Areas of Intervention, IRI Meetings

IRI MEETING #1 NAPLES | RADICAL IMAGINATION

L’Asilo November 29th / Scugnizzo Liberato November 30th > Fb

PROGRAM

November 29th at L’Asilo

10:00 – 14:30 – Organisational meeting of the IRI’s steering committee:

  1. The Institute of Radical Imagination Introduced by Mao Mollona.
  2. New forms of collaboration. The museum of the commons with Manuel Borja Villel.
  3. Relations, aesthetics and politics Introduced by Marco Baravalle.
  4. Translation. Collaborative platforms, common language and methodology of working in commons introduced by Raúl Sánchez Cedillo.
  5. Legalising the Commons and new Municipalism introduced by Giuseppe Micciarelli.
  6. Mapping the Institute of Radical Imagination introduced by Emanuele Braga and Marco Baravalle.

14:35 – 16: 30  Lunch Break catering by Centro di Alimentazione Consapevole.  

16:30 – 18:00   Finalising the meeting 

  1. The Institute’s modus operandi. Open discussion.
  2. Institutional structure, including core values of the Institute and institutional borders – across academia, political institutions, grassroot groups and art institutions.
  3. How our deliberations become operative –  through actions, policies, workshops artistic outputs/exhibitions or a mixture of the above?
  4. Thematic priorities.
  5. Sustainability.

break

18:30 – 21:00 – L ‘Asilo Open Space with Researchers and activists from social centers and other initiatives in Naples will join to discuss possible collaborations with the Institute.

November 30th at Scugnizzo Liberato

10:00 – 13:00  Further discussion and goodbyes at the centre Scugnizzo Liberato.

Participants

Manuel Borja Villel; Vasif Kortun; Zeyno Pekunlu; Raul Sánchez Cedillo; Vittoria Paglino; Philip Rizk; Jasmina Metwaly; Sara Buraya; Emanuele Braga, Macao (Milan); Marco Baravalle SaLe. Doc (Venice) Giuseppe Micciarelli University of Salerno, Margherita D’Andrea Gabriella Riccio L’Asilo (Naples); WHW Croatia; Antoine Schweitzer; Mao Mollona.

The first gathering of the Institute of Radical Imagination took place on 29th and 30th of November 2017 at L’Asilo Ex aAsilo Filangieri and Scugnizzo Liberato, Naples.

On the first day, which took place at L’Asilo, the Institute discussed its values and mission, modus operandi, including funding and governance structure, and the next practical steps. In the afternoon of the 29th the Institute held an open discussion with researchers and activists focused on alternative models of knowledge production, in which theory generates from grassroot practical experiences and political struggles, instead that from within the high-walls of academia. It was suggested that the Institute could foster such form of alternative pedagogy connecting local researchers and activists with its international academic network and parallel funding structure, partially unhinged from the neoliberal academic funding machine.  The second day took place at the Scugnizzo liberato. After a visit to the place the members of the institute reflected on how to work collectively and develop a common political vocabulary and mutual trust. Comrades from Scugnizzo gave their feedback on the Institute, expressing their support to it and emphasizing the importance that the institute liaises with diverse local experiences and realities, including various urban and rural occupied spaces in Naples and around.

It was decided that the Institute’s first project will be on the commons with Madrid and Naples as the main nodes/initiators of the project. The format suggested is that of one-week “residency” of the Institute in Madrid focused on sharing practical strategies, knowledge and networks specific to the Italian and Spanish contexts of urban occupations, particularly the emergence of a model of beni comuni in Naples, Turin and Barcelona. In addition to the discussion on European commons and neo-municipalism, there will be a discussion with comrades from Istanbul, Cairo and Athens aimed at expanding our vocabulary and political horizon to include experiences of commoning in the Mediterranean. The project will have a component of theory-generation and one of practical experimentation, in the form of support to local struggles.

ph courtesy of Sabrina Merolla