FOREWORD
With the research based project Rethinking Nordic Colonialism: A Postcolonial Exhibition Project in Five Acts, NIFCA takes an important step towards coming closer to an unwritten part of our Nordic cultural heritage – the Nordic colonial history. One of the theses that the curators want to investigate is whether it, in our joint cultural heritage, is possible to find the roots of the nationalistic and xenophobic tendencies today.
The project is an interdisciplinary investigation conducted together with a number of players and thinkers in the Nordic region and the rest of the world – in dialogue with a number of historical phenomena, places, and institutions in the Nordic region. Mutual learning is in focus for the project, and our hope is that the process will result in a continued dialogue that can enrich the places and the peoples, who live and act in the project locations, and those who visit there.
On behalf of NIFCA, I want to extend a cordial thank you to all the participants, who with deep engagement have participated in making this fantastic project a reality. A strong dialogue, exchange, and enthusiasm between artists, curators, thinkers, institutions, and players in the Nordic region and the world have made this project possible. Our hope is that the thoughts of the project will work towards a new way of looking at our cultural heritage and our possibility to influence it and our future!
Cecilia Gelin
Director
NIFCA, Nordic Institute for Contemporary Art