The project created by Bik Van der Pol for \u201cLiving as Form\u201d entitled \u201cAs Above, So Below\u201d engages in the contentious (re)valuation of space in New York\u2019s Lower East Side, and the issue of \u201cair rights\u201d, which apply to ownership of the space above plots of land and buildings. Alongside \u201czoning\u201d processes, air rights are the main catalyst for urban renewal in neighborhoods, a phenomenon that is often dictated from above and affects the lives of local residents. If the general paradigm obliges residents to withdraw from public space \u2013 where, then, is the public?<\/p>\n
Bik Van der Pol will talk about artistic practice as an ongoing exercise in creating a space where the expectation for learning and experiencing functions in ways given to constant change, a space where creating public space and creating the public are essential components, and in which ideas can make us imagine the world differently \u2013 imagination that is also a basis for action.<\/p>\n
Since 1995, Liesbeth Bik and Jos van der Pol have been working together as Bik Van der Pol. Through their practice, which is collaborative and attentive to the space, Bik Van der Pol strive to articulate and understand how art can produce a public sphere and space for speculation and imagination. Bik Van der Pol live and work in Rotterdam.<\/p>\n
This lecture was given in English.<\/p>\n