Islands of Kinship: A Collective Manual for Sustainable and Inclusive Art Institutions

Islands of Kinship: A Collective Manual for Sustainable and Inclusive Art Institutions aims to connect and transform the practical functioning of six mid-sized visual art institutions across diverse European regions. Together, Jindřich Chalupecký Society, Frame Contemporary Art Finland, Latvian Centre for Contemporary Art, The Július Koller Society, The Faculty of things that can’t be learned, and Temporary Gallery will seek imaginative models and pragmatic solutions to implement new strategies of togetherness, fairness, responsibility, and kindness in how they operate as organizations.

The project’s main objective is to create a long-lasting professional platform for joint creation, sharing, and exchange regarding public programming and internal operations. It aims to encourage a permanent change of mindset and the adoption of practices that sound innovative and challenging now, but that in a few years, may become vital for institutions to operate fairly, relevantly, and sustainably in a rapidly changing world.

The participating organizations will present solo and group exhibitions, including eight newly commissioned artworks and a number of related discursive programs, workshops, and more. This new initiative will also focus on building capacity in institutions — organizing symposia and gatherings; sharing know-how; and developing new systems, methodologies, and practices disseminated through a series of podcasts, manuals, institutional diaries, and public reports. The first phase of Islands of Kinship (IoK) will conclude in a publication launched in collaboration with Stroom den Haag in Summer 2024.

Jindřich Chalupecký Society, the organization that originated IoK, is a curatorial collective and production platform based in Prague, Czech Republic. Their group show Hay, Straw, Dump, opening in Prague on March 28 as part of the project, will feature works from over 20 local and international artists reflecting on the consequences of agricultural collectivization in Czechoslovakia before the revolution in 1989 and current ecofeminist perspectives. The exhibition focuses on interspecies solidarity, respectful and sustainable relationships, and coexistence — depicting situations in which nature, contaminated by human activity, takes the reins and reestablishes a balance in which humans may or may not participate.

Follow our activities and efforts to make a meaningful change in the institutional operations of contemporary visual art. Find us on Instagram @islandsofkinship.

To learn more, visit islandsofkinship.org.