Documentation huge flights - little shelter

maps - tents - videos

exhibition curated by Rayelle Niemann. collaborator: Silvia Staub.

Ausstellung Veranstaltungen Fabriktheaterund Rote Fabrik, Zurich, Switzerland ein Projekt von Rayelle und Silvia Staub 28 February - 14 MarchNiemann 2014 Fabriktheater Rote Fabrik, Z체rich, Schweiz Grosse Halle Berne, Switzerland 28 Februar - 14 M채rz2015 2014 6 March - 28 March mail@elleray.ch

content of the project/exhibition

documentation

(Three) Four years after the first peaceful protests the Syrian revolution has turned into a spiral of violence. The initial euphoric mood has been replaced by new fronts and an immense humanitarian tragedy.

The following pages give an overview of the works and their producers.

This exhibition aims to reflect the ongoing war in the light of the European and Swiss asylum policy. ’Cold data’ is juxtaposed with works by Swiss and Syrian artists and pratical approaches.

The documentation ends with a list of all technical details of each work in order to make it easy to conceptualize the project in a different place.

All links in this documentation are active.

BIDAYYAT, audiovisual arts, Lebanon, ist eine unabhängige NGO in Beirut, die seit 2012 syrische Dokumantarfilmer_innen in ihren Arbeiten unterstützt.

BIDAYYAT organisiert workshops und vergibt Werkbeiträge. http://www.bidayyat.org/

für diese Ausstellung gibt es 1 DVD mit folgenden Filmen (arabisch, englische Untertitel) :: MiG, May 2013, Yarmouk, Damascus, Syria, 11’38 a collaboration work of the group “reaction” , Yarmouk Camp Wound, August 2013, Damascus, Syria, 8’32

by Wael Kadio Farewell Damascus, June 2013, Damascus, Syria, 11’23

by Azza al Hamwi A Dream of a Powerful Monster, Shatilla, Beirut, Lebanon,May 2013, 7’41

by Lina al Abed We are coming to slaughter you, June 2013, Beirut, Lebanon, 3’19 collaborative work Dr.Qassem, June 2013, Al Quseir, Homs, Syria, 5’

by Amal Salloum

Masasit Mati is a collective consiting of Syrian artists.

Sinve 2011 the ypublish the satyrical hand puppet show Episodes of Top Goon - The Little Dictator on the Internet

The interrogator, 8’15

http://www.masasitmati.org/

Beeshu’s nightmares, 6’43

The women in the revolution, 5’28 The border, 6’21

Who wants to kill a million?, 6’25 Opposite direction, 7’41 1 DVD with 6 episodes Arabic with English subtitles

Reforms, 6’25 Devil, 5’20

Actions in public spaces 10 anonymous documentaries on peaceful protest actions in Syrian cities between 2011 and 2012 Initially, when the revolution started, people surprised each other and confronted the authorities with unorthodox and unannounced actions occurring in public spaces.

The public either faced unexpected situations or the actions were performed rather secretively, documented and put on-line, going viral very quickly.

Today, and since quite a while, these kind of happenings are unthinkable.

The actions/interventions took place in Binnish, Damaskus, Dar El Zour, Homs, Kafranbel, Qatana und Rastan.

The 10 documentary videos on the DVD are in Arabic with English Translations.

3 Documentaries Syria Through a Lens – The Life and Works of Filmmaker Basil Shahada, 67’ July 2012 Bassel Shehadeh was a Syrian film maker and producer, well-respected

activist, killed on 28th May 2012 during a government assault on a neighbourhood in Homs. Shehadeh played an integral role in organising and documenting the peaceful protests that haves weptSyria since the ArabSprings.

SyriaThrough ALense is a film that brings together a collection of works by and about Bassel, capturing the beauty of Syria and the inspirational courage of the Syrian people in the face of adversity.

Credits: This film was a collaborative effort to highlight the life and work of Bassel Shehadeh. We believe Bassel would have wanted everyone to watch his films and learn about Syria. That is why you are free to screen this film and share Bassel’s message without referring to any of the contributing parties.

With thanks to: Grace Holme, Kristina Landry, Lewis Smith, Kristina Donauskyte, Connor Thorogood, Matthew Fuller, SIBE, and ActorVists. interview with Razzan Ghazzawi, 18’ February 2013 Razan Ghazzawi, a Syrian blogger and humanrights activist received 2012 the Front Line Human Rights Defender at Risk Award.

