Memory in the Making
From Monuments to Movements
The conversation “Memory in the Making – From Monuments to Movements” with Holocaust scholar Michael Rothberg was part of Kampnagel’s 2024 season opening in September, held under the motto “Echoes of Tomorrow.” With this, Kampnagel positioned itself within the tension between the politics of memory and memory culture, aiming to become an artistic echo chamber between past, present, and future over the course of ten months. The event was a collaboration with the eCommemoration Convention of the Körber Foundation.
Announcement text:
“Memory culture is a contentious subject in academic, political, and activist debates. As a diverse and increasingly fragmented society, whom, how, and why do we want to remember?
In recent years, models have emerged that prioritize polyphony and a diversity of formats. In particular, self-organized commemorative practices from marginalized communities challenge traditional forms of remembrance—such as the toppling of monuments glorifying colonialism, the remembrance of victims of racist violence like George Floyd (Minneapolis, USA) or William Tonou-Mbobda (Hamburg, Germany), or projects like the Initiative 19th February Hanau.
US scholar Michael Rothberg is a leading thinker in this field and has become a key reference for activists and intellectuals. Together with him, we explore contemporary commemorative practices and interventions in the canon of established memory culture. How can remembrance avoid pitting collective traumas against each other and instead strengthen shared experiences and suffering, solidarity, and understanding across community boundaries? What can we learn from thinkers such as W.E.B. Du Bois, Aimé Césaire, Frantz Fanon, and Hannah Arendt, particularly regarding the relationships between slavery, colonialism, mass murder, and the Holocaust post-1945?
With the goal of fostering a community-building and connective memory culture, the conversation, moderated by Jacqueline Saki Aslan, examines current multiperspective commemorative practices and their potential for the present and future.”
Links: