part of Manifesta practice alone.[9] Rather, this tendency in curatorial practice to shift its main focus from the art works has occurred at the same time when curating went through the process of redefining its practice in the Nineties. This new type of curators is usually referred to as 'independent curators', where independence relates to the flexible, "nomadic, traveling elite" officially not employed by one particular institution (Vanderlinden, 1998: 210). The process of 'nomadization' of curating has put one more demand on this profession: curators must be not only experts of art but, more importantly, experts of local cultures. As Francesco Bonami defines it, "the role of the curator today involves such enormous geographical diversity that the curator is now a kind of visual anthropologist – no longer just a taste maker, but a cultural analyst." (Bonami in Boutoux, 2005:204)
Since these times, the discussions in curatorship have shifted from broad aesthetic ones to social and political issues. Or, as Camiel van Winkel concludes
This generation of curators barely alludes to the fact that curating entails showing works of art to an audience; they seem to be more interested in other aspects of their job. (…) This also explains why the desire to generate aesthetic experience is completely absent from the Manifesta discourse. The curators see the aesthetic experience as a static and private moment that makes the process of a dialogue and creative exchange – and thus the social dimensions of the work of art – turn inward and evaporate (2005: 228).
In the example of the 'Manifesta Archive' in the publication I was using to read through this manifestation, this tendency is evident in the apology of the editors for not having enough space for the visual images of all works to be fully reproduced. The reason for the lack of pictures of artists was explained as an attempt to avoid the "romantic notion of the mastery of the artist, showing shots of him or her at work, to make the artistic craftsmanship visible and create an illusion of intimate participation. A contemporary version of the "grand masters" is not of interest here." (Vanderlinden, 2005: 236). Nevertheless, there was enough space to include numerous photographs of curators at work, of them visiting artists, visiting remote countries, having hard thoughts, or having public discussions. What happened here is the substitution of this "romantic notion" of the artist with the image of the curator. Characterized by Vanderlinden as "one of the leading artistic forms of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries" (236), the exhibitions have officially been recognized as a form and the curator is the one who molds them.[10] The artworks are there because they cannot be evaded or, as seen in the case of Manifesta 6, perhaps they even can.
What matters here is the question what else is being erased through this act of erasing the artworks before they were conceived. As art history teaches us, twentieth century brought new shifts in the experience of the visual representations and what is to be considered as Art, from Surrealists and Breton's found objects and Duchamp's readymades, to the Sixties and the first cycle of dematerialization of art as an attempt to escape commodification within the dominant system of capitalistic production. Nevertheless, what makes this current shift different is that the motivation to temporarily put artworks aside came not from the artists, as in previous times, but from the curators. In this case, when the disappearance of the object became a curatorial concept rather then a part of artistic strategy, the third part of the exhibition triad - art work, curator, and viewer - has disappeared as well. At the moment when art works were aborted and expelled from the site, there was no place left for the outside world to enter. In the case of the dematerialization of objects as artistic strategy, the whole process depended on the viewer, who had to be present for the dematerialization to happen. The only exhibition we would be left with in the case of Manifesta 6 is the exhibition of the established relations between attending curators and artists, adding a new function exhibition is created to serve, one that was probably hard to imagine in the Luckhurst times.
If the objects are aborted, what is, then, Manifesta's attitude toward cultural contexts that host its itinerary editions? The particular 'insensibility' of Manifesta curators for local contexts, local institutions and people has been noticed years ago.[11] Constructed as a manifestation whose economic existence depends largely on the budget of a local host, Manifesta was soon turned into an economic enterprise and a brand to be desired and competed for by most of the European cities who desire to promote their 'positive' image in the wider political and cultural agenda. From this perspective, Manifesta resembles more a virus than a nomadic construction it desires to be seen as, where 'Manifesta at Home' is it place of residence. What makes this practice different from the old colonial attitude is its complicity: within this construction, the host participates voluntarily, paying a high price for the benefits it gains from the virus it hosts. Brought to work within limits of this constellation, the curators turn to be nothing more then cultural tourists, who at the end of the process bring home their own picture projected to different local contexts.
The most recent escalation of the 'misunderstandings' curators had with the local context happened in 2006 when Nicosia, Cyprus was selected to host this edition of Manifesta. This particular location has been selected by the Manifesta Board over Tallinn, Estonia for its specific political and cultural present, as the closest spot in which, according to them, Europe touches the Orient, or the Middle East:
And of course it's about the location that is between real West and real East. Not to mention beautiful southern climate and historical sites. (…) The choice is very difficult having in mind that Manifesta 6 in both Tallinn and Nicosia will be a metaphorical confirmation of European expansion of EU of culture. (Jara Boubnova, email correspondence, May 12, 2004, Folder "Nicosia" in Manifesta Archive)
As it seems, the selection of Nicosia follows current political shifts in Europe where its former East has moved further south, and the opportunity to have a first edition in the country of the former Eastern Block was hence missed. What might worry the most from the issues that dominated the official discourse of debate around cancellation of Manifesta 6 was the insistence that the cause for the 'misunderstanding' should be found in the local context. The conflict between the Greek and the Turkish side was constantly in focus, but what stayed hidden all the time was the fact that Cyprus is actually divided into three parts: the Greek, the Turkish and the British.[12] From this perspective, the independence Cyprus gained in 1960 should be perceived as a moment when all the trouble started; in the same time, its colonial past seems as an orderly utopian dream. The decision of curators to set a school and leave out of their focus the specific historical and political circumstances of this island turned their enterprise into an extended holiday that could have taken place on any other 'exotic' spot on Earth. As it turns out, the decision to abort art objects has erased also any possibility for critical reflection on the circumstances Cyprus finds itself today.
If we try to read this disappearance of object as a symptom, it will bring us to the expertise of psychoanalysis where objects or, rather, the lack of objects is considered to be a key element in the formation of subjectivity as well as in the economy of drives and desires. As Slavoj Žižek argues, the relation to the desired objects forms a basis of the relationship the One has with the Other:
What bothers us in the Other (Jew, Japanese, African, Turk) is that he appears to entertain a privileged relationship to the object – the other either possesses the object treasure, having snatched it away from us (which is why we don't have it), or he poses a threat to our possession of the object. (1998: 999)
Going back to the previous analysis of Manifesta archive and the discussion about what loss we could speculate it was created to hide and what traumatic event it refers to, European unification brought as well a temporary deconstruction of the European Other. In the clinical experience of psychoanalysis, the patients who have lost their admired object cannot proceed to the phase of mourning since they need a "symbiotic, idealizing type of identification with their objects in order to stabilize their identity." (Weiss and Lang, 2000:326) In the case of European political shifts and the 'traumatic' moments in the process of creating a unified One, this symptoms could be interpreted as a continuous need to replace the lost object, the idealized Other, with the new idealized Other in order to stabilize fragile identity. In Lacanian terms, the evolution of subjectivity is linked to a fundamental symbolic process, in which "the relationship to the Other is transformed into a symbolic one. (…) In the moment that the primary Other can be symbolized (...) the possibility to distance oneself arises and thereby the beginnings of a space where an own identity can be developed" (326).
