OPEN CALL FOR ARTISTS

TOTAL DIAGNOSES

A project of ICI and Works.io, curated by Boris Kostadinov. An Open Call for international fine artists to include artworks in:

• A presentation in the Curatorial Hub of ICI in New York
  
• An international group exhibition in Vienna, 2016
  
• An international group exhibition in Budapest, 2016
  

The concept

The project title Total Diagnoses contains a large dose of absurdity and this absurdity somehow becomes relevant to the current historic moment. The ambition for a global diagnosis of the present, is doomed to failure from the start by our post globalized world where the logic of what is happening is largely determined by what's local and different. Simultanously in new history - cycling in particular appears the idea of a total diagnosis - a new social concept which will launch a new era, a new political system or an important change. This happened before the October Revolution in Russia, before World War II, before the fall of the Berlin Wall...

Do we live today in a similar moment?

The events of recent years led many observers to believe that we are on the eve of change. The global financial crisis has put into question the Western model and clearly showed that the post liberal capitalist system needs reform. The economic map of the world has changed and the countries of Asia and Latin America came to the fore. The Arab Spring launched new radical clashes. The war in Syria, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, Charlie Hebdo, are all parts of a puzzle that has a complex system where religion, military activities and geopolitical interests can lead to unpredictable developments. The war in Ukraine showed that Russia declares its new place in the world as a global player. Are we facing a new Cold War?

Against this global picture, occur thousands of local conflicts, refugee waves, discriminatory practices, personal life stories...

The concept of Total Diagnoses does not aim to present a pessimistic or an apocalyptic future. It is looking for answers to many questions with ideas that present possible artistic alternatives to the current socio-cultural environment. Therefore very important are the positive practices of solidarity, collaboration and targeted joint activities of various small communities and groups based on artistic, economic, minority or socio-political principle.