She talks about the revolution in Syria, the personal toll it has taken and about her colleagues from the Syrian Centre for Media & Freedom of Expression.

all 3 films have English subtitles

interview with Raed Fares, Media Center Karfanbel, Syria, 7’31 November 2013 Raed Fares attended the Front Line Defenders Dublin Platform in Oktober 2013.

He speaks about the initiative and the people of Kafranbel Media Center, their works and lives.

slidewhow Messages to the world, Kafranbel 2011 – 2014 Kafranbel is part of the Idlib Governorate in Northwest Syria.

Hardly anyone previously knew of the town with its 16’000 inhabitants, although it is Syria’s largest producer of figs and olives. Ever since the revolution started with peaceful protests in Deraa, spreading to other Syrian cities and towns, Kafranbel has been the source of the most progressive messages on the Syrian revolution.

Led by Raed Fares and with the contribution of many activists, the people of Kafranbel tirelessly send their messages of peaceful defiance out to the world. With these banners and caricatures, they developed their own figurative expressive language. In the very beginning, these messages were entirely in Arabic. The drawings received huge international media attention. Fares decided to compose English messages to make them more accessible for an international audience, generating a very particular style with references to Western culture, such as films and music.

Beyond that, the messages relate to current situations happening somewhere around the globe. The banners shown here are not in chronological order, nor do they represent the complete range of designs.

Nevertheless, they document a timeline and milestones of the Syrian revolution. http://www.occupiedkafranbel.com/ projector > 155 photos from Kafranbel, no sound, texts in English

Videoart from Syria Khaled Abdul Wahed, born 1975 in Homs, Syria lives in Istanbul, Turkey Bullet, 2’02, September 2011, US Tajj/Boom, 2’15, July 2012, Syria Slot in memory, 2’25, January 2012, Lebanon Have a deep breath, 2’31, September 2013, Turkey http://vimeo.com/user4345882 Akram Al Halabi, born 1981 in Majdal-Shams, Golan Hights, Syria lives in Vienna, Austria Cheek, 1’31 , Austria 2013 http://akramalhalabi.blogspot.ch/ Dani Abo Louh, born 1983 in Damascus, Syria, lives in Lyon, France His Name was Hamzeh Bakkour, 5’07, France, 2012 http://vimeo.com/daniabolouh

all videos in Arabic with English subtitles

Germann & Lorenzi Monica Germann and Daniel Lorenzi live and work in Zurich, Switzerland. They collaborate since 1995.

They are well known for their site-specific works, installations, wall drawings, as well as art-in architecture projects, drawings and electronic music, shown internationally.

They have been given awards and residencies. Apart from being artists themselves, Germann & Lorenzi are wonderful hosts of exhibitions and musical events, inviting colleagues and friends.

The piece displayed here, Cartography Syria, 2012, has been commissioned for the symposium Syria – here and there, that took place in November 2012, Cabaret Voltaire, Zurich. http://www.germannlorenzi.com/

Costa Vece born 1969 in Switzerland His body of work comprises accessible installations as well as mixed media collages. Since 1999 his works have been exhibited in solo and group shows internationally and he has been given various awards and grants.

The piece displayed Revolution – Patriotismo, model for a refugee camp tent, 2014 is a commissioned work for this exhibition and part of the series Revolucion Patriotismo, that Costa Vece started in 2005, tackling migration, homeland and globalization.

In this piece, Costa Vece used T-Shirts, kept together with safety pins.

He designed the original national flags of those countries whose residents increasingly ask for asylum in Switzerland in recent years: Syria, China, Afghanistan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Somalia. http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Costa_Vece

Produktnachteile Hütte

DOMOs morethanshelters

Produktvorteile DOMO

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wenig witterungsbeständig

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Schutz und Sicherheit bei jeder Witterung

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Temperatur und Feuchtigkeit kaum kontrollierbar

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Temperatur und Feuchtigkeit sind kontrollierbar durch variable Belüftungsformen

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mangelnde Hygiene

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Gesundes Raumklima und hohe Hygienestandards garantieren größtmöglichen Wohnkomfort