This ability to symbolize the relationship with the Other brings us back to the position of art works as objects that can serve as a way to temporarily stabilize one's continuously unstable identity. What can also be read from the act of erasure of art objects in curatorial practice is a disbelief in the possibility of the artists to present new insights through their works, or new ways to symbolize their relationship with this Other – a historically, politically and culturally rich island. Cyprus seems to be used as a setting, a scenography for the proposed art school, a move that has blocked alternative interpretations of reality and destabilization of dominant discourses.
Manifesta Democracy Revised
As the discovery of the Unidentified ones in Manifesta archive proved earlier, the democratic nature of this institution has been severely compromised. At this point, I was interested into what this same phantom can say about two other aspects on which Manifesta bases its democratic character: functioning as a network and practicing active self-criticism. As we read
Manifesta developed into a fast growing network for young professionals in Europe and one of the most innovative biennial exhibition programme to be held anywhere. This is due, in no small measure, to its pan-European ambitions and its uniquely nomadic nature. Both the network and the exhibition, with its related activities are equally important components of this itinerant event. (Official Manifesta Website, visited January 5, 2007)
Interpreted this way,
networks are assumed to have an inherent
democratic nature. Nevertheless, as Camiel van Winkel has noticed in his
critical analysis of Manifesta rhetorics,
Interpreted this way, networks are assumed to have an inherent democratic nature. Nevertheless, as Camiel van Winkel has noticed in his critical analysis of Manifesta rhetorics,
Networks are not inherently democratic. On the contrary, a network is exclusive rather than inclusive, built upon a set of privileged relations between selected individuals. What place does the public occupy in relation to the network? (…) Ascribed as simply open to the public, to "everyone" (…) the discourse is of such a general and abstract nature that any notion of privilege or exclusion evaporates. (2005: 221)
Hence, the network per se has a democratic potential, a potential to be an instrument of democratic procedure, but as long as it is practiced as an entity to include there will always be the ones who are excluded. The projected picture of the Manifesta network of happy individuals, of Manifesta 'family', becomes broken in the moment we perceive the Unidentified one in the picture. The Unidentified one speaks about this position of being excluded, of being nameless, irrelevant and unrecognized although having the same physical, bodily traits as the identified ones. Trough this, one more power of the archivist becomes visible: the authority to name things, in this case people, and position them in the discourse, giving them the name and identity, giving them the history or denying them the right to speak. The un-networked ones are dismissed by the archivist as the unidentifiable ones, left alone at the other side. The network fails to perform its democratic potential; instead, it serves a particular function to hide the actual authority figures who would be disposed if the democratic transparency was real.
In this same rhetoric of the free interpretation of basic concepts of democracy, "in the Manifesta language game, 'democratic' means 'open' and 'inclusive' but also 'open-ended'" (van Winkel, 2005: 221) and it has been practiced by its curators as well. All these strategies (open-ended, process-based approaches) are evidently practiced trough the critical attitude Manifesta takes towards its own practice. They are the strategies Manifesta employs to survive attempts of external criticism. Through this rhetorical move, the failure is turned into success:
The final result is valued less than the path followed in order to achieve it. With it, the possibility of a failure can be openly acknowledged and even thematized. (…) Thus the built-in option for curators to admit and elaborate their own "failure" paradoxically contributes to the rhetorical construction of Manifesta success. (van Winkel: 222)
This strategy becomes visible in the case of the Unidentified one as well. Through the act of giving her (any) name, the archivist hides her failure to perform her function, hides the mistakes and slips of memory that are incorporated into her version of this particular history. The failure is incorporated into the discourse where this impossibility or unwillingness to research and reveal the identity of the persons encountered just a few years ago does not turn the caption into some general description like "the curators and panelists", but reveals openly its own failure to give a name to the people who contributed to this history in the first place. Hence the picture and the caption seem all in order once we look at them: the image is there, the names are there, and the ones we do not remember also have names. Through this practice, Manifesta does not deconstruct nor destroy the authoritarian nature of curatorial (and archival) practice; instead, it hides them behind the basic postulates of democracy. The travesty of democracy is revealed thanks to the deprived Unidentified one.
The remaining question here is should we put all the blame for the rhetorical and free interpretation of democratic postulates on this art manifestation that might be only the one who manifests the symptoms of the same practice done in the wider political discourse. Sometimes being accused to be "an extension of Brussels's cultural policy" and "complicit in the current official disappearance of immigrants in Europe from its cultural institutions" (Okwui Enwezor, 2005: 184), Manifesta leads us further to the question of the possibility to read 'Europe' through its art biennial. Hence, how does this 'Europe' look like in the scope of current political developments?
In her study of recent European movies that deal with current issues of the relationship with the Other and cultural and political processes, Yosefa Loshitzky chooses one particular scene from the film JOURNEY OF HOPE (1990) as the "ultimate iconic image of Fortress Europe". In this scene, hungry and freezing refugees, who have just survived the harsh winter mountain storm, desperately knock on the double-glazed glass windows of a warm, indoor swimming pool inside an Alpine spa hotel. They see the owner of the hotel swimming in the pool, but because of soundproof glass walls, he cannot hear the refugees' desperate cries for help:
Perhaps this shocking image of reflective duality of privilege mirrored by its counter-image of a luxury spa hotel turning into a hospital of potential deportees is the ultimate iconic image of Fortress Europe guarding its visible wealth and comfort against the pledge of non- Europeans in search of a better life. The image of 'hospitality' denied is the image of the New Europe (Loshitzky, 2006: 754).
important detail in this image, in this frame, is the disappearance of the voice. The visually present Others are denied the power to communicate by the institution of the sound-proof double glass. In this scene, the subalterns do speak,
shout, but nobody is able to hear them. The visual presence of the Other is not able to disturb Us anymore: their voice is stacked somewhere in the middle, in the
invisible space between two layers of glass. A similar analogy of 'tolerance' seems to be noticeable in the treatment of art works as reflected in the current curatorialpractice: the artworks
are put on a pedestal but protected with this
double glass that
not allow their
be heard. Censorship no longer means
destruction of artworks; rather, art works are turned into background illustrations,
into wallpaper
not to be reflected on.
Nevertheless, this attitude of Europe toward its Others is nothing new in European history, as Saskia Sassen shows in her recent analysis:
Today we deal with different religions and phenotypes and cultures, and we think that is the reason for the difficulty of incorporation. Our very European history suggests we had feelings of similar intensity about those who from today's perspective appear to be 'one of us': the Germans, the Belgians, the Italians, just about any of the current EU membership. Given the acts of violence and the hatreds we felt against them, I cannot help but wonder whether those who we experience today as so different and difficult to assimilate will not undergo the same transformation over the coming generations. (2006:645)
Although comforting, these historical facts should not be used as an excuse for present crimes, for all these erasures, deletions, mutilations we are witnessing today. The ones in power would like these unidentified, undocumented, nameless, and hidden ones to stay that way. In this journey on which the Unidentified one has taken us to, the role of cultural analysis was not to discover the historical or archival 'blind-spots' and find the 'real' names of the Unidentified ones but, rather, to read these erasures as signs, as symptoms that point to deeper and bigger problems then what was assumed at first glance. The role of cultural analysis is to make these invisible glass borders visible, to find cracks through which the voice of the Other will be able to pass, to discover the voice that will be able to speak back. As it seems, the same way Europe will need to include the Others as its legal citizens in order to exist, it will need new artworks as well as a way to create a difference and destabilize current homogenizing political and cultural discourses. Once again, the One should not be afraid of the cracks on its idealized picture.
