Artist talk

Flaka Haliti works with everyday objects and aesthetics such as Ikea bags, children’s drawings, in-store displays, junk and barriers. Her works initially seem cheerful, yet they frequently point to questions of systemic violence and dubious authority of interpretation, to limitations as well as the overcoming of them. Haliti reflects on an existence in the midst of constructed social inclusions and exclusions. Large sculptures based on UN security barriers refer to territorial, political borders, while a seven-metre-long curtain—strictly speaking also a form of barrier—symbolises the endless expanse of the sky. Furthermore, she reflects on the pressure of neo-liberal living and working conditions, constant self-renewal, (re-)presentation and productivity in several works by means of the fictional character Joe.

In the context of the exhibition Here – Or Rather There, Is Over There, Flaka Haliti and Adam Szymczyk, curator and artistic director of documenta 14, will speak about the context of her work