“Globalizing Protest” is an ongoing series of photographic montages consisting of images shot in inner cities during protests against the G8. Each photographic montage is based on 36 single images that document the wooden barricades protecting the shop windows erected during various G8 summit meetings, which activists use for graffiti, political texts, and slogans. Three photo works of this series have been produced: “Untitled (Geneva 03.06.03)” was shot during the G8 summit in Geneva 2003, “Untitled (Edinburgh, 7/2005)” at the G8 summit in Scotland in 2005, and “Untitled (Rostock 6/2007)” during the recent G8 summit in Heiligendamm in Germany in 2007.

“With photographs showing shopping windows protected with wooden desks, which turned out to become an endless plateaux for the demonstration’s texts, graffiti and images and sometimes combined with the signs and names of global companies still visible outside the wooden desks, we can see how the incoherency of space and contingency of time enables the disclosure of the common. What is interesting here is exactly the mixture of spatial incoherency and contingency of time of the common, which revealed a completely different mapping of the city streets, movements, languages of the city, parallel spatial meanings. What holds these images together is not the common goal, not even the common meaning, but the alternative production of language with by taking the space and opening up the time. The common appearance is made explicit, this is “the spectacle of appearance” as Hannah Arendt would say. The spectacle is spatially incoherent as a consequence (it is namely done as a protection nevertheless establishing plateaux for momentarily spatial appropriation) and contingent in the sense of making the common explicit not as a program, but as a response to the momentarily urgency of appearance.” (Bojana Kunst, The Collaboration and Space, Moscow Art Magazine No. 61/62, 2006)

“Ressler’s photograph is without action(s), but a site of a precise textuality, and a possible answer to questions about the difference between mainstream journalism, big capital, the power elite and mediactivism. […] An objective camera eye simply does not exist, which is why the camera angle in Ressler’s works blends with the perspective of the demonstrators. As viewers we are in direct relation to the events by seeing them through the demonstrators’ viewpoint. The place of the image of vision and its reversal are crucial. And as regards the image of vision, it is more important to include the third element between the body and that image, namely power. This is why it is necessary to look at Ressler’s works through the only possible perspectives that are non-essentialism and a strict anti-documentary positioning of reality.” (Marina Grzinic and Walter Seidl, Double Check. Re-Framing Space in Photography: The Other Space, Parallel Histories. 2005)

The size of each of the three photo works is 140 x 105 cm.

A series of billboards, posters and banners by Oliver Ressler

The central idea behind the billboard series “Alternative Economics, Alternative Societies” is to present different suggestions, which might be of interest when considering the principles on which an alternative to the existing capitalist system could be based. Such a society should in my opinion be less hierarchical, based on ideas of direct democracy and involve as many people as possible in decision-making processes. In the field of economy this would lead towards a variety of different models of workers self-management.

The billboard series, which has been carried out in public inner-city spaces in Europe and South America so far, might provide some ideas for people who are interested in thinking about a future society. The billboards can work as food for thought, as the basis for discussions, which are so necessary today when strategies for alternatives are not clear. But it also has to be clear that a desirable society should be realized and created by the people who live in it. A model, which prescribes and determines every aspect of this future society, cannot lead towards an ideal society.

The poster and billboard texts, with their large and highly visible fonts, are in the form of appeals, questioning existing dominant power relationships and indicating alternatives that share the rejection of the capitalist system of rule. Some of the ideas presented in this project have been elaborated upon in concepts such as “Participatory Economy” by Michael Albert, “Inclusive Democracy” by Takis Fotopoulos, are suggestions for an anarchist consensual democracy by Ralf Burnicki, or are based on considerations by the theorist John Holloway, especially in his book “Change the World Without Taking Power”. This project uses the format of posters and billboards as arenas for the imagination. “Imagination is a very powerful liberating tool. If you cannot imagine something different you cannot work towards it”, explains Marge Piercy in a video interview conducted for the ongoing exhibition project “Alternative Economics, Alternative Societies” by Oliver Ressler, to which this project is related.

