Manifesta purposely strives to keep its distance from what are often seen as the dominant centres of artistic production, instead seeking fresh and fertile terrain for the mapping of a new cultural topography.
Schule, Nachbarschaft und Wir (School, Neighbourhood and Us)
Four artists and collectives work together with local schools, focusing on linguistic diversity, collaborative learning and the neighbourhood.
Schule, Nachbarschaft und Wir (School, Neighbourhood and Us). Photo © Manifesta 16 Ruhr/Anna Jocham.
In the face of growing demands on educational institutions - extending far beyond the classical understanding of educational work - schools have become central to facilitating social cohesion. Schools increasingly reflect broader societal challenges, making it essential to explore how they can actively contribute to social cohesion rather than merely reacting to its tensions.
Schule, Nachbarschaft und Wir (School, Neighbourhood and Us) understands schools as extended communities that can connect with their surrounding neighbourhoods to turn them into spaces of the commons. Within this porgramme four artists/artistic collectives investigate how schools both mirror and influence social cohesion, emphasizing diversity as a source of connection rather than an obstacle though a site-specific collaboration with one school each.