Object Oriented Democracy

Memory Is an Animal

Jeanna Kolesova's film Memory Is an Animal Which Barks with Various Mouths (2023, 15 min) moves through the interplay of the real and the imagined, the collective and the personal, and poses a question: how and why was collective memory of the Second World War manipulated?

Public commemoration, the aggressive patriotic upbringing of children, and the cult of victory shaped a war-oriented identity and national narrative in Russia. In contrast, the individual memory of those who lived through WWII reflects its violent and tragic side. Can this discrepancy between individual and collective memory offer a loophole out of the nationalist narrative of remembrance? Design researcher Felix Kosok, author of Mañana Bold's Program Object Oriented Democracy, and Irina Denkmann, curator of Handle with Care, join Jeanna Kolesova to discuss democracy, authoritarianism, and the role of personal and collective memory in their practice.

Team: Lilit Matevosyan, Gulshat Gubaidullina, V-L-V-SH-M-D, Vladimir Seleznev, Katya Selezneva, Irina Denkmann

Curator: Irina Denkmann

Design: Denis (Gafiyatullin) Volkov

Illustration: Gulshat Gubaidullina, Denis (Gafiyatullin) Volkov

Exhibition is part of Object Oriented Democracy, curated and organized by Manana Bold e.V. Space: Jacqueline Jakobi Millán, Alte Schmelze (Gutleutstr. 294, Frankfurt am Main)