(Written in 2006. Unpublished manuscript, part of my PhD research)
[1] For a detailed analysis of the survival of the paradigm of the 'white cube' see in: Elena Filipovic, "The Global White Cube" (2005).
[2] Although created to make a bridge between the Eastern and Western Europe, most of Manifesta editions took place in the former West: Rotterdam (1996), Luxembourg (1998), Ljubljana (2000), Frankfurt (2002), Donostia - San Sebastian (2004).
[3] Strangely enough, on some of the photographs we find the editor of the archive, Vanderlinden, as being engaged in a vivid talk with theUnidentified ones.
[4] Selective and very limited insight into this archive is offered through the digital archive of the organization Basis-Wien that was commissioned byManifesta to digitalize parts of its archive. For more see: www.basis-wien.at.
[5] The attempt to present the presentation of the archive in order to materialize the concept of full democracy happened in one of the Manifestaexhibitions as well. The curators of Manifesta 4 decided to create an exhibition item out of the files of all the thousand artists they visited during theirexploration trips across Europe. This "administrative monument" (van Winkel, 2005: 222), was supposed to create an atmosphere in which nobodyfeels excluded, but instead hide the inherent (non-democratic) element of the curatorial practice that is based on the process of selection, thereforeinclusion and exclusion. Not taken as a main curatorial concept that could have turned the exhibition into these collections of artists'documentations, the existence of this archive together with the selected, exhibited art works just seems like a politically correct version of exclusorypractice of curatorship.
[6] "I tried to show elsewhere that though the classical scholar did not believe in phantoms and would not in truth know how to speak to them,forbidding himself even, it is quite possible that Marcellus had anticipated the coming of a scholar of the future, of a scholar who, in the future and soas to conceive of the future, would dare to speak to the phantom." Derrida: 29
[7] Consequently, the first chapter in Manifesta Decade is entitled "One Day Every Wall Will Fall: Select Chronology of Art and Politics after 1989"and dedicated to the selected facts and figures from art and politics after 1989. Through this symbolic act, the counting of Manifesta time officiallystarts from this year.
[8] The most flagrant example of this deletion is discovered in Slovenia, one of the Manifesta 'hosts': "On 26 February 1992, at least 18,305(3) individuals were removed from the Slovenian registry of permanent residents and their records were transferred to the registry of foreigners.Those affected were not informed of this measure and its consequences. The "erased" were mainly people from other former Yugoslav republics,ho had been living in Slovenia and had not applied for or had been refused Slovenian citizenship in 1991 and 1992, after Slovenia became independent. As a result of the "erasure", they became de facto foreigners or stateless persons illegally residing in Slovenia. In some cases the "erasure" was subsequently followed by the physical destruction of the identity and other documents of the individuals concerned. Some of the"erased" were served forcible removal orders and had to leave the country." More on the case of Slovenian "erased" ones see in: Slovenia AmnestyInternational's Briefing to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 35th Session, November 2005, http://web.amnesty.org/library/index/engeur680022005 , visited January 2, 2007. w
[9] Curatorial concept for the Manifesta 6 is defined as being part of the 'didactic turn' in curatorship, as named by the editors of the Dutch art magazine Metropolis M. This turn limits the function of exhibitions to their didactical value, excluding the possibility of viewers to gainknowledge through a wider sensory perception. For more see: Metropolis M, Expanding Academy, 2006.
[10] This same period brought up the tendency of curators to 'mold' not only art works, but the social relations and political processes as well. Thisprocess has been named as relational aesthetics by the French curator Nicolas Bouriaud. For more see in: Nicolas Bouriaud, Relational Aesthetics(2002).
[11] For a detailed analysis of the attitude Manifesta curators and the negative consequences on the local art scene in the case of Ljubljana see morein: Thomas Botoux, "A Tale of Two Cities" (2005).
[12] The official reason for the cancellation is the refusal of the Greek side to financially support part of the school that was to take place in the Turkish zone: "a conflict has arisen
between Manifesta and Nicosia for
(NFA). Manifesta
NFA, a
legal entity
set up
by representatives of the Municipality of Nicosia and the Cypriot Ministry of Culture and Education to administer Manifesta 6 in autumn 2006, has not fulfilled its contractual obligations to secure the selected venues by the curators in the entire city, i.e. in both North and South Nicosia." Official explanation of the International Foundation Manifesta,
http://www.artfacts.net/index.php/pageType/instInfo/inst/6058/contentType/news//nID/2943/lang/1, visited October 23, 2006.
Agamben, Giorgio
1998 Homo Sacer: Sovereign Power and Bare Life. Stanford University Press
Amnesty International Official Website
"Slovenia: the 'erased' – Briefing to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights". http://web.amnesty.org/library/index/engeur680022005
Artfact Official Website. http://www.artfacts.net
Bal, Mieke
1996 Double Exposures: The Subject of Cultural Analysis. London & New York: Routledge
1999 "Introduction". Bal, Mieke (ed.)The Practice of Cultural Analysis: Exposing
Interdisciplinary Interpretation. Stanford: Stanford University Press: 1-14
Basis-Wien Official Website, Dokumentationszentrum, Archiv und umfangreichste
Datenbank zu zeitgenössischer Kunst, http://www.basis-wien.at
Bouriaud, Nicolas
2002 : Relational Aesthetics. Dijon : Les Presses du Réel
Boutoux, Thomas
2005 "A Tale of Two Cities: Manifesta in Rotterdam and Ljubljana". The Manifesta
Decade: Debates on Contemporary Art Exhibitions and Biennials in Post-Wall
Europe. Massachusetts: The MIT Press: 201-218
Derrida, Jacques
1995 "Archive Fever: A Freudian Impression". Diacritics 25 (2): 9-63
Enwezor, Okwui,
2005 "Tebbitt's Ghost". Manifesta Decade: Debates on Contemporary Art Exhibitions and Biennials in Post-Wall Europe. Massachusetts: The MIT Press: 175-188
Filipović, Elena,
2005 "The Global White Cube". The Manifesta Decade: Debates on Contemporary
Art Exhibitions and Biennials in Post-Wall Europe, Massachusetts: The MIT Press:
Filipović, Elena, Rafal B Niemojewski, Barbara Vanderlinden
2005 "One Day Every Wall Will Fall: Select Chronology of Art and Politics after
1989". The Manifesta Decade: Debates on Contemporary Art Exhibitions and
Biennials in Post-Wall Europe, Massachusetts: The MIT Press: 20-44
Folder "Nicosia"
2006 Manifesta at Home Archive
Loshitzky, Jozefa
2006 "Journeys of Hope to Fortress Europe". Third Text 20 (6): 745–754
Luckhurst, Kenneth W.
