Surviving Presence

„Surviving presence“ is the debut event series of the artistic platform-project, which goes by the same name. It is thought of as a collective investigation of the relationship of art and surviving, healing and activism through dynamic formats based on workshops, performance, talks and film-screenings. Artistic creation has always served as an exploration and expression of the self. In particular, artistic exploration of the inner self reveals a special potential of artistic processes: Transforming emotions and externalizing what is inside without the needs of words or languages. In some cases, this form of artistic expression is therefore considered therapeutic. Sometimes it can even be necessary for survival. The “surviving presence” platform is thought for those whose art is part of a survival strategy, opening up a discourse on “survivor art” and its background. Through the artistic formats created as part of “surviving presence”, the marginalized perspectives of the “survivor artist” can be made visible, showing how survival is embedded in systems of hegemonic power, structural injustice and oppression. The project also offers the audience a framework in which to reflect on their own handling of crises and emotions. Thereby, the audience has the opportunity to develop emotional empathy for artists at risk and their underrepresented perspectives and paths and become a part of a collective investigation on how artistic resilience strategies could be transferred on a societal level. As the essence of this art form as a survival mechanism resides in the creative process rather than in its outcome as an artistic product, surviving artists* often seem to use whatever medium they need – or have access to – to facilitate necessary transformations, transgressing disciplinary and genre boundaries from the ground up. This project adapts these characteristics by framing it as a post-disciplinary and process-oriented format series that will debut at Zemin Gallery in 2024. This art event will therefore focus on dynamic formats combining performative approaches with film screenings, readings, workshops, and open discussions. The transformative power of the arts and their potential for collective and self-therapeutic processes are brought into the present structured in a four-part program: “Come Eat with Me” – Performative Dinner for BiPoC with Sailesh Naidu “Decolonial Archive Lab” – Workshop and Talk with Raras Umaratih and the Collective “Writers in Exile” – Performative Readings and Concert with Kholoud Charaf and Umar Abdul Nasser “Defining ‘Survivor Art'” – Screenings of the short Films “Kherson Oblast” by Ash Kowsky, “A Prisoner from Mosul” by Umar Abdul Nasser and the documentary “Gre- nades in Magluba” by Xénia and Jana, followed by a discussion