The first presentation of this poster series took place in the framework of the project “Quicksand in De Pijp” by SKOR and Combiwel, curated by Amiel Grumberg, which was a program of artistic interventions taking place in the De Pijp neighborhood of Amsterdam in 2004. Since then, the posters, billboards or banners have been displayed in several cities, invited and funded by art institutions, and always carried out in the local language. Sometimes the presentations in public inner-city spaces were linked with the ongoing exhibitions project “”, which was the case with the poster presentations in Rijeka, Karlsruhe and Lima. Sometimes the billboards were realized on their own (as in Bratislava and Copenhagen). While in Amsterdam around 2000 posters were placarded more or less illegal throughout several months, in Bratislava the large-scale billboards were displayed on city-owned commercial billboard sites, which were left for free to the Billboartgallery Europe, which makes them available for artists. In several of the other presentations, the house facades of art institutions, which invited me to realize works, were used for the public interventions.

• Image 1: Nikolaj Copenhagen Contemporary Art Center, 2005
• The poster texts reads: Imagine and create revolutionary processes which are not intended to take over state power but to dissolve power relations

• Image 2: Billboartgallery Europe, Bratislava, 2004
• The poster texts read: Imagine a society in which people have a say in decisions in proportion to the degree that they are affected

• Image 3: “Quicksand in De Pijp”, org. by SKOR, urban space in Amsterdam, 2004
• The poster text reads: Imagine being remunerated for effort and sacrifice, not for property or power

After the loss of a counter-model for capitalism – which socialism, in its real, existing form had presented until its collapse – alternative concepts for economic and social development face hard times at the beginning of the twenty-first century. In the industrial nations, broadly discussed are only those “alternatives” that do not question the existing power relations of the capitalist system and representative democracies. Other socio-economic approaches are labeled utopian, devalued, and excluded from serious discussion, if even considered at all.

The thematic installation, “Alternative Economics, Alternative Societies,” focuses on diverse concepts and models for alternative economies and societies, which all share a rejection of the capitalist system of rule. An interview was carried out for each concept. Interview partners include economists, political scientists, authors, and historians. From these interviews, a video in English was produced. In the exhibition, these single-channel 20- to 37-minute videos are each shown on a separate monitor, thus forming the central element of the artistic installation.

The project presents alternative social and economic models such as “Inclusive Democracy” from Takis Fotopoulos (GB/GR), “Participatory Economy” from Michael Albert (U.S.A.) and “Anarchist Consensual Democracy” from Ralf Burnicki (D). Chaia Heller (U.S.A.) presents “Libertarian Municipalism”, Paul Cockshott (GB) “Towards a New Socialism”, Heinz Dieterich (MX) “The Socialism of the 21st Century”, Marge Piercy (U.S.A.) the feminist-anarchist utopias of her social fantasies, and the underground author p.m. (CH), the ideas of his concept “bolo’bolo.”

Other videos focus on certain principles that might be of importance when discussing alternative economics and societies: Nancy Folbre (U.S.A.) speaks about “Caring Labor,” Christoph Spehr (D) about “Free Cooperation”, Maria Mies (D) about the subsistence perspective and John Holloway (MX/IE) about his ideas of how to “Change the World Without Taking Power.”

As interesting historical models, Todor Kuljic (SCG), thematizes workers’ self-management in Yugoslavia in the 1960s and 1970s, Salomé Moltó (E) talks about the workers’ collectives during the Spanish Civil War (1936–38), and Alain Dalotel (F) discusses the Paris Commune of 1871. One of the videos discusses the Zapatist Good Government Junta, a self-governing, direct democracy network, which is currently present in certain rural areas of Chiapas, Mexico.

Chosen from each of these 16 videos is one quotation significant for the alternative model that it presents. The quote is placed directly on the floor of the exhibition room as a several meter long text piece. This floor lettering, made from adhesive film, leads exhibition visitors directly to the corresponding videos and thereby provides a kind of orientation within this non-hierarchically arranged pool of videos. These videos offer stimulus and suggestions for contemplating social alternatives and possibilities for action.

The whole exhibition project started in Ljubljana in 2003 with five videos. Meanwhile, the installation has grown to include 16 videos with a total length of more than seven hours. The project is ongoing, further economic and social concepts might be added in the coming years.

