Exhibition

Yes Naturally · How art saves the World, GEM / Gemeentemuseum The Hague, 2013, counterbalanced the notion of the anthropocene by bringing into focus the interdependence in relations between human and non-human agents. The indoor and outdoor exhibition presented an upbeat vision on the relationship between man and nature. Yes Naturally demonstrated how nature and culture are intertwined and mutually reinforcing and considered technology as an opportunity to create bridges. The project brokered a case for ecological intelligence. An important first step to this goal is to renounce our exclusive rights to this planet. It is necessary to to put our anthropocentric position into perspective.

List of artists: Ai Weiwei, Francis Alÿs, Alfredo & Maria Isabel Aquilizan, Atelier van Lieshout, Phyllida Barlow, Wout Berger & Wim van Egmond, Philip Beesley, Ursula Biemann, Diego Bonetto, Persijn Broersen & Margit Lukács, Thomas Broomé, Lonnie van Brummelen & Siebren de Haan, Matthijs de Bruijne, Heath Bunting, Boo Chapple, Minerva Cuevas, Olivier Darné, Lucinda Devlin, Marjolijn Dijkman, Mark Dion, Clemens Driessen, Driessens & Verstappen, Yvonne Dröge Wendel, Jimmie Durham, Keith Edmier, Olafur Eliasson, Maarten Vanden Eynde, Simon Evans, Peter Fend, Fischli & Weiss, Tue Greenfort, Sjim Hendrix, Roderick Hietbrink, Hilarius Hofstede, Jim Holyoak, Katarina Hruskova, Pierre Huyghe, Natalie Jeremijenko, Michael Johanssen, Erik Kessels, Anselm Kiefer, Maartje Korstanje, George Kuchar, Antti Laitinen, Sjaak Langenberg & Rosé de Beer, Tea Mäkipää, Frank Mandersloot, Ton Matton, Koert van Mensvoort, Matt Mullican, Rivane Neuenschwander, Otobong Nkanga, Susan Norrie, Raul Ortega Ayala, Marjetica Potrč & Ooze architects, Refunc, Zeger Reyers, Fernando Rodriguez Palma, Hans Scholten, Michiel Schwarz & Joost Elffers, Allan Sekula, Egied Simons, Simon Starling, Studio Drift, Superflex, Superuse Studios, Jan Švankmajer, Tinkebell, Roy Villevoye, Arno Vlooswijk, Luuk Wilmering, Jane & Louise Wilson, Adam Zaretsky.

Events

Co-creation: Co-creation between artists among themselves, and with local residents and/or the public played a major role in Articles of Faith (Alfredo & Maria Isabel Aquilizan), The Commons, (Marjetica Potrč & Ooze architects), Die Küche der Armen (Sjim Hendrix). More so, co-creation where human and non-human actors interacted, played a major role in A glance through the Shades (Zeger Reyers), Neobiota (Tue Greenfort), Zoodram 4 (Pierre Huyghe), X species dinner tables (Natalie Jeremijenko), The Honey Bank / City Sprayer (Olivier Darné in collaboration with Stroom Den Haag), Petrol Memorial Park (Tea Makipaa) and Arbor Morgana (Egied Simons), amongst others.

• Selected events:
  
  
• · Night Walks and City Safari’s with artists Minerva Cuevas and Boo Chapple.
• · What is natural?, public debates between Bas Haring and Tijs Goldschmidt.
• · Superplant, symposium, including Peter Fend, Ellen ter Gast, Adam Zaretsky, Hub Zwart.
• · Re-Animating Thought, starring: Nabil Ahmed, dr. Tim Ingold, Fernando Rodriguez Palma.
• · Perceptions on Nature, with Ton Matton, Koert van Mensvoort, Tim Morton, Iris van der Tuin.
• · Surviving the City, with Rachel Armstrong, Henk Oosterling, Arno van Roosmalen, Jan Jongert.
• · Films in collaboration with IDFA, Movies that Matter.
• · The Commons, lectures in collaboration with TAAK.
• · Final debate with Ministry of Economic Affairs, Adam Zaretsky, Dirk de Jong, a.o., demanding to be treated to a succinct answer on this issue of a permit for showing genetically modified material in the art exhibition Ja Natuurlijk · How art saves the World.
  
  

Authors: Thimothy Morton, Jean Fisher, John Thackara, Ellen ter Gast, Clemens Driessen, Vandana Shiva, Henk Oosterling, Donna Haraway, Luciana Parisi, Tim Ingold, Tamar Stelling, Miriam van Rijsbergen.