January 19 2010

A monthly reading + discussion group, Thought on Film aims to promote critical thought around film product and practice through community-based discussion. Open to the public, Thought on Film fosters the close reading of texts confronting issues in contemporary, cutting-edge cinematic practice and philosophy.

In response to the devastating 2009 funding cuts to art and culture in BC, propagated by the provincial Liberal government, January’s meeting will feature the essay “Out of the Frying Pan and into the Fire, or the Arts between Administration and the Markets” from Zygmunt Bauman’s Does Ethics Have a Chance in a World of Consumers?

A renowned social thinker, Bauman’s conception of a liquid modern world urges us to think in new ways about the seemingly infinite and challenging fluidity of contemporary life. Contrasted to the idea of a solid modernity that preceded it, our modern state is characterized by social forms and institutions that are fleeting to the point that they no longer serve as reliable points of reference from which to organize our lives. The arts, “whose purpose is to explore, pave and chart the roads that human culture may [or may not] follow” are in constant competition with managers, “whose control over human conduct and the manipulation of probabilities is in the last account a bid to control the future.” In removing policy support for art and culture, and insisting that art and culture subordinate itself to consumer markets, what kind of future is our provincial government attempting to manifest, and do we want to be a part of it?

Experimenting with the form of reading groups and their discussions, this month’s selection will be read out loud by participants. No pre-reading required!

If  you have any questions about Thought on Film, please do not hesitate to contact Programs Manager + Curator cheyanne turions at (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

THOUGHT ON FILM XXIV
reading Zygmunt Bauman's "Out of the Frying Pan and into the Fire, or the Arts between Administration and the Markets"
Cineworks [1131 Howe, back lane entrance]
19 January 2010, 6pm
Free