Warm welcome to the first annual symposium of the Centre for Art and the Political Imaginary in Gothenburg on August 28–29, 2025. Local, national and international artists, researchers and educators gather in Skeppet GBG and Bergsjön Kulturhuset to think together about ways in which art, politics and imagination might shape the futures we want—or end up creating the ones that we fear.
Our focus is on how artists in their work and reflections explore the relationship between politics and imagination. What does such artistic exploration make possible and what is the meaning of all of this for the wider community within which art makers exist? For whom, and by whom, are questions of political imagination raised in art? How can artistic research contribute in a meaningful way to the collective discussion of possible political futures?
We suggest that such an engagement is not only contributing to the creation of possibilities, but that it also comes with a number of limitations and risks. Together, both specialists and non-specialists, we want to reflect on the responsibilities that this turn towards the future means for arts role in society today.
The event will feature a welcome session, keynote speakers, discussions, presentations and a reception.
Programme
Thursday, August 28
Venue: Skeppet Gbg—is a cultural hub, situated in central Gothenburg, managed by Jenny Roos and Pär Hagström
6pm: Welcome to CAPIm’s first annual symposium
6:15pm: Opening keynote by María Galindo
Galindo is an anarcha-feminist activist, artist and broadcaster, cofounder of the collective Mujeres Creando, based in La Paz, Bolivia
7:15pm: Short break
7:30pm: Panel discussion with the CAPIm Advisory Board Members
Jay Pather, Maria Hlavajova, Stefan Jonsson and Tania El Khoury
8:30–9:30pm: Reception
Friday, August 29
Venue: Kulturhuset Bergsjön—is a cultural center with nearly 3,000 square meters, it houses creative studios, an exhibition hall, a cinema, a library and stages for music, dance and theater
10am: Welcome to the second day of the annual symposium
10:10am: Presentations by the CAPIm Senior Guest Researchers
Jonas Staal, a Dutch visual artist, whose work engages with the relation between art, democracy, and propaganda, and, Liv Bugge, a Norwegian artist whose practice explores how societal mechanisms are internalized, shaping ethical norms and dichotomies
11:20am: Short break
11:30am–12:30pm: Presentations
Presentation: Elof Hellström and Sebastian Dahlqvist from Hägerstens Medborgarhus. “1000 Kulturhus”—a one-year research-based course, at the Royal Institute of Art, focused on understanding the potential functions and futures of community centers and cultural houses.
Presentation: Artists Alexandra Papademetriou, Azadeh Zaghi and Reyhaneh Mirjahani. “A Monument to the City to Build (2021)”—a socially engaged artistic project by alumni of HDK-Valand, exploring the politics of residency in the Swedish urban landscape through the notion of the right to the city.
12:30–1:30pm: Lunch
1:30–2:50pm: Workshop
With the CAPIm faculty: Valentina Desideri, Michele Masucci and Kerry Guinan.
2:50–3:10pm: Short break
3:10–4:25pm: Closing keynote by Stefan Jonsson
Jonsson is a Swedish scholar and intellectual, professor of Ethnic Studies at Linköping University
Followed by a Panel Discussion with Ele Carpenter, UmArts at Umeå University, and Petra Johansson, Göteborgs Konsthall
5–6pm: Reception
Visit here to register and to get more information.
The Centre for Art and the Political Imaginary is based at two institutions: The Royal Institute of Art in Stockholm and HDK-Valand at The University of Gothenburg.