1951 The Story of Exhibitions., London &New York: The Studio Publications
Manifesta Official Website, http://www.manifesta.org
Metropolis M,
2006 Expanding Academy. Utrecht: Metropolis M Foundation
O' Doherty, Brian
1999: Inside the White Cube: The Ideology of the Gallery Space. Berkley, Los
Angeles, London: University of California Press
Saskia Sassen
2006 "Europe's Migrations: The Numbers and the Passions are Not New". Third
Text, 20(6): 635-645
van Winkel, Camiel
2005 "The Rhetorics of Manifesta". The Manifesta Decade: Debates on Contemporary Art Exhibitions and Biennials in Post-Wall Europe.Massachusetts: The MIT Press: 219-232
Vanderlinden, Barbara
1998 "Futurables". Manifesta 2, European Biennial of Contemporary Art, Luxembourg City: Casino Luxembourg-Forum d'artcontemporain: 207-211
2005 "The Archive Everywhere". The Manifesta Decade: Debates on Contemporary
Art Exhibitions and Biennials in Post-Wall Europe. Massachusetts: The MIT Press:
Vanderlinden, Barbara, Elena Filipović
2005 The Manifesta Decade: Debates on Contemporary Art Exhibitions and
Biennials in Post-Wall Europe. Massachusetts: The MIT Press
Žižek, Slavoj
1998 "A Leftist Plea for 'Eurocentrism'". Critical Inquiry 24 (4): 988-1009
Xavier Koller
1990 Journey of Hope (Reise der Hoffnung)


text:
Thu, 20 Oct 2011
The number of children in need of protection on the Island has nearly doubled since February 2008.
60 children are currently subject to a Child Protection Plan through the Department of Social Care, compared to 34 in 2008.
The Department says the jump is down to better detection of vulnerable children.
Nearly 900 children were referred to social services over the last year, with over half of those judged to be at risk of harm.
The figures were revealed in answer to a series of question from Speaker of the House of Keys Steve Rodan in this month's sitting of Tynwald
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text:
Jasper quartz is a natural quartz stone and comes in various different types of brown colors and in polished finish. Jasper quartz is used for indoor, kitchen and vanity countertop, kitchen top, work top, table top, flooring and wall. Jasper is bacteria resistant and durable.
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You don't have to be professional or gym junkie to appreciate what a good pair of leggings, sports bra, sneakers, and sports jacket can do for active girl's wardrobe. This time we are about to view some of the best workout leggings and pants to wear this year. Modern activewear is not just for workouts, it's also a perfect choice for running errands and long walks down the beach during summer vacations. You might think you will need to sacrifice with style to feel comfortable, you are not right. There is no compromise in athletic wear. Thank God, we see lots of fashion brands who offer activewear suits consisting of chic tops and leggings.
Continue reading Workout Leggings and PantsEvery outfit is unique, that's why everyone needs to have an experiment with . I decided to show you latest 2019 fashion trends guide for women including: Athletic Apparel, Sports Clothes, Sports Trends 2018, Sporty Style, Workout Clothes, Workout Leggings, Workout Pants, every single piece is a must-try for the current season.


text:
Robert Bowers, 46, the anti-Semite accused of gunning down 11 people at a Pittsburgh synagogue pleaded not guilty to federal charges that carry the death penalty today, "as is typical at this stage of the proceedings," according to one of his federal public defenders.
Bowers was arraigned one day after a grand jury issued a 44-count indictment that charges him with murder, hate crimes, obstructing the practice of religion and other crimes. Bowers loudly said "yes," when asked if he understood the charges, reports AP.
Bowers walked into court, AP reports; on Monday, at his initial court appearance, he was in a wheelchair. Bowers was shot multiple times Saturday by police officers responding to the scene in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh.
Meanwhile, funerals for the people who were killed Saturday at the Tree of Life Synagogue continue.


text:
Posted: November 17, 2010
MVHS Thunder Sticks will be on sale in the main lobby at lunch Thursday, November 18 and Friday, November 19 for $5 a set. Make sure to pick some up before the big game!Remember to wear blue & gold Friday, and to really show your school spirit, come to the main lobby @ lunch for face painting!Also, tomorrow night @ 7 we are having another VARIETY SHOW so be sure to come out and enjoy some of MV's most talented! $7 admittance.


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Bocas del Toro: Water
The best part about the resort is that several excursions were offered to nearby attractions: beaches, coffee plantations, and bat caves on the mainland. I'm sure most people opt to choose all three but we elected to spend all our time lounging on the beach and playing in the water. Coffee is nice….but sand is better!
Our favorite beach was a national park called Cayo Zapatillas, which was about 20 minutes away by boat. We went twice, it was that lovely. If you are in Bocas del Toro, a day trip out here is not to be missed.
We basically spent all day, every day in the water. We were wrinkly little prunes upon exiting.
Despite a massive application of sunscreen, this little girlie got pink cheeks the first day. The following morning we thoroughly slathered her in multiple lotions which worked, despite making her look like a comical ghost.
You guys, water doesn't get any more perfect than this. No undertow, no dangerous waves, no stingrays (which have been a problem on other parts of our trip) and it has that lovely aqua color that just dazzles.
Fun fact: my mother has painted her bedroom this exact shade of blue, which she claims makes waking up on a drizzly Seattle winter day slightly more manageable.
If you ever need an uncontaminated source of drinking water when stranded on a tropical island, coconuts are your best friend.
Another tip: don't plant your beach blanket (and yourself) under a coconut tree. They let loose head-cracking bombs with shocking regularity.
Getting a tour from Ramon, the resort's naturalist. He was great but the kids lasted for about 10 minutes before bailing out into the water to chase fishes.
Ramon and his wife Natalia spent several years working for a turtle research project on these very islands and we loved hearing about their efforts and positive progress. Here he is describing how a baby sea turtle makes its way from nest to ocean.
We were also extremely lucky to see a newly-hatched straggler make her way down the beach for the very first time. And if that 'she' happens to be a 'he', it will be the last time in his life he goes onto dry land. Baby turtles usually make their water entrance in the dead of night, as predators like vultures are keeping a sharp eye out for these tasty morsels. A young turtle faces daunting survival odds, even once the water is successfully reached.
Just a quick note: We were very careful to stay out of this turtle's direct path to the water. Due to the angle of these shots, it looks like Emma is right in front of him/her, when in fact she was to the side. The youngster made a straight beeline to the ocean and went on its merry way.
And she's off! Good luck in life, baby.
Tired, happy family.
When you're so tired that a boogie board works for a bed.
Selected Photos: Cherie J.