The installation “Alternative Economics, Alternative Societies” was realized within the following exhibitions:

• Galerija Skuc, Ljubljana (SI), 30.10. – 23.11.03 (“Alternative Economics, Alternative Societies”)
• Espace Forde, Genève (CH), 06. – 19.12.03 (“There is no Alternative”)
• Kunstraum der Universität Lüneburg (D), 08. – 16.01.04 (“Alternative Economics, Alternative Societies”)
• Transmediale.04, Berlin (D), 31.01. – 15.02.04 (“fly utopia!”)
• O.K – Center for Contemporary Art, Linz (A), 11.03. – 02.05.04 (“Open House”)
• Kunsthalle Exnergasse, Vienna (A), 16.06. – 24.07.04 (“permanent produktiv”)
• Itaucultural Institute, Sao Paulo (BR), 01.07. – 26.09.04 (“Emoção Art.ficial II – Divergências Tecnológicas”)
• Sorlandets Kunstmuseum, Kristiansand (N), 06.07. – 15.08.04 (“Detox 04. Crossover Jam Culture”)
• Wyspa Institute of Art, Gdansk (PL), 03.09. – 03.10.04 (“Health and Safety”)
• Centro Cultural Conde Duque, MediaLabMadrid, Madrid (E), 30.09.04 – 31.10.04 (“Economía alternativa, sociedades alternativas”)
• Forum Stadtpark, Graz (A), Steirischer Herbst, 08.10. – 28.11.04 (“There Must Be an Alternative”)
• Main Trend Gallery, Taipei (RC), 21.01. – 26.02.05 (“Wayward Economy”)
• Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Mali Salon, Rijeka (HR), 04. – 12.03.05 (“Alternativne Ekonomije, Alternativna Drustva”)
• Platform Garanti Contemporary Art Center, Istanbul (TR), 29.04. – 21.05.05 (“An Ideal Society Creates Itself”)
• kuda.org – New Media Center / Museum of Contemporary Art, Novi Sad (SCG), 24.05. – 01.06.05 (“Alternativne Ekonomije, Alternativna Drustva”)
• Museum of Contemporary Art Belgrade, Salon, Belgrade (SCG), 04.06. – 10.06.05 (“Alternativne Ekonomije, Alternativna Drustva”)
• Badischer Kunstverein, Karlsruhe (D), 08.07. – 22.11.05 (“Critical Societies”)
• Miroquesada Garland Gallery, Lima (PE), 12.08. – 04.09.05 (“9th International Festival of Video/Arte/Electrónica”)
• Kunstihoone, Tallinn (EST) 07.01. – 14.02.06 (“Capital (It Fails Us Now)”)
• Second International Biennial of Contemporary Art, Seville (E), 26.10.2006 – 15.01.2007 (“The Unhomely: Phantom Scenes in Global Society”)
• Stroom, The Hague (NL), 25.02. – 08.04.07 (“After Neurath: Like Sailors on the Open Sea“

“Alternative Economics, Alternative Societies” received initial support as a grant from republicart and the BKA section for the arts.

English transcriptions of the videos for “Alternative Economics, Alternative Societies”:

• Chaia Heller, Libertarian Municipalism
• Takis Fotopoulos, Inclusive Democracy
• Michael Albert, Participatory Economics
• Heinz Dieterich, The Socialism of the 21st Century
• Paul Cockshott, Towards a New Socialism
• p.m., bolo’bolo
• Marge Piercy, Utopian Feminist Visions
• Ralf Burnicki, Anarchist Consensual Democracy
• Maria Mies, The Subsistence Perspective
• Nancy Folbre, Caring Labor
• Christoph Spehr, Free Cooperation
• John Holloway, Change the World Without Taking Power
• The Zapatista Good Government
• Todor Kuljic, Yugoslavia‘s Workers Self-Management
• Salomé Moltó, Workers’ Collectives during the Spanish Revolution
• Alain Dalotel, The Paris Commune 1871

For video transcriptions in the languages Spanish, Portuguese and Serbian please check out republicart

Check out the online video “Inclusive Democracy” with Takis Fotopoulos