“Mindesmærke for de 743 fanger på Livø fra 1911 til 1961”
Jakob Jakobsen (DK)
Jakob Jakobsen (DK)
Mindesmærke for de 743 fanger på Livø fra 1911 til 1961 (Memorial for the 743 prisoners at Livø from 1911 to 1961) is a multi-layered artistic engagement by Jakob Jakobsen.
The project takes the scenic Limfjord island of Livø, with its history as a former mental institution and detention center for young men from 1911 – 1961 as an initial point of departure. Through detailed research and intimate artistic engagement with the history of the Livø mental institution - its problems, nuances, and ambiguities - Jakobsen seeks to confront and investigate the social, historical, and aesthetic relations of the lasting impact of the institution. By creating nuanced dialogues of the lives of survivors and victims, the project produces a “Monument in Paper” to the men interned there, which reflects upon the problematic and complex social and power structures these institutions (and others like it) leave behind.
Through an artistic poster collection highlighting alternative histories, co-enacting a public campaign of interactions during the exhibition period in cities near Limfjorden, and collaborating with a number of Livø actors – historians, survivors, poets, artists, and vulnerable populations – Jakobsen seeks to create critical motion and energy against policies that produce othering or reinforce institutional power in the first place. This highlights the relationships between art, mental health, and social exclusion at a critical time – just as the Danish Prime Minister is scheduled to issue a formal apology on behalf of the Danish Government to the victims of the former Livø mental institution later this autumn.
The project is generously supported by the Danish Arts Foundation, Slots- og Kulturstyrelsen, and UMMK.
The project takes the scenic Limfjord island of Livø, with its history as a former mental institution and detention center for young men from 1911 – 1961 as an initial point of departure. Through detailed research and intimate artistic engagement with the history of the Livø mental institution - its problems, nuances, and ambiguities - Jakobsen seeks to confront and investigate the social, historical, and aesthetic relations of the lasting impact of the institution. By creating nuanced dialogues of the lives of survivors and victims, the project produces a “Monument in Paper” to the men interned there, which reflects upon the problematic and complex social and power structures these institutions (and others like it) leave behind.
Through an artistic poster collection highlighting alternative histories, co-enacting a public campaign of interactions during the exhibition period in cities near Limfjorden, and collaborating with a number of Livø actors – historians, survivors, poets, artists, and vulnerable populations – Jakobsen seeks to create critical motion and energy against policies that produce othering or reinforce institutional power in the first place. This highlights the relationships between art, mental health, and social exclusion at a critical time – just as the Danish Prime Minister is scheduled to issue a formal apology on behalf of the Danish Government to the victims of the former Livø mental institution later this autumn.
UNFOLDING THE LIVØ MEMORIAL: PART I
UNFOLDING THE LIVØ MEMORIAL: PART II
The project is generously supported by the Danish Arts Foundation, Slots- og Kulturstyrelsen, and UMMK.
Saturday, August 7th:
Livø / Memorial for the 743 prisoners at Livø from 1911 to 1961 (Excursion on Livø, Memorial Meeting, and Publication Launch*) from 10:30 am - 10:00 pm
Meeting Point: Rønbjerg Havn, Livøvej 145, 9681 Ranum
*Please RSVP at f.eks.contact@gmail.com to book a spot for the full event (spaces limited). Food, drinks, ferry transportation, and bus ride to Aalborg is provided free of charge with reservation. Public camping on Livø is available for those who wish to stay overnight, and free ferry service to/from Livø during August. Covid pass is required.
August 3rd – October 31st:
Public Campaign of interactions and meetings (TBA) taking place at various locations in Northern Jutland and Aalborg with concluding event Er en undskyldning nok? as part of the exhibition Soil. Sickness. Society at Rønnebæksholm
Livø / Memorial for the 743 prisoners at Livø from 1911 to 1961 (Excursion on Livø, Memorial Meeting, and Publication Launch*) from 10:30 am - 10:00 pm
Meeting Point: Rønbjerg Havn, Livøvej 145, 9681 Ranum
*Please RSVP at f.eks.contact@gmail.com to book a spot for the full event (spaces limited). Food, drinks, ferry transportation, and bus ride to Aalborg is provided free of charge with reservation. Public camping on Livø is available for those who wish to stay overnight, and free ferry service to/from Livø during August. Covid pass is required.