Recommendations – Bocas del Toro
National Park Cayo Zapatillas
Day trips are available from Bocas Town and usually include lunch, fishing, and a few hours lazing on the beach. The boat ride is about 35 minutes. Highly recommended as this was our favorite beach for kids, family, and general natural beauty.
Tranquilo Bay Eco Resort
Highly, Highly recommended!! We would have loved to have stayed longer. The two families that own and run the place are lovely. The food was good (and plentiful), the naturalists were excellent, and the activities were fabulous. Our advice: skip the second beach by the resorts on Bastimento and spend all your time at Zapatillas – the beach and snorkeling are both better.


text: In our days it is difficult to imagine such a fashionable accessory like the leggings on the man. But before this article of clothing was part of the military outfit and was intended only for males, protecting their legs from water, snow and mud. But over time, leggings have become a stylish highlight the image… More


text:
Hair Home Study Classes
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text:
The Russian mobile operator MTS is in talks to buy ivi.ru, the country's leading OTT platform.
Quoting sources speaking to RBK, ComNews reports that although MTS is willing to pay around R20 billion (€274 million) for a 100% stake in MTS, not all shareholders are willing to sell the company at such a price.
Ivi.ru was founded by Oleg Tumanov and launched in February 2010. Although its exact shareholder structure is unclear, it is known to include Tumanov, Interros, Baring Vostok, ru-Net, Tiger Global and Buran Ventures.
While the company saw its revenues grow by 62% to R3.94 billion in 2018, one reason for the sale could be low profitability.
It posted net losses of R130.5 million in 2017 and the figures for last year are still unknown.


text:
Ilan Berman is Vice President for Policy at the American Foreign Policy Council in Washington, DC. An expert on international terrorism and regional security in the Middle East, Central Asia and the Russian Federation, Mr. Bermans writings have appeared in such publications as the WSJ Europe, Middle East Quarterly, the Washington Times, the Jerusalem Post and the Journal of International Security Affairs and Strategic Review.
Andrew Bihun is currently the President of The Washington Group (TWG). Mr. Bihun recently retired from the US Department of Commerce, where he served in several senior positions. In the 1990s, he held the post of Commercial Attache at the US Embassy to Ukraine.
Steven Blank is currently Professor of National Security Studies at US Army War College; prior to his present position, Dr. Blank taught for twenty years at the Institute for Security and Development Policy. His expertise in matters concerning the post-Soviet space is widely recognized and highly regarded.
Janusz Bugajski is Senior Associate in the Europe Program at CSIS. He has served as a consultant for various U.S. organizations and government agencies and testifies regularly before the U.S. Congress. He chairs the South-Central Europe area studies program at the Foreign Service Institute of the U.S. Department of State.
William H. Courtney is Senior Vice President of CSC/DynMeridian Corp. From 1998 to 2000, he served as a Senior Advisor at the U.S. Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe. In 1997-98, Ambassador Courtney was Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director of the NSC staff for Russia, Ukraine, and Eurasia. Previously, he served as Ambassador to Georgia and Kazakhstan.
Paula Dobriansky has served in key roles as a diplomat and policy maker in the administrations of five U.S. presidents, both Democrat and Republican. She is a specialist in the areas of Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union as well as political-military affairs. She served as Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs from 2001-2009, making her the longest-serving undersecretary in the State Departments history. At present, Dr. Dobriansky is a Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs Senior Fellow at Harvard Universitys John F. Kennedy School of Government and concurrently a senior foreign policy advisor to Governor Mitt Romney.
Nadia Diuk currently serves as Vice President, Programs for Europe and Eurasia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean at the National Endowment for Democracy, a private nonprofit organization funded by the US Congress to strengthen democratic institutions around the world through nongovernmental efforts. Dr. Diuk has supervised NED programs since 1987.
Derek Fraser is Director of the EastWest Institute of Canada, located at the Centre for Global Studies, University of Victoria. He served as Canada's envoy in Ukraine from 1998 to 2001, in Greece from 1995 to 1998, and in Hungary from 1988 to 1993. Ambassador Fraser has also worked at Canadian missions in Vietnam, Germany, Russia and Belgium. At headquarters, he was variously Acting Director General, Cultural Affairs and Higher Education Bureau, Director at different times of the East and West European Divisions, and Dep. Director of the Latin American Division.
Bohdan Futey has served as Judge of the United States Court of Federal Claims since 1987. Judge Futey is actively involved with Democratization and Rule of Law programs organized by the Judicial Conference of the United States, the Department of State and the American Bar Association in Ukraine and Russia.
Tamara Gallo currently serves as President of the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America. Previous to her current position, Ms. Gallo spent several years heading the National Office of the UCCA in New York as well as directing the UNIS Bureau in Washington DC.
Philip Gordon was nominated as Assistant Secretary of State on March 6th, 2009 and took the oath of office on May 15th 2009. As Assistant Secretary, he is responsible for 50 countries in Europe and Eurasia as well as NATO, the EU and the OSCE. Dr. Gordon has previously served as a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington, DC, Director for European Affairs at the National Security Council under President Bill Clinton, and Senior Fellow, International Institute for Strategic Studies, London.
Jonas Grätz is a highly regarded and often quoted researcher with the Center for Security Studies at ETH Zurich. He specializes in issues concerning the internationalization of Russian oil and gas companies, EU energy policy, and energy geopolitics.
John Herbst is former United States Ambassador to Ukraine and current Director of the National Defense University Center for Complex Operations. He has worked as a political counselor at the US embassies in Tel Aviv, Israel, Moscow, Russia, and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He has also worked as the Director of Regional Affairs in the Near East Bureau of the United States State Department, as Director of the Office of Independent States and Commonwealth Affairs and as Principal Deputy to the Ambassador-at-large for the Newly Independent States. He was appointed Ambassador to Uzbekistan in 2000 before assuming the post of US envoy to Ukraine in 2003.
Yevhen Hlibovytsky is a partner in Pro.Mova, a well NGO in Ukraine specializing in "values surveys" and "long term strategic planning projects". Concurrently, he is a member of the Nestor Group [charged with the 'Vision for Ukraine 2025' project ] as well as a member of the Univ Group [charged with 'Vision for Lviv 2025' project].
Laura Jewett is NDIs Regional Director for Eurasia. Dr. Jewett has traveled extensively throughout her assigned region [Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Turkey, Ukraine and Uzbekistan], meeting with political, civic and government leaders to assess political conditions and design democracy assistance programs; before joining NDI, she served in Washington on the staffs of U.S. Representative Bill Ratchford and U.S. Senator Christopher Dodd, both of Connecticut.
F. Stephen Larrabee is a Senior Staff member at RAND in Washington, D.C. and holds the RAND Corporate Chair in European Security. From 1978-1981, Dr. Larrabee served on the U.S. National Security Council staff in the White House as a specialist on Soviet-East European affairs and East-West political-military relations.
