Refusal renders hope visible. It demands that the conditions for hope emerge and flourish. Wilfully signifying possibilities of deviation, refusal speaks to denied histories and subjectivities.

Hope resides in small spaces, in slivers and in cracks. It is shaped – often under pressure – by desires and ambitions and can negotiate histories, cultures, political spheres, and planetary conditions. Acting as a resource that enables individuals and communities to persist, hope can offer visions of prosperity, security, and redemption to those who seek or need it.

Although appearing divergent, when brought together, hope and refusal can conspire. They can refute the logics of existing orders and function as critical lenses for sustaining collective values, approaches, and actions.

Offering partial renders of socio-political realities that misalign with the status quo, Rendering Refusal explores what can emerge from saying no. In an attempt to broaden perspectives on long-standing political conflicts and to shape futures from contradiction and difference, the works in the exhibition suggest responsibility for plurality and materialise what is often muted, erased, or made fugitive. Working with strategies of non-compliance and negation, the artists present small acts of domestic rebellion, create anti-monuments to myths, imagine failure as progress and manoeuvre between systems of governance. Presenting strategies, proposals and interventions, Rendering Refusal addresses moments of metamorphosis, intimacy, and vulnerability, seeking transformation, regeneration and change.

Our exhibition will be open to in person visits from 15 March. Under consideration of the latest government regulations around the pandemic, the exhibition will be open until 20 March in Betonhalle, silent green and until 28 March in Kunstraum Kreuzberg/Bethanien. You will find more information here . Also, we will facilitate access to the exhibition through a digital visiting programme: Proxy Visits

Photo & Video Gallery Kunstraum Kreuzberg/Bethanien Part 1 Photo & Video Gallery Kunstraum Kreuzberg/Bethanien Part 2 Photo & Video Gallery Betonhalle, silent green

Download the exhibition guide in English or German

The exhibition is supported by the European Union and launches the Artsformation Project.