August 3rd – October 31st:
Public Campaign of interactions and meetings (TBA) taking place at various locations in Northern Jutland and Aalborg with concluding event Er en undskyldning nok? as part of the exhibition Soil. Sickness. Society at Rønnebæksholm
Jakob Jakobsen is an artist and writer who has been pioneering numerous forms of critical, socially-engaged, and radical pedagogical forms of artistic practice for decades. His work particularly blends political organizational work, experimental aesthetic formats, institutional critique, and collaborative ways of working. Dedicated to the production of critical consciousness and poetic language through alternative forms of collective knowledge production, he has established many highly regarded projects over the years – The Copenhagen Free University, The Anti-History Project, Hospital Prison University Archive, and The Hospital for Self-Medication to name just a few. He has exhibited, lectured, or performed in numerous international and national contexts including Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, ARKEN Museum of Modern Art, Documenta 13 (Kassel), Liverpool Biennial 2010, Rønnebæksholm, Kunsthal Aarhus, Tensta Konsthall (Stockholm), among many others. Also, Jakobsen has written several books on Scandinavian Situationism including Cosmonauts of the Future and was recently awarded a literature prize for his book Ophør Oprør – Dagbog fra en indlæggelse a collection of essays about his time at Gentofte Hospital.
Livø Itinerary:
10:30am
Ferry depart from Rønbjerg Havn to Livø
11:00am
Brief exploration
12:00pm
– Lunch –
12:30pm
----- Later Ferry Departure to Livø -----
1:00pm
Island Tour with Bente Kjærgaard (nature guide on Livø)
2:30 pm
– Coffee break –
3:00 pm
Memorial meeting and publication launch with introduction by Jakob Jakobsen and Birgit Kirkebæk
Testimonies and stories relating to Livø during the institution years and with the treatment of the socially excluded in the past or in the present.
Jakob Jakobsen (artist), Rikke Ehlers Nilsson (f.eks.), Scott William Raby (f.eks.), Mille Holtegaard (artist), Birgit Kirkebæk (researcher and historian), Henning Jahn (Andersvænge / Danmarks Forsorgshistoriske Museum), Carsten Egø (Andersvænge / Danmarks Forsorgshistoriske Museum), Maria Hagstrup (Vesthimmerlands Museum), Poul Duedahl (Aalborg University), Ib Svenningsen (Spøttrup lokal Arkiv), Anna Rieder (poet), Mikael Josephson (author), Bente Kjærgaard (nature guide on Livø), and more.
Testimonies and stories relating to Livø during the institution years and with the treatment of the socially excluded in the past or in the present.
Jakob Jakobsen (artist), Rikke Ehlers Nilsson (f.eks.), Scott William Raby (f.eks.), Mille Holtegaard (artist), Birgit Kirkebæk (researcher and historian), Henning Jahn (Andersvænge / Danmarks Forsorgshistoriske Museum), Carsten Egø (Andersvænge / Danmarks Forsorgshistoriske Museum), Maria Hagstrup (Vesthimmerlands Museum), Poul Duedahl (Aalborg University), Ib Svenningsen (Spøttrup lokal Arkiv), Anna Rieder (poet), Mikael Josephson (author), Bente Kjærgaard (nature guide on Livø), and more.
6:00pm
– Dinner and drinks –
7.00pm
----- Last Commercial Ferry to Rønbjerg Havn -----
10:00pm
Private ferry depart from Livø to Rønbjerg Havn
10:30pm
Bus from Rønbjerg Havn to Aalborg Bus station (arrival time 11:30 pm)
----- Possibility for overnight camping -----