Lubomyr Luciuk is Professor of Political Geography in the Department of Politics and Economics at the Royal Military College of Canada, specializing in Eastern Europe and former Soviet Union. He is the author or editor of over a dozen books and almost 200 opinion editorials published in Canadian newspapers, as well as a frequent commentator on the CBC, National Public Radio (USA) and BBC. Recently he served as chairman (pro tempore) of the Department of Politics and Economics at the Royal Military College of Canada, the first Canadian of Ukrainian heritage to enjoy this distinction.
Borys Kushniryk is a leading member of the Ukrainska Narodna Partiya and serves as a senior economic policy advisor in its Political Council. Concurrently, he writes for and runs a well known blog site thru the good offices of Ukraine's leading internet newspaper, Ukrainska Pravda.
Lewis Madanick is currently Program Manager for the US Library of Congress Open World Leadership Development Center, charged with bringing a new generation of leaders from Lithuania, Ukraine and Uzbekistan to the United States for an internship in building responsible civil society and democratic government.
William Miller is presently a Senior Scholar at the Kennan Institute, Woodrow Wilson International Center. Earlier, he served as the second United States Ambassador to Ukraine. During his tenure, Ambassador Miller was eyewitness to some of the most fundamental transformations of the Ukrainian State, including the ratification of Ukraine's Constitution.
Olexander Motsyk is the current Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the United States of America, a position he has held since June 2010. A career diplomat, Ambassador Motsyk served as the Ukrainian envoy to Poland from May 2005 until June 2010 as well as Ukraine's chief emissary to the Republic of Turkey from November 1997 to November 2001.
Steven Nix is Director of the Eurasian Division at the International Republican Institute. From 1995 to 1997, Mr. Nix served as Outside Legal Counsel for the Ukrainian Parliament's Committee on Legal and Judicial Reform. Upon his return to the U.S., he accepted a position as Senior Democracy Specialist at USAID, where he assisted in the design and implementation of democracy programs in Eastern Europe and the Newly Independent States.
John O'Keefe is a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister Counselor. Before assuming his duties as Executive Director of the LOC's Open World Leadership Development Program, he served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Office of the Director General, Bureau of Human Resources [2004-2006]. Prior to that, Ambassador O'Keefe headed the Office of Career Development and Assignments from July 2003 to April 2004. He served as U.S. Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan from August 2000 to July 2003.
Jan Pieklo is Director of Polish Ukrainian Cooperation Foundation [PAUCI]. An experienced NGO professional and journalist, Jan has spent many years dedicated to international cooperation and development. With deep interest in Ukrainian and regional issues, he has successfully worked to broaden Polish-Ukrainian and regional cooperation, particularly as a former Director of the Bridges to the East Institute for the Krakow-based ZNAK Foundation.
Herman Pirchner is President of the American Foreign Policy Council. In recent years, in addition to the steady flow of books and articles, the Council has worked with over 100 members of Congress and numerous Executive Branch officials on foreign travel, exchanges and foreign policy briefings. Mr. Pirchner previously served as Director of Legislation for Senator Roger Jepsen (R-Iowa).
Leonid I. Polyakov (Colonel-Ret,) is Director of the Center for Army, Conversion and Disarmament Studies; directly prior to his current posting, Mr. Polyakov served as First Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine. His military service in the Ukrainian Armed Forces included a combat tour as Company Commander in Afghanistan, Group Chief for U.S./Ukraine military contacts, Senior Research Fellow on the General Staff of Ukraines Armed Forces, State Expert (senior advisor) on the Analytical Service of the National Security and Defense Council Staff, Ukraine as well as various other military command and staff officer positions.
Oleh Rybachuk, before taking the present position of Head of the NGO "Chesno", served in several senior government posts including: Vice Premier for European Integration and Head of the Secretariat of the President of Ukraine.
James Sherr is Head of the Russia and Eurasia Program at the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House) in London. Between 1995 and May 2008, he was a Fellow of the Advanced Research and Assessment Group (formerly Conflict Studies Research Centre) of the Defence Academy. He is also a member of the Faculty of Social Studies of Oxford University. Over the past ten years, he has been a consultant to NATO on Ukraine and regularly advises the British government and parliament as well as others inside NATO about Russia as well as security problems in the Black Sea region.
Keith Smith is Senior Advisor in the Europe Division at the Center for Strategic and International Affairs (CSIS); his most recent publication: "Russian Energy Politics in the Baltic States, Poland and Ukraine" has prompted very serious attention. In 2000, Ambassador Smith retired from the State Department's Foreign Service after serving from 1997 to 2000 as the American Ambassador in Lithuania. In Europe, he was also posted to Hungary (twice), Norway and Estonia.
Oleksandr Sushko is the Director of the Center for Peace, Conversion and Foreign Policy of Ukraine; he also serves as Senior Research Associate at the Institute for Euro-Atlantic Cooperation. Dr. Sushko's CPCFPU's Internet Newsletter, provides timely analysis of key political economic, security and diplomatic issues facing the Ukrainian political and social leadership.
Borys Tarasyuk is currently the Head of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Euro-Integration; in the last decade, he has served as Minister of Foreign Affairs in governments headed by Prime Ministers Valeriy Pustovoitenko, Viktor Yushchenko, Yuliya Tymoshenko, Yuri Yekhanurov and Viktor Yanukovych. Ambassador Tarasyuk concurrently serves as the Head of the NRU People's Rukh of Ukraine and Director of the Institute for Euro-Atlantic Cooperation.
Oleksandr Todiychuk is President of Kyiv International Energy Club - Q-Club; concurrently he is Commissioner of Ukraine for the Euro-Asian Oil Transportation Corridor and President of JSC "Ukrtransnafta". In 2005-2006, Mr. Todiychuk was Chairman of the Board of JSC Ukrtransnafta; in 2001, he served as Chairman of the Board of JSC Institute of Oil Transportation.
Andreas Umland teaches in the Master in German and European Studies program at the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy and edits a scholarly book series on Soviet and Post-Soviet Politics and Society. Dr. Umlands study ″Post-Soviet Uncivil Society and the Rise of Aleksandr Dugin: A Case Study of the Extraparliamentary Radical Right in Contemporary Russia,″ has received high critical praise for its incisiveness.
Volodymyr Viatrovych is currently the Director of the Center to Research the Liberation Movement of Ukraine and concurrently Mykola Lebed Archive Research Fellow at Harvard Universitys Ukrainian Research Institute. Previous to his present tasks, Dr. Viatrovych served as Director of Archives of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).
Morgan Williams is President of US-Ukraine Business Council as well as Director of Government Affairs at the SigmaBleyzer Emerging Markets Private Equity Investment Group. Additionally, Mr. Williams edits and publishes the Action Ukraine Report, an indispensable informational tool for all who cover issues related to Ukraine.
Damon Wilson is Executive Vice President of the Atlantic Council; his work is committed to advancing a Europe whole, free, and at peace to include Europes East, the Western Balkans, and the Black Sea region; to strengthening the NATO Alliance; and to fostering a transatlantic partnership capable of tackling global challenges and promoting its common values. His areas of expertise include NATO, transatlantic relations, Central and Eastern Europe, and national security issues. From 2007 to 2009, Mr. Wilson served as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for European Affairs at the National Security Council.
