Public Research Residency II
Werker Collective
3 April – 30 April 2023

Looiersgracht 60 is pleased to announce the second edition of the Public Research Residency for Spring 2023. Looiersgracht 60 has invited Werker Collective for a four-week residence period for the month of April. During this time, Looiersgracht 60 will open up their gallery to house the continuation, adaptation, and public presentation of several on-going projects by Werker Collective.

The second edition of the Public Research Residency will bring Werker and their collaborators into the space to revisit and expand upon an existing body of work, first conceptualized for the 5th Industrial Biennial of Contemporary Art in Yekaterinburg, Russia in 2019. In sustained dialogue and collaboration with Kyrgyzstani LGBTQ+ activist and curator Georgy Mamedov, Werker will revisit this installation, A Gestural History of the Young Worker, within the walls of Looiersgracht 60. The original installation consists of a series of archival images built into a free-standing framework and takes a critical look at the visualization and representation of the body of the labourer, interrogating the normative glorification of the worker’s body, and the associated oppression of non-normative bodies. The work faced several instances of debilitating censorship within Russia over the past four years, and the terms of this censorship have only become more dramatic and destabilizing with time. Considering the context that the work was made in and how the situation has elevated, Werker will use their time in residence to re-frame this work into a new installation titled, A Gestural History of the Young Worker, Condition report (2023). Using the former factory floor of Looiersgracht 60, the new installation will present the unassembled elements from the original installation and will be developing a sound work that is based on transcribed conversations surrounding queer working conditions and experiences under challenging conditions.

During their time in residence, Werker will also spend time visualizing their on-going research into alternative economic models for financing collaborative art practices. The conversation surrounding this model is based on fair remuneration and redistribution of resources for artists, collaborators and art galleries, and takes in consideration the larger ecology in which collaborative art practices function in the art world.

Alongside their time in residence, Werker will hold two public events. The first will be a performance and engagement with their work in the space, A Gestural History of the Young Worker, Condition report. The second will be a launch of a special edition of prints called, A Gestural History of the Young Worker, Print punch (2023), which will be produced at Looiersgracht 60, during their time in residence.

Public Programme*

Saturday April 15, 2023

A Gestural History of the Young Worker, Condition report

Saturday, April 29, 2023

A Gestural History of the Young Worker, Print Punch

Admission is free. If you are interested in attending an event please email us at info@looiersgracht60.org.

* The Public Research Residency serves as a way to share research and work in progress with the public. In order to provide these opportunities, there will be two public programme moments as listed above. Besides these events, it is also possible to visit the space when the artists are at work. We will publish further dates and times at a later date.