Ytringsfrihet og kulturkamp: Et blikk på forestillingsprosjektet Ways of Seeing, og den kulturpolitiske diskursen i dens kjølvann.
Master thesis
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https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2760036Utgivelsesdato
2021-06-02Metadata
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- Master theses [237]
Sammendrag
In the aftermath of what is known as “the Bertheussen case” (Bertheussen-saken) we now know that a single agent took it upon herself to change the narrative of a performance that used a film of her house. Showcasing herself as a victim of the heinous crimes the artists behind Ways of Seeing committed by doing so.
This thesis takes a closer look at the political and artistic project Ways of Seeing, which premiered at Black Box Teater in November 2018. Taking a closer look at what the artists behind it wanted to convey to their audience. With hot political topics like migration, racism, surveillance and right-wing extremism, this documentary theatre production seeks to turn our gaze from the looked at to the onlooker. Turning our gaze from the surveillance of refugees to the ones who profit power and influence from it. Open our eyes to the political power games that goes on behind closed doors. Mapping out the network that benefits from making Norwegians a more racist society.
The nationwide debate that took place after the performance premiered evolved around whether it is ok to film someone’s house. Even the Norwegian Prime Minister chimed in, reminding the artists to think about how they make it harder to be a politician. Only days after this statement, Bertheussen was arrested for a series of events, including attempted arson and threat letters, made to look like the artists were behind them. When the trial against Bertheussen began, the artists followed up with a series that continued their original artistic project as well as a commentary to the trial.
We now see the war of ideologies, against the artists and their postcolonial project, versus the right-winged racism of the Progress Party (Fremskrittspartiet) that at the time, sat in the Norwegian government. The postcolonial ideology is presented as an artistic project. The political arena became a spectacle too. This thesis looks, from a postcolonial perspective, at the artistic project and the resounding political spectacle in the performance’s aftermath. And by doing this, I also seek to map out the battle of ideology between the anti-fascist artists and the response by the racist network it targeted.
Beskrivelse
Revised version. Minor spelling errors corrected.