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EXPLAINING HORNSLETH VILLAGE PROJECT
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WOLF GUNTER THIEL, art historian, Germany
The project is not easily explained, that is why some politicians do not like the project.
The project of Kristian von Hornsleth belongs to the most controversial art pieces of the last ten years at least. From the phrase art you can already understand that there two complexes of questions:
What does it do to the people in Uganda in the village?
What does it do for the artist?
What does it mean in terms of art theory?
What does it mean in the discussion of human aid, hunger and poverty?
One discurse is an exestential and fundemental discourse for a big part of the human society, not only in Africa, but around the world, the other discourse is a decadent and elitististic discourse for high end intellectuals and super rich collectors of art. How does this match?
Very simply Hornsleth takes the money from the rich and gives it to the poor (robin hood or san francesco or mother theresa ...). He sells the documentation of this in the framework of art and makes the super rich want to earn the documentation. His cut is the fame and the reputation. The people in Uganda get the animals and the super rich get their photos. That's one goal! The other goal is that Hornsleth creates public attention through the media and hints at the actual economic situation of the people in these kind of villages. He helps them to create attention for their social and economic and cultural situation. They get a voice to say look how they live!
Through the project every single person involved will have this chance of telling people in the western societies: Look, I am maria buto living in a little village, I have my pride, I have my outcome, I have my own voice through this artwork. Kristian von Hornsleth invested with the animals and a voice in order to talk to you straight away. You hear me now, I am in your country, I am in your house, I am in your mind.
These people on the photos would be probably never able to reach this personal attention and personal communication without kristian and his artwork. These people use Hornsleth more than he uses them. They use him to visualize their personal existence and their personal voice. Hornsleth profits of this energy more than of the name on an identity card no one really uses in his personal life. Hornsleth becomes an ambassador of these people, he becomes a testimonial for these people and he becomes a voice for these people, a person to talk about the real situation in villages like that in Uganda. This information differs a lot from the official websites of the countries government and gives an idea of how Africa is, beside the boomtowns and the holiday resorts.
Why are ugandan politicians partly against the project. Let me say, I do not know anything about politics in Uganda, but I can imagine, that these politicians who try to pretend that problems like poverty, education, health service or infra structure are under control or going to be solved, do not like this communication of a specific case which shows pretty much the opposite.
It is difficult to explain why this project gains so much attention and so much real interest. Africa tries to evoke a different image in the world: The situation of the people and their socities are improving and the political stability of countries are growing, knowing about Congo, Ruanda and Sudan, which have borders with Uganda, I think , it seems a very optimistic approach. On the other hand the world soccer competition will be held in South Africa to prove the opposite. These global interests of african countries foreign policy are not going with the individualistic approach of a single, danish artist who tries to improve the situation of very few people in one village. Now someone goes there and says look what you can do if you have the courage and take a personal risk.
A very simple thing to do for a government, give every family an animal and ask some help organization to provide this money. We do not know, why help organizations or governments are not doing this. I think it is no problem of money or founds for human aid. I am shure western foundations would love to spend the money for this. Why does the government of Uganda not just do this?
From my very personal readings in the western press it is a problem of the politicians. No one wants this question to be asked in public, because it would show the deficits of the political system straight. Money does not go easily the way it is supposed to and that is what politicians do not want to hear from the western press, from the press in the country and from the people who elect the governments. The people, like the people from the village, show the possibilities and show the straight effects of personal and private help.
Of course we are aware of the fact that other villages will ask, why them and not us? Why, if it does not take so much money to improve a situation, why can't we ourselves take this into our own hands and try the same? This question asked to the government or to individual politicians is not easy to answer. If the people can do it themselves, they do not need politicians who say no, don't do it. They need exactly the opposite. They ask a fundamential question about policy? Why not? This question is not answered easily, that is why some politicians do not like the project.
Let me say one other thing. This project is also a project of major importance to the contemporary art world. I say this knowing that this is of no interest to the people in the village and most african people in general. I say this because I like to point out that individual, social work and contemporay art can not only match, but improve a situation of people in reality. This is something that art has never really been able to prove in its history.
Art is not art and everything else is everything else, as the dictum of the twentieth century said. Art can be helped, collectors can help with their money to improve little parts of the world, artists can help with their work to improve the situation of a few people in the world and intellectuals like you can understand this and communicate this to the world. All these elements, as small and tiny as they are will together leave an effect on politicians and the public oppinion of more and more people. We need people like Kristian vo Hornsleth to help us improve the world in tiny, very little steps and step by step this will change the situation.
I hope my few comments suit your article. whatever you can do to communicate this project is very helpfull to everyone!
best wishes
Wolf Guenter Thiel
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