10/11/2022 – 30/11/2022
“I am not a posthumanist; I am who I become with companion species, who and which make a mess out of categories in the making of kin and kind. Queer messmates in mortal play, indeed”. -Donna Haraway
By opening up to stories related to the destructive environmental system, we understand that the ethics of today’s humans are burdened by the dominant attitude towards nature and the natural world. Environmental destruction is somehow legitimising colonial domination and we are already facing many forms of extinction. Therefore, the need to focus on the interaction between organisms and our operating environment highlights our role in this. As “companion species”, as referred to by Donna Haraway, we free ourselves from the (in)human and posthuman control over plants, animals and nature. Thus we are invited to interact with the natural world around us by acknowledging co-presence, an essential issue of coexistence and interaction in the network of ecosystems today. Referring to Queer Ecology we call ourselves first of all to reflect and act on the decolonization of the understanding of nature and the natural world; echoing the differences and embracing the the flourishing of multi-species.Therefore, trying to expand the boundaries of communication between artists and different creators, Galeria 17 is transformed depending on the needs of the artists and the community. In this case, Yll Xhaferi and DYVÓ are invited to share the gallery space as a work space. The gallery transforms into a space that is as intimate as it is open, as personal as it is public, as experimental as it is creative, as researching as it is exhibiting.Participating artists will contribute to various environmental and social issues, through an open working, educational and awareness raising process. In addition to sharing their professional and personal experiences with each other, they will also cultivate empathy for the environment and social justice with the community. Theorists, artists, ecologists, environmental and cultural activists will join this initiative to contribute to different perspectives on environment, which pave the way to examine issues of social, cultural and environmental importance from a queer perspective. The gallery, open to the public, will serve as a lecture class, a working studio, a space for communication and reflection, a host for guest lectures, an experimentation laboratory, where as a result the participating artists will jointly build an exhibition, which also will mark the first exhibition under the theme of Queer Ecology.Since Yll Xhaferi and DYVÓ deal with environmental issues in their professional practices, this period of cooperation will open the way for communication and inclusiveness with other stakeholders focused on environmental issues in the country. The gallery transformed into a working studio, this time will play the role of grafting between non-formal education, experimental studio, ecology and queer perspective, continuously serving as a space for reflection, action and exhibition.
Queer Ecology:Queer ecology brings together artists, theorists, scientists, environmentalists and activists to broaden their horizons of perception on environmental issues, guided by environmental justice and queer perspectives. Addressing such topics is the continuation of the INFRARED Residency and as such besides the series of exhibitions it will also have the residency program.
—
This activity is supported by Kosovar Civil Society Foundation (KCSF) program ‘EJA Kosovo’, co-financed by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), Sweden, and Government of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.
As well as the Office of President of Kosovo, Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport and Municipality of Prishtina