Jorge Zukoski currently serves as President of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine; in that role, he has proven to be an invaluable proponent of ever widening US-Ukrainian economic relations.


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Minutes of the twentieth annual session of the Chilton County District Baptist Women's Association; held with the Shady Grove Baptist Church, July 31, 1931
Clanton, AL: the Association, 1932. Pamphlet. 8p., wraps somewhat worn and stained, penciling on front wrap, some over-all creasing and wear but a useable copy, 6x9.25 inches.
Cat.No: 118707
Price: $75.00
See all items in 1930S, African American, Alabama, Baptist, US South, Southern States, American South, Women


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I'm writing this post keeping in mind that I do not know all there is to know about the condition of the government psychiatric facilities in South Africa. I been 'fortunate' to be on medical aid. I've never been to a facility. You know, a facility. I should have in think back on what i've done, where I've been, especially in my mind. But this 'fortune' of having medical aid does not take from the loneliness from having a mental illness.
It's isolating.
I've told a few of my closest friends, but all they offer is empathy. Of course it's genuine and I appreciate it. It's just.
I feel like I'm crazy when I try explain the kind of thoughts I have- the sensitivity I displayed to every change that happened in my life; the fact that I shattered to a million pieces, inside and kept it to myself. I kept the torment inside all these years and felt lonely and scared to share it, to whisper to any ear that would listen. I was so scared of their reactions. I was scared of being put away. I was scared of disgust. I kept it all inside, to keep people close. Some people, who didn't give a damn about me anyway.
When I tell my husband about the versions of me, the psychosis, my super powers, he doesn't understand. But he knows.
I want another bipolar to tell me I'm normal.
Am I am not normal now?
Now that I fit.
Fit into type 1?
I read blogs because they account the daily transactions between us and the ghost inside.
I used to think that I would die at the age of 23. I was paranoid for many years that because I saw the digital time 23:23 quite a few times (on a VHS machine), I would die at 23. I became so paranoid that it became a bitterness, and of course I never celebrated my 23rd birthday. (P.S I was not medicated). I'm 28 now. And every year, I live is a surprise to me. After numerous suicide attempts I think it goes with the territory. But, when I look at blogs by older bipolars and fellow mental illness suffers, I know I may not die. It's inspiring.
That's profound to me.
I may not always be ok.
But I may not die.
I feel lonely here in South Africa. I want to make a change. I don't want others to feel this loneliness- the voices won't ever be able to make up for this kind of loneliness. I urge South africans to be as vocal, as helpful, as genuine, as compassionate as those abroad, like the likes of Kitt O'Malley, Glenn Archibald and Dyane.
(Blogging from my phone so functionality is limited but, here are their blogs:
http://proudlybipolar.wordpress.com/ )
They've inspired me to come out, stay medicated and most importantly be me (which is a whole a lot of awesome things).
I'll continue to connect, follow and tweet other mental health activists.
When I do die one day, I want my children to remember me, the real me- the fighter, the passionate Yvette… Who happened to have Bipolar 😉


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Awesome job Spencer! That is a really neat way for him to display all his Cub Scout awards. I might need to ask you about where you (or someone else) got that.
Good job Spencer. That is awesome. Have fun in Boy Scouts! Before we know it we'll have pics on our blogs of our boys getting Eagles. :S
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Here are a few ways you can address the labor shortage within your own company and for the industry as a whole
It's no secret to anyone in the construction industry that the labor market is a challenge. At the end of last year, availability of labor was the top concern of builders for 2018, according to the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index, with 84% of respondents anticipating issues.
Another NAHB survey, released this September, found that carpentry and framing are experiencing the tightest supplies of labor for both direct employment and subcontractors. A whopping 90% of builders are reporting shortages of rough carpentry subcontractors and 89% say framing subs are in short supply.
"The widespread shortages continue to restrain the pace of construction, further driving up construction costs, which are increasingly being absorbed by the home buyer," the NAHB said. "The shortages are also affecting builders' bottom lines by causing lost or canceled sales and making some projects unprofitable."
The labor crisis stems from a variety of factors. For one, the industry continues to feel the effects of the housing bust, during which many workers departed for other industries. The aging workforce is another issue, says Tony Mancini, group director and principal at SGC Horizon, publisher of Professional Builder. "It's not just a lack of people coming in, but over the next 10 years many older people leaving the industry is going to be a big problem."
Here are a few ways you can address the labor shortage within your own company and for the industry as a whole:
Change the narrative
Another reason for the slow flow of new talent is the fact that construction careers haven't been as attractive to young people (and their parents). Many high schoolers simply don't know about or understand the potential of a career in construction, automatically opting for college even if it may not be the best fit for them.
"Three percent of people want to be in construction," Mancini says. "So positioning construction as a career rather than a job is something that's going to be important for the overall industry." The industry needs to highlight the positives of a career in construction, he notes, including the earning potential and the clear career path that can lead all the way to business ownership.
"[We need to] change the mindset of teachers and guidance counselors and parents," adds Nancy Kelly, president and owner of Labor Masters, a staffing services firm in Fargo, N.D. "It's OK not to get a four-year degree; it's OK to get a certificate or a two-year degree."
Connect with schools
Reach out to vo-tech teachers and trade schools as a way to connect directly with students and spread the message about construction careers. Volunteer for career day, ask about promising students for apprenticeship positions, perhaps even invite classes to observe life on the jobsite. "Talk to kids about what you do," Kelly says. "We really need people to get involved at the grassroots level … if you don't go in and tell people what you do, how will they know?"
Get involved with local associations
Word of mouth is one of the best ways to recruit. By remaining active with your local home builders association, you increase your chances of meeting potential new employees while demonstrating your company's leadership. It also ensures you have a say in how the industry is addressing labor challenges at the local level.
Nurture newcomers
Entrepreneurial builders are putting apprenticeship programs together themselves and through their companies, according to Mancini.
Connect with veterans' groups
Veterans entering civilian life often bring a commitment to discipline, fluency in teamwork, and leadership skills, notes Rikka Brandon, founder and chief executive recruiter for Building Gurus, an executive search firm in the building products industry. Many also may have skills ideal for construction, such as a CDL license or familiarity with heavy equipment or power tools. "Seek out an organization in your area with a proven track record for placing vets into the workforce," Brandon advises.
Think outside the box
Brandon also suggests deepening your pool by seeking out groups that are often overlooked, such as immigrants, individuals with disabilities, and stay-at-home parents. In many cases, these individuals not only have the necessary skills but also hardworking attitudes and appreciation for being given the opportunity.
Consider a temping or day labor service
Companies like Nancy's provide as-needed general labor for builders for days, weeks, or months. The agency shoulders the burden of finding and screening labor, providing a match specific to your needs.
Support industry efforts
Several organizations within the industry are working toward addressing the labor shortage. For example, the Skilled Labor Fund is raising money to fund training in local markets; the group will be hosting a fundraiser at the Builders' Show in February. Fine Homebuilding magazine launched the #KeepCraftAlive initiative, designed to showcase the unique stories of craftspeople as a means to attract newcomers while raising money for scholarships.
