Curated by Antonio Cataldo and Adrià Julià. Organised by Fotogalleriet, Oslo and KMD, University of Bergen. Throughout this three-day event, Adrià Julià's students at the University of Bergen will actively partake and lead discussions

Photo-based books and self-publishing are a vital emancipatory motor of discussion bringing communities across space and time together. The intent of this conference is manifold; firstly it aims to look at the historical structures for production that enable a multiplicity of voices to speak from their subjective positions. Secondly, addressing the current modalities that give contemporary practitioners, designers and publishers advantages and limitations within the field. Thirdly it addresses the future of photo-based publications through grant systems.

To rethink the current moment which is challenging existing structures and demanding systemic change, this seminar represents a desire to rethink the Nordic Photobook Award. Initially, Fotogalleriet ran the award from 2012–18 in order to accompany upcoming voices within the field by co-producing photobooks with chosen candidates. 

The seminar's ultimate goal is to evaluate relevant structures of support providing the possibility to continuously provoke theoretical and practical change.

For full program click HERE.

REGISTRATION
The conference is free and open to all until full capacity is reached. 

Confirmed speakers: Terje Abusdal, Abdul Halik Azeez, Heidi Bale Amundsen, Delphine Bedel, Bruno Ceschel, Paul Gangloff, Erik Gant, Hans Gremmen, Roberto Figliulo, Cosmo Großbach, Sohrab Hura, Kay Jun, Aglaia Konrad, Moritz Kung, Silja Leifsdottir, Hailey Loman, Catalina Lozano, Vijai Patchineelam, Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung, Anna-Kaisa Rastenberger, Mette Sandbye, Ursula Schulz-Dornburg, Ahlam Shibli, Æsa Sigurjónsdóttir, Ina Steiner, Niclas Östlind, Stanley Wolukau-Wanambwa, and Antonio Zúñiga.

With a discussion about Nordic funding with Anne Lise Stenseth (moderator), Tom Klev, Henri Terho, Annika Thörn Legzdins, Klara Þórhallsdóttir and Tine Vindfeld.

CASE STUDY
Following this research method, each speaker in the conference will depart from a single work for their presentation, which will be followed by a Q&A with students, professionals and an online audience. The analysis of singular works include a number of contemporary political challenges we currently face. The seminar will provide a regional and international view of responses to bio-political processes by means of production, accessibility, display, and circulation. The Nordic itself will be questioned as a meaningful and constructed category. 

ABOUT THE ORGANISERS

Fotogalleriet is the oldest institution for photography and moving images in the Nordic region. Located in the centre of Oslo, Fotogalleriet is exclusively dedicated to photography as a critical art practice. Established in 1977 as the first institution of its kind for nurturing cutting-edge photographic practices in Norway, Fotogalleriet has been exhibiting local and international art practices, while analysing the rapidly expanding nature of an artistic discipline which is in constant technological and aesthetic flux. Through its commitment to research and engagement with artists, Fotogalleriet is a leading institution within the field of image making. A non-profit foundation, Fotogalleriet’s principal funding comes from The Arts Council Norway. Additional funding is provided by the Norwegian Photographic Fund (Nofofo). Partial funding comes from the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Culture and the Oslo Municipality.

The Art Academy – Department of Contemporary Art, University of Bergen fosters an active and international educational environment that places the individual student’s artistic practice into focus. The department has an open structure that allows students to pursue their interests and experiment across disciplinary boundaries. The eight focus areas are: photography, painting and drawing, sculpture and installation, ceramics and clay, time-based art and performance, new media (audio/video), textiles and printmaking. Students can choose to specialise in one or more of these areas. The department has its own theory programme at both the Bachelor’s and the Master’s level. The BA programme attracts students from all over Scandinavia, while the MA programme in Fine Art and Curatorial Practice enrols students from across the world. The Art Academy recruits research fellows affiliated with the Artistic Research Fellowship Programme (PKU). The artistic research of the staff lies at the core of our educational programme. Artistic research includes both the faculty members’ individual artistic work and joint thematic projects.

Antonio Cataldo is a curator and writer living and working in Oslo. He is currently the Artistic Director of Fotogalleriet (The Photographers’ Gallery, Oslo), the oldest existing, and continually operating institution of its kind in the Nordic region. He earned his MA from the Iuav University of Venice under the thesis supervision of Professor and philosopher Giorgio Agamben; and a BA from the Second University of Naples. In parallel with his curatorial work, Cataldo has been working on a PhD at ZHdK in Zurich since 2016. Over the past fifteen years, Cataldo held positions at OCA – Office for Contemporary Art Norway, La Biennale di Venezia, and Iuav, University of Venice, among others. Cataldo currently serves on the board of directors of Kunsthallene i Norge, and on the jury of Sandefjord Kunstforening's Art Award. 

Adrià Julià was born in Barcelona, Spain. He is currently working in Bergen, Norway, where he is a professor at Bergen University’s Art Academy KMD. His work questions image-making technologies and their relation to normative narratives and violence. His most recent solo exhibition was held at Pinacoteca, São Paulo, Brazil. Other solo shows have taken place in institutions such as Miró Foundation, Barcelona; Tabakalera, San Sebastian; Project Art Center, Dublin; Museo Tamayo, Ciudad de México; Orange County Museum of Art, Newport Beach; LAXART, Los Angeles; Artists Space, New York; Insa Art Space, Seoul; and Galeria Soledad Lorenzo, Madrid. Julià has taken part in group shows at the Metropolitan Museum, New York; Museo Reina Sofía, Madrid; Witte de With, Rotterdam; Seoul Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea; Lyon Biennale, Lyon; Generali Foundation, Vienna; 7ª Bienal do Mercosul, Porto Alegre; Akademie der Künste, Berlin. Julià has been awarded fellowships by the American Academy Berlin, Botín Foundation, California Community Foundation, Art Matters, American Center Foundation and La Caixa.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The seminar Photography Bound: Rethinking the Future of Photobooks and Self-publishing is supported by the Norwegian Photographic Fund (Nofofo) and Nordic Culture Point.