The Great-Defrost

A One-Day-Symposium that Bridges Global Perspectives

Venue: Auditorium of the Felleshus, Nordic Embassies Berlin, Rauchstraße 1, 10787 Berlin
Date: 13th of September 2024
Curator: Hulda Rós Guðnadóttir
Moderator: Julieta Aranda
With keynotes and inputs by: Elisabeth Brun, Katla Kjartansdóttir, Anamaría Garzón Mantilla,
Marina Fokidis, Delhia Hannah, Camilla Skovbjerg Paldam, Inuuteq Storch
Funded by the Nordic Culture Fund in collaboration with Gallery Gudmundsdottir.
Publication DISTANZ Verlag

In times of exotification of arctic imagery 'The Great-Defrost' is a one day symposium that converges voices of academics and artists, from the Far-North as well as from the south, in an attempt to redefine Arctic narratives. 'The Great-Defrost' bridges perspectives from the local to the global, fostering a dialogue that unveils unexpectedly parallel viewpoints and promises a future of enriched, decolonized discourse.

The program is curated by Hulda Ros Gudnadottir, an Icelandic artist based in Berlin, moderated by Julieta Aranda and organized in collaboration with Gallery Gudmundsdottir in Berlin. All lectures feature newly conducted or specially commissioned research. With keynotes and inputs by Elisabeth Brun, Marina Fokidis, Anamaría Garzón Mantilla, Dehlia Hannah, Katla Kjartansdóttir, Camilla Skovbjerg Paldam and an arist talk with Inuuteq Storch,; the photographer talks about the exhibition “Rise of the Sunken Sun” at the Venice Biennale, representing Kalaallit Nunaat (The peoples land, Greenland) within the Dnish Pavilion.

In early spring 2025, the symposium will be followed by a monograph publication by Distanz Verlag, focusing on Hulda Ros Gudnadottir's artistic research project titled 'Keep Frozen'. A decade-long research project that delves into questions related to the Far-North from a local perspective through material, visual, performative and filmic explorations. The publication will also feature essays contributed by participants of the symposium.

The symposium is public and free to attend without registration. The event will be held in English. The auditorium will open for audience arrival at 10:30. A publication based on the discussions and contributions from the symposium is planned for release in Spring 2025 with DISTANZ Verlag.

PROGRAMME

9:00
Nordic Embassies opens

11:00–11:15
Welcome
by moderator Julieta Aranda, curator Hulda Rós Gudnadóttir

11:15–12:10
Thinking through and with the Atlantic puffin  
Speaker: Katla Kjartansdóttir  
Respondent: Camilla Skovbjerg Paldam

12:30–13:30
Golden Myths: From ‘El Dorado’ to the Floating Factories
Speaker: Anamáría Garzón Mantilla  
Respondent: Marina Fokidis

13:30–14:30  
Break

14:30–15:30
Who Wants to be Boring? Art, Ecology, and Arctic Living Beyond the Image
Keynote: Elisabeth Brun
Respondent: Dehlia Hannah

16:00–17:00 
Presenting Rise of the Sunken Sun
Artist Talk: Inuuteq Storch
Introduction about his current exhibition in the Danish Pavilion at the Venice Biennale.

17:00–18:30
Closing Reception