Open Call  

For Oyoun's latest artistic intervention, we're looking for multidisciplinary BIPOC* artists and activists to participate.

will you remember to keep us afloat?

*paid opportunity*

রঙিন সাগর (rongin shagor) – the colorful ocean – symbolizes the variety of poetic and artistic interpretations and inspirations that emerge from one poem. They float, embark, collide and buoy in the same place, each marking approaches to respective struggles in identity politics. Dreams, visions, and associative powers of imagination in poetry are heightened through a collective growth of individual artworks that build on each other. 

রঙিন সাগর (rongin shagor) is an interdisciplinary virtual artistic chain letter investigating the concept of heritage, that gets others involved in the discourse of how our history shapes our actions today. The work of Afro-German poet May Ayim, which is at the core of this project, demonstrates the important malleability of language and its power to both give to and take from marginalized people. 

This is aimed at multidisciplinary artists who can identify with critical views within May Ayim's poetry and/or who have an interest in memory culture and in shaping the future through an open source project.

rongin shagor is Oyoun's latest artistic intervention in which chosen artists respond to a poem with a creation within their respective fields or beyond. The poem which is the starting point for what is to become a virtual artistic chain letter (that will eventually develop into an open source project) is “community” by May Ayim. The artistic responses will be collected on an interactive digital platform, to be launched later this year.

Who can participate?

Reflecting the spirit of May Ayim and that of the communities she speaks to, we want to include more of you! We encourage all artists, whose works can be archived digitally (eg filmmakers, poets, digital creators, visual artists, musicians, etc.), to participate in the open call. The residency aims to provide arts and cultural opportunities to QTBIPoC artists and activists from around the world through exchange and sharing of artistic skills. It is also possible to apply as a collective.

We want to encourage artists to apply with their portfolio (min. 5 works). Submissions are accepted in all languages ​​and forms. For text heavy works in languages ​​outside of German, English, Arabic and Bengali we ask you to add an English translation for better understanding. 

Deadline

The deadline is August 1st. Once you apply you will receive all the information about the following steps. 

What we offer: 

  • Support during the development of the artistic response
  • Opportunity to participate in an intercultural and transnational project 
  • Opportunity for physical and virtual presentation 
  • An opportunity and safe(r) space to engage in collective discussions nurturing community building
  • A fee (amount depending upon the proposal)

 

timeline:

The submission deadline for the call is August 1, 2022.

Interviews with selected artists will be conducted in mid-August before the final selection.

Announcement of the final selection until late August.

Development of the work in September.  

The launch of the digital platform will be in September/October.

 

Application process: 

Artists can submit their portfolios, artist statements and responses here.

Madhumita Nandi

Madhumita Nandi is an Indian visual artist, researcher and curator exploring the intersections of memory culture, archival practices and ecology. She is part of the Oyoun team.
Pictures

rongin shagor/রঙিন সাগর – Pop-up exhibition for an evening

For one evening, on November 13.11th, there was the opportunity to experience the works of the participating artists from “rongin shagor/রঙিন সাগর” in physical form. For those of you who didn't make it to the pop-up exhibition, we would like to show a selection of images to give you an idea of ​​the artworks.
conversations

Website launch – RONGIN SHAGOR

On Sunday, November 13.11.2022th, XNUMX, we finally celebrated the launch of the Rongin Shagor website together with all the artists and you. The works of the participating artists, which can currently be admired on the Rongin Shagor website - www.ronginshagor.com - were exhibited in person and made tangible.

Leman Sevda Darıcıoğlu

Leman Sevda Darıcıoğlu is an artist working mostly in the field of performance art. In the performances, Darıcıoğlu examines the physical/emotional limits, limitations and potential of the body. Departing from this corporeal approach, Darıcıoğlu is interested in chronopolitics and necropolitics from a perspective that focuses on the vulnerability and strength of marginalized bodies.

Kondo Heller

Kondo Heller is a Kenyan-German poet, writer and experimental filmmaker. Kondo is a Barbican Young Poet 18/19, Obsidian Foundation Fellow, Ledbury Critic, and Image Text Ithaca Junior Fellow. Kondo is currently studying for an MFA in poetry at Cornell University.

Sarah Ehsan

Sara Ehsan is an Iranian author and lives in Karlsruhe. Her focus is on poetry, short prose and plays. She gives writing workshops for BIPoC women and students.

Ozan Zakariya Keskinkılıç

Ozan Zakariya Keskinkılıç is a political scientist, freelance writer and poet. In 2021 he was appointed a member of the expert commission against anti-Muslim racism in Berlin. His published works include “Muslimaniac. The career of an enemy” (2021, Edition Körber) and “Prinzenbad” (2022, ELIF Verlag).

Jumoke Adeyanju

Jumoke Adeyanju aka mokeyanju is an interdisciplinary, multilingual writer, curator and dancer. She is the founder of the Poetry Meets Series, co-curator of Sensitivities of Dance at SAVVY Contemporary and hosts her own radio show Sauti ya àkókò on Refuge Worldwide.

Carla Abiles

Carla Abilés was born in Salta, Argentina and now lives in Berlin. Her work explores the idea of ​​power relations and the intersection of migration, feminism, technology and brown culture.

Jess Oliveira

Jess Oliveira is a translator, researcher, poet, member of the Black Atlantic Translation Research Group (UFBA, Brazil) and member of the translation-art duo cocuruto with Bruna Barros. In 2020 she was nominated for the 62nd Jabuti Award in the Translation category.

Bruna Barros

Bruna Barros (or Mercúrio) is a multidisciplinary artist and translator. Together with Jess Oliveira she forms the translator-artist-duo cocoruto. Bruna believes in the importance of talking about yourself and the importance of telling stories.

Arijit Bhattacharyya

Arijit Bhattacharyya, born in West Bengal, is an artist and independent curator currently based in Weimar. His practice revolves around contentious narratives of resistance through social engagements, design interventions and lecture performances.

Amira Zarari

Amira Zarari is a passionate poet. Her poems reflect her reality as a black Muslim woman living in Germany.

Alice Yuan Zhang 张元

Alice Yuan Zhang 张元 (b. Dalian, China) is a media artist, cultural organizer and first-generation immigrant living between Los Angeles and Berlin.

OPEN CALL MAY AYIM VORTEX

The Poetry Meets and rongin shagor present a special May Ayim edition of the infamous Poetry Meets Open Stage Vortex. Selected artists present their poetry, movement art, music and more inspired by May Ayim in max. 10 minutes. as part of the the rongin shagor launch event on 13 November 2022.

Aroh Akunth

Aroh Akunth is a dalit transfeminine writer-performer based between Germany and India. 
Pictures

Vernissage: “May Ayim: Poet. 1996.” by Akinbode Akinbiyi

In June, the internationally renowned photographer and documenta alumnus Akinbode Akinbiyi showed extremely intimate black and white photographs dealing with the farewell of the Afro-German poet, activist and editor May Ayim in 1996.

Open call rongin shagor / রঙিন সাগর

For Oyoun's latest artistic intervention, we're looking for multidisciplinary BIPOC* artists and activists to participate.

Akinbode Akinbiyi

Akinbode Akinbiyi is a Nigerian-British photographer. In his works, Akinbiyi portrays megacities, with a focus on the African cities of Lagos, Cairo, Kinshasa and Johannesburg.

rongin shagor / রঙিন সাগর

Based on a poem by Afro-German poet May Ayim, Oyoun's new artistic intervention "rongin shagor" reflects on cultures of remembrance by exploring the reflective and generative threads of cultural formations that lie in the senses of the oppressed body...

Tags

May Ayim, Open Call, rongin shagor