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schlechte Isolierung

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Perfekte Anpassung an jedes Klima durch variable Isolierung

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kein Transport möglich, aufwendiger Aufbau

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Klappbares Grundgerüst – platzsparend beim Transport, leicht zu tragen, schnell aufzubauen

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Ohne technische oder personelle Hilfe aufzubauen und instand zu halten

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Flexibler Boden zur optimalen Anpassung an jeden Untergrund

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Außenwände mit lokalen Materialien ebenso wie mit modernsten Stoffen bespannbar

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Integration von Solaranlagen möglich

Produktvorteile Hütte 10

Raumnutzung 1

In 2009, Daniel Kerber, Hamburg, Germany, started to work on the idea of creating a professional structure in order to support as many people as possible without a home. morethanshelters was founded and has been working on prototypes due to ground based analyses.

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4

http://www.morethanshelters.org/

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11

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Erweiterbar für größere Familien und Dorfgemeinschaften

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Extrem lange Lebensdauer aller eingesetzten Materialien ermöglicht Recycling/ Upcycling

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Flexible Strukturen können nach Bedarf angepasst werden (Laden, Weg, Dorfplatz...) morethanshelters investiert in Folgeversorgung sowie zusätzliche Komponenten der Grund- und Notversorgung vor Ort

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Ist-Situation

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Produktnachteile Zelt

The demands are high: sustainable, flexible to different cultural needs, adaptable to different climates, possible to be produced with locally found material.

Their crowd funding process is successful.

Currently morethanshelters is working on the implementation of DOMOs in Za’atari camp, Jordan, where 120 000 Syrian refugees are living.

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instabil, nicht witterungsbeständig

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schlechtes Raumklima

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mangelnde Hygiene

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keine Isolierung

Produktvorteile Zelt 5

mobil, geringes Transportgewicht

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DOMO Modulsystem

model of a family tent UNHCR Shortly after the Second World War, in 1950, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, UNHCR, was founded as an agency of the United Nations, UN, with the mandate to protect and support refugees; either upon request of a government or the UN itself, and to assist the needs of refugees – their voluntary repatriation, local integration or resettlement in a third country.

The UNHCR, based in Geneva, Switzerland, received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1954 and in 1981.

The Family Tent model displayed was developed in 2008 / 2009 and is a successor of the Tunnel Tent, which is not in use nor included in the UNHCR catalogue anymore. The current family tent is now included in the emergency section of the UNHCR Core non-food Items Catalogue, as well as Items Catalogue of the ICRC/IFRC ; International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies/International Committee of the Red Cross.

Since that, the UNHCR/IFRC/ICRC Research and Development Committee continued to modify the current family tent such as a structural frame and winterization kits. Currently, a framed family tent and winterization kits are included in these catalogues. However, more research and development are under process regarding the ventilations, comfort and adequacy.

The UNHCR works with various third party suppliers for the tents and other items, e.g. www.nationaltenthouse.com.

Only recently UNHCR started contracting with IKEA for a flat-pack-solution refugee house.

exhibition view / sketches ::

UNHCR-Family tent DOMOs morethanshelters IKEA

flat pack solution

Mapping migration and its boundaries Maps by Nicolas Lampert + Olivier Clochard Migreurop, The Atlas of Migration in Europe New Internationalist, Oxford, England places of detention camps in Europe in 2011

walls, barriers and fences in 2011

body count at the EU’s

frontiers, 1993 – 2011

Naming the Dead

List of 17306 documented refugee deaths at the borders of Fortress Europe, Schengen, January 1993 – November 2012

compiled by United for Intercultural Action European network against nationalism, racism, fascism and in support of migrants and refugees

www.unitedagainstrasicm.org

drawings of flights Eritrea - Switzerland, 2013 research, interviews and compiled by Nigist Goytom born 1988 in Ethopia, architect, libes and works in Zurich, Switzerland In 2013 more than 45 million people have been forced to leave their homes. This amounts to the biggest number of refugees for 14 years.

Poverty, lack of economic opportunities, war and political persecution contribute to their decision to assume the life of a precarious migrant.

Their dangerous journeys crossing several borders without legal identity exposes them to reckless human trafficking that often ends up in extortion, slavery, hunger and starvation, but have rarely been documented so far.

