Security through integration, not isolation

Posted on 21/01/2014 by robertk

Afghan security in front of bombed restaurant in Kabul. Photo by Johannes Eisele for AFP/Getty Images

The news of the bombing of La Taverna du Liban, a Lebanese restaurant in Kabul, reached me while I was following a pre-deployment course for a EU mission in Libya. I think I knew Kamal, the owner of the restaurant, who died in the assault; if it was the same man who set up the restaurant somewhere in 2004-5 (and it seems so from this personal account), he was a hearty, generous man and I regret his death, especially for his children. Continue reading →

What I would do if I became director of De Appel in Amsterdam

Posted on 06/11/2013 by robertk

De Appel is the intellectual powerhouse of Amsterdam’s art world – or maybe it isn’t anymore, but it still has that reputation. It’s a non-commercial art space that offers a high-level (and world-renown) curatorial program, as well as a study program for gallery staff, it is the place to present contemporary art prizes and projects, and it organizes about 4-5 exhibitions a year.

De Appel is now looking for a director. This is my open application.

Continue reading →

My FCCS friends

Posted on 02/10/2013 by robertk

A creation of master kite-maker Nur Agha, son of Bejo.

Kabul, 2 October 2013

Over the past few days I’ve seen many of my friends that I worked with during my years as founder and director of the Foundation for Culture and Civil Society (2003-2006); in many cases I gave them one of their first proper jobs. In the generous, effusive friendship they now offer me, each of them credits me for their current success as their ‘teacher’. Continue reading →

The Taliban and The City

Posted on 28/06/2013 by robertk

In a recent article, Antonio Giustozzi explains how the Taliban have improved their command & control structure. He describes how, under the military pressure of the US and NATO, and with the support of Pakistan’s ISI, the Taliban leadership has become more in control of the movement; and how this centralization alienates some local Taliban commanders and increasingly the population, who now have to deal with rotating commanders instead of well-known local strongmen (‘the devil you know’). Pakistani influence over the Taliban has always been terrible for the movement’s legitimacy among Afghans. On the other hand this centralization has allowed the Taliban to improve their governance and also their public image, as less brutalities are committed in the name of the movement.

Trevor Paglen: The Fence (Lake Kickapoo, Texas). C-print, 2010. Image of the electronic radar ‘fence’ around the USA to track traffic through space above the USA.

Continue reading →

So-called ‘terrorists’ finally receive a democratic platform – as an art project

Posted on 16/05/2012 by robertk

The setting for the New World Summit in Berlin’s Sophiensaele. The flags are all of organizations on the ‘designated terrorist lists’. Showing one of them might be a crime, but as a whole they qualify as an artwork. All photos courtesy of Jonas Staal and his team

I chaired a summit and helped curate a project designed by the Dutch artist Jonas Staal in Berlin on 4 and 5 May, as part of the Berlin Biennial. Continue reading →

Attack on the Green Zone in Kabul

Posted on 13/09/2011 by robertk

This unfinished building overlooking the US Embassy compound was probably used by the Taliban in the current attack.

In 2009, while visiting Kabul, I was astonished by the fortifications that had arisen around a large swathe of land comprising the US Embassy, NATO headquarters, the Presidential Palace, key ministries and other embassies. Given the hilly topography and urban layout of Kabul, this cordoning off of a large chunk of the centre caused considerable traffic and access problems for ordinary Kabulis. Continue reading →

The final chapter of the modernist dream

Posted on 20/06/2011 by robertk

Why the art sector cannot justify its continued existence

The idea that societies could be reformed (modernized) through general access to culture, also high culture, was part of the modernist project for Western societies. These ideals were stated most forcefully in the 1920s and 30s by the avant-garde. They became mainstream in the post-war era, when the leaders of the Western world were looking for social-political models that could prevent the recurrence of the devastating world wars while avoiding a communist insurrection of the masses. Continue reading →

The future is Wilders

Posted on 02/10/2010 by robertk

Wilders, the radical anti-Muslim nationalist and populist leader of the Dutch “Freedom Party” has manoeuvred very smartly. He has promised to support the coming right wing Dutch government on the condition that his political programme be followed by it; but he will not become part of that government. Continue reading →

The fear of Big Brother

Posted on 28/09/2010 by robertk

The fear of Big Brother is justified as long as political power sits on top of us and has the means to lock us into a subordinate relationship of control. In the 1920s and 30s we saw how dictatorial regimes came into power in democracies through elections, so the sole fact that a political system is democratic is not sufficient to guarantee that civil liberties will be protected. In theory the Netherlands or any other democratic country could become a dictatorship after the next elections (and step out of the European Union and other binding international agreements if necessary). Continue reading →

Mijn plannen voor De Balie

Posted on 20/09/2010 by robertk

Ik ben tot de laatste ronde gekomen in de sollicitatieprocedure voor de functie van Directeur van De Balie. Jammer dat ik het niet geworden ben, want dit was ik van plan: Continue reading →

Politics and Art from the Edge

Personal reflections, experiences and publications

Category Archives: Political thoughts