Program
Monday 24 February
13.00 – 18.00
Free and open to all, but limited places
Swedish & English
Hörsalen, Stadsbiblioteket Göteborg
Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art
As a prelude to the 13th edition of the Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art (GIBCA), you are invited to a polyvocal performance, lecture and short film program at the Gothenburg City Library, inspired by the theme of GIBCA 2025.
The 13th edition of the Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art will focus on artists whose practices are defined by acts of solidarity and the creation of alliances through collaboration. By embodying these principles, the selected artists respond to and are shaped by social changes through the openness of their work and partnerships. The concept of the biennial is based on an understanding that artists play a crucial role in addressing and navigating contemporary challenges.
Read more about today’s program below.
Today's program:
1–2. 15 p.m. Performance lecture: Feeling Translation with Jennifer Hayashida, Maya Nomoto, Meri Alarcón. Polyvocal performance in English, Swedish, Japanese and Meänkieli
2.15–2.30 p.m. Break
2.30 –3.30 p.m. Lecture: Det krympande rummet – hotet mot civilsamhället, Jesper Bengtsson and Tuva Söderberg. Lecture in English
3.30–4 p.m. Panel discussion
4–4.30 p.m. Break
4.30–6 p.m. Short film program: Solidarity and Artistic freedom, collaboration with Filmform
Feeling Translation
Jennifer Hayashida, Maya Nomoto, Meri Alarcón
Polyvocal performance in English, Swedish, Japanese and Meänkieli
Feeling Translation is a research project by Jennifer Hayashidas. She is a translator, poet and PhD student at HDK-Valand, Academy of Art and Design, working on questions of racialization, the construction of the nation-state, and memory.
For the performance lecture, Jennifer Hayashida will read alongside Maya Nomoto, author and PhD candidate in History of Ideas and Science at the University of Gothenburg, and Meri Alarcón, author, editor, and translator.
Det krympande rummet – hotet mot civilsamhället
Jesper Bengtsson & Tuva Söderberg
Lecture in English
Organizations and associations in Sweden are facing increased pressure. Reduced fundings, stricter regulations and increased distrust from policy makers. Why is the space for civil society shrinking?
Tuva Söderberg, political scientist and Jesper Bengtsson, editor-in-chief of Dagens Arena, will talk about their book Det krympande rummet – hotet mot civilsamhället.
Short film program:Solidarity and Artistic freedom, collaboration with Filmform
A short film programme with starting point in the thoughts for the coming biennial: the videoworks part of Filmform’s archive explore themes of artistic freedom, alliances, solidarity and freedom of expression.
Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art is a project of Röda Sten Konsthall. Since 2013, GIBCA Extended has also been arranged, open to artists and art actors around the Västra Götaland region.
Christina Lehnert is the curator of the 13th edition of GIBCA.
The 13th edition of the biennial is co-produced by Gothenburg City Library, the Gothenburg Museum of Art, Göteborgs Konsthall, and Skövde Art Museum. The Biennale runs from September 20–November 30, 2025.