Art, Politics and Exhibitions: (Re)writing the History of (Re)presentations
Art, Politics and Exhibitions: (Re)writing the History of (Re)presentations

Summary/Abstract: This paper addresses the importance of a relatively new discourse within our discipline – the history of exhibitions – and its role in the post-Soviet context of the regional art history of the Baltic states. Presenting the cases of two exhibitions related to the Venice Biennial – Printmaking Today (1972 in Ca’ Pesaro) and New Art from the Soviet Union. An Unofficial Perspective (in the framework of The Biennial of Dissent, 1977 in Palazetto dello Sport) – as well as the significant presences and absences in these politically charged – either originally or in retrospect – events, the author points out the need for contextualised studies of Soviet-period exhibitionary practices in order to indicate the power relations around representations and history-writing, as well as the rather intertwined nature of what have commonly been referred to as polar official and unofficial canons.

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