Human Rights Project and Center for Curatorial Studies Present
The Keith Haring Lecture in Art an Activism Given by Sandi Hilal
2:00 pm – 4:00 pm EST/GMT-5
A Lecture given by Sandi Hilal, the 2016-17 Keith Haring Fellow in Art and Activism
Located between the domestic and the public sphere, Al-Madafeh is in Arabic the living room, the room dedicated to hospitality. It is that part of the private house that has the potentiality to subvert the role of guest and host and to give different political and social meaning to the act of hospitality.The living room opens itself to host the guest, the foreigner, the outsider and functions as a representational space between the domestic and the public.
In a foreign country, access to public space is a challenge for refugees as they are expected to constantly perform the role of the “perfect guest” in order to be accepted. Turning private spaces, such as the living room, into social and political arenas, is often a response to this limitation of political agency in the public realm.
In the Arab world, the living room is a space that is constantly maintained and always ready with fruit, nuts and black coffee for the unexpected guest, who may knock on the door anytime during the day. Even in refugee camps, where space is extremely scarce, the living room remains the most important part of the house. In the absence of the State, the living room represents an available social and political space regardless of the general precarious conditions. Paradoxically, it may be the room that is used the least, yet it is the most symbolic, curated and cared for area of the house.
For more information, call 845-758-7598, e-mail [email protected],
or visit https://www.bard.edu/ccs/events/the-keith-haring-lecture-in-art-and-activism-given-by-sandi-hilal/.
Time: 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm EST/GMT-5
Location: Classroom 102, CCS Bard