Their voices are hardly heard even though a lot is being talked and written about them. This project is a collection of sketches drawn by survivors mostly originating from the Horn of Africa who were willing to recount their experiences.

In the exhibition 8 drawings tell the stories of 8 survivors and their flights.

The stories are written down in a small bocklet, English and German, with references to the drawings.

content of the exhibition II

documentation II

The contents of the exhibition do not expire. They remain significant and contribute to a complex understanding. Nevertheless, the exhibition can be complemented with additional works.

The exhibition at the Fabriktheater Rote Fabrik, Zurich, was placed in one single room, in a blackbox.

Texts of the exhibition are available in English and German, with detailed information on each work presented.

Events accompanying the exhibition do support scrutinizing topics.

It is desirable to create a new poster according to the event and the space.

The flexibility of each work makes it possible to conceptualize the exhibition in different spaces.

A detailed technicel raider is to be found on the following page.

The works are easily handled for transportation.

grosse Fluchten – kleines Asyl - huge flights – little shelter a project by Rayelle Niemann und Silvia Staub, Zürich

technical data DVDs – 6 monitors 1 hanging projector 7 DVD-player

12 headphones – 2 for each (6) monitors - 1 projector :: slideshow, Kafranbel, without sound, image interval 15’’

- wall for :: cartography Syria, germann&lorenzi, 5m heights x 4m width - wall for :: 3 x A0 - maps on migration in Europe and walls

tarpaulin with metal buckles - wall for :: 7 x A3 - sketches of flights from Eritrea, laser printed photos

- 1 flat screen :: 4 video art works by Khaled Abdulwahed

- wall for :: 6 x A5 - sketches of models UNHCR family tent + IKEA Flat

Pack Solution

- 1 flat screen :: 1 video art work by Dani Abo Lou + 1 video art work by Akram Al Halabi

- wall for :: 5 x A3 - sketches of models + information on morethanshelters _________________________________________________________

- 1 monitor :: 8 episodes of Top Goon, Masasit Mati

- platform for 4 x A5 notebooks with the narrations of Eritrean sketches, 2 English, 2 German

- 1 monitor :: 6 short video documentaries, Bidayyat - 1 monitor :: documentations of 10 actions / interventions in public spaces - 1 monitor :: 1 documentary and 2 interviews All DVDs are in Arabic with English subtitles.

All DVDs can either be seen as a loop or each single chapter can be chosen separately with a remote control. _________________________________________________________________ - space in place :: list of dead refugees inside Europe, 1993 - 2012 length of paper : 20m 1 end hanging from ceiling, the other end rolled up on a roll, ca. 40/50cm x 20,

- platform for 2 x A4 manuals, descriptions and instructions of UNHCR Family Tent ______________________________________________________ - platform for :: UNHCR – Family tent model, ca. 80x50x 30 - platform for :: model for a refugee camp tent, Costa Vece, ca. 50x30x80 - platform for :: models of DOMOS, morethanshelters ___________________________________________________________

grosse Fluchten – kleines Asyl - huge flights – little shelter a project by Rayelle Niemann, Silvia Staub

As a supplement to the exhibition and events we created a dossiers to Syria in collaboration with the Rote Fabrik Zeitung, Zurich, published 1 March 2014.

In the last 3 years during the Syrian revolution/war, approximately 140’000 people were killed and millions became refugees, inside the country and abroad.

Following the initial huge media outcry and coverage, bombardments and massacres of civilians turned into marginal notes in our newspapers.

Razan Ghazzawi, blogger and human rights activist, writes about the role and influence of Syrian women in the revolution.

The renowned theater director and writer Mohammad al Attar discusses possibilities of protest through art.

The American journalist Madeleine Bair interviews Liam Stack, a journalist working for NY Times about his Citizen Video Project «Watching Syria’s War».

Download : http://www.rotefabrik.ch/_images/admin/zeitung/1394041288_fz_299_web.pdf

grosse Fluchten – kleines Asyl - huge flights – little shelter curated by Rayelle Niemann. collaborator: Silvia Staub.

___________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________ contakt Rayelle Niemann Klingenstrasse 23 CH-8005 Zürich mail@elleray.ch land 0041 271 80 40 mob 0041 79 779 18 94 www.citysharing.ch