It is at this boundary that it is decided whether history simply repeats itself, or whether the framework of human coexistence is consciously shaped. Only those who know their basis can risk great leaps. And this is what is needed, because the gaps that need to be overcome by humanity are getting bigger and bigger, from climate change to the threat of war to distributive justice or distortions in media participation.
And so, in flat1’s contribution to the Rotlicht-Festival, historical material in artistic alienation serves as a catalyst for a process of insight into the connections between the past and the present. For example, with old nature photography from the 1970s, which at the time characterised the slide nights after trips to Yugoslavia. The artist Karin Maria Pfeifer questions what she sees with image irritations such as dust and grains, highlights, glare spots or fades. She delivers a survey of the astonishing distance to real nature, for instance with a bouquet of spray carnations dipped in shrill colors, the classic flower souvenir from various visits to relatives in the good old days.