We, people in transition: regarding that moment when I didn't speak the truth (although I could)

Eleni Kamma (Producer), Anke Coumans (Producer)

Research output: Non-textual formExhibitionOther research output

Abstract

The work of artist and PhDArts researcher Eleni Kamma consists of two parts: a portrait series showing confessions of insincerity and research material in which parrèsia or free speech is examined.

On the Greek island of Tinos, where Kamma created a temporal communal space, she invited people to confess personal moments when they were insincere. Their motive was visualized by asking a local photographer to make portraits of them re-enacting their moment of insincerity in passport format. For the artist, it was an artistic experiment to see if a theatrical activity, such as a re-enactment or performance, could serve testimonial purposes and encourage sharing and co-creation.

Last September in Groningen Kamma asked, for research purposes, almost the opposite: practicing parrhesia. A Greek term in which the speaker is supposed to tell a complete and accurate record of his or her thoughts, so that listeners are able to understand what the speaker thinks. Through audio recordings we are witnessing these testimonies. Kamma examines not only the act of freedom of speech, but also the obligation to speak the truth for the common good, even at personal risk.
Original languageDutch
Media of outputOnline
Publication statusPublished - 2016

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