Along with these recruitment strategies, another consideration is to ease the burden on existing crews and subs by specifying products that are easier to install. For example, LP Legacy® premium sub-flooring is delivered working-side up, features pre-printed fastener marks, and has an easy-fit, self-gapping tongue-and-groove to simplify installation, particularly for those new to framing. In addition, Legacy's superior moisture resistance prevents edge swell and comes with a Covered Until It's Covered™ no-sand guarantee, further saving time and helping to ease the labor burden.
For more information, visit www.lpcorp.com/legacy.


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|Passenger Volume
|Seating Capacity
|Cargo Space – Minimum
|Cargo Space – Maximum
|2019 Honda Odyssey Dimensions
|163.6 cu. ft. (LX Trim)
|7 (LX Trim), 8 (EX Trim and up)
|38.6 cu. ft.
|158 cu. ft.
The 2019 Honda Odyssey's Seating Capacity starts out at seven in its LX trim. All upgraded models, which include a Multi-Function 2nd-Row Center Seat, can seat up to eight in perfect comfort. What's more, you'll be able to take advantage of more than 160 cu. ft. of passenger space—and similarly impressive cargo storage areas—no matter which trim level you select. Leather-Trimmed Front and Rear-Outboard Seats have been included on the EX-L and up, and we've listed the Odyssey's other seating features in the space below.
The Honda Odyssey's interior dimensions and seating features are nothing short of luxurious, but if you're anything like most drivers, they're not the only features you want to see in your next vehicle's cabin! Every Odyssey's interior is full-to-bursting with connectivity and convenience features that you'll use every time you get behind the wheel. Read on to get a feel for some of the most exciting options.
Tri-Zone Automatic Climate Control: Starting on the Odyssey's EX trim, you'll be able to take advantage of a Tri-Zone Automatic Climate Control System with Humidity Control and Air Filtration. This system places the driver's seat, the front passenger's seat, and the rear portion of the cabin in their own temperature zones.
HondaVac: A built-in HondaVac, located within arm's reach of your Odyssey's tailgate entrance, makes it easier than ever to keep your cabin clean and free of debris. This feature is standard on both Touring and Elite models.
Entertainment Systems: A 160-Watt 7-Speaker Audio System is standard from the LX to the Touring trim, but those who upgrade all the way to the Elite will receive a 550-Watt 11-Speaker setup with Multi-Zone Audio instead. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto come standard in the EX and up, and an Advanced Rear Entertainment System is optional starting on the EX-L.
Smartphone Connectivity: Drivers who choose the Odyssey will be able to integrate their smartphone with their vehicle in numerous different ways. The Cabin Control app lets passengers control the entertainment system using nothing but their phone screen, while the HondaLink app gives access to useful guides, parking location tracking, and more, wherever you go. An SMS Text Message Function—also standard on the EX and up—can even read your messages aloud. A Wireless Phone Charger has been included on Elite models.
CabinTalk and CabinWatch: Keeping in constant contract with your most precious cargo has never been easier. The Odyssey's CabinTalk PA system lets you broadcast your voice throughout the entirety of the cabin, and with CabinWatch, a small, centrally-located screen lets you take a look at the rest of your cabin without turning in your seat. Both features are standard on Touring and Elite models.
WiFi and GPS: Honda's Satellite-Linked Navigation System is optional on the EX-L, and standard on both Touring and Elite models. Those who opt for either of the latter models will also be able to take advantage of built-in Mobile Hotspot Capability. Just add a subscription to take advantage of speedy, accessible internet wherever the road takes you.
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(888) 794-9805Call Now
391 S State Rd Cheshire • Cheshire, MA 01225Get Directions
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Military recruiting
SRP has tremendous appreciation for your military service, not only for your accomplishments and sacrifices, but also because of our many shared values. Your integrity, discipline, and unrelenting commitment to service are core to our culture and approach to business. While not as fundamental as providing for the nation's security, providing water and power is essential to the vitality of our community. Your experience, skills and can-do attitude are a great fit for a rewarding career at SRP. Thank you for your service. We hope you will consider joining our team.
Find out more about Jobs for Service Members and Veterans at SRP.
To see SRP positions that fit your military experience, visit our Military Translator.
Receive emails by subscribing to jobs matching Military recruiting when they are posted.
The 1 most recent jobs posted by SRP are listed below for your convenience.
|Date posted
Fabricator Metal
Phoenix, AZ, US Jul 6, 2020 0.00 mi Skilled Trade/Technical Speciality 15 - PROVISIONAL FULLTIME (ACTIVE) AZ Phoenix-Fabricator-Metal-AZ-85001


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In Mexico, well-defined laws ease growth
Flag Facts
The green, white and red vertical bands signify (in order) hope, joy and love; peace and honesty; and hardiness, bravery, strength and valor. Mexico's coat of arms is derived from a legend that the wandering Aztec people were to settle where they would see an eagle on a cactus eating a snake; the city they founded, Tenochtitlan, is now Mexico City.
Location: With the United States to the north and Belize and Guatemala to the south, Mexico also borders the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico. It's about three times the size of Texas.
Language: Spanish
Total Population: 124.5 million
Capital: Mexico City
Government: Federal republic
Religion: Roman Catholic (82.7%)
Economy: Mexico is the 15th largest economy in the world and second largest in Latin America. After Canada and China, Mexico is the United States' third largest trading partner and second largest export market; 2016 saw $262 billion in U.S. sales to the country. Mexico's government, led by President Enrique Peña Nieto, has emphasized economic reforms and since 2013 the country's economic growth has averaged 2 percent annually. The economy is vulnerable to global pressures, such as lower demand, rising interest rates and low oil prices. Income distribution remains highly unequal, and while unemployment was 3.6 percent in 2017, underemployment may be as high as 25 percent.
News note: Mexican views of the U.S. took a negative turn in 2017 according to multiple reports, including a Pew Research Center survey that found nearly two-thirds of Mexicans express a negative opinion of the U.S. That's a dramatic shift from 2015, when Pew found that 66 percent of Mexicans held favorable views of the U.S. and one that coincides with the start of President Trump's term. Trump continues to be a frequent and vocal critic of Mexico, consistently renewing his promise to build a border wall.
GDP (official exchange rate): $1.14 trillion
Currency: Peso (conversion rate at press time: 1 MXN equals $.054 USD).
Franchising in Mexico: The Mexican Franchise Association notes that of the country's more than 13,000 franchise concepts, about 85 percent of them are Mexican brands. U.S. concepts account for about 6 percent of franchises, with food and restaurant brands being the most popular, in addition to a growing services segment.
Franchise laws and regulations are well defined, and the requirements to grant franchises are the same for local and foreign brands. Government corruption, however, is still considered the most problematic factor for doing business in Mexico, and low intellectual property rights protections are a concern.
Ease of doing business ranking by World Bank: 49, unchanged from 2017.