Current Values

Among other things, philosopher Sjoerd van Tuinen will talk about the economy of abundance and waste and the role therein of human emotions such as desire. He will lecture on the value of values and how human emotions influence economic considerations. Artist Antonia Hirsch introduces the concept of ’Intangible Economies’ in which she examines conflicting concepts of value: what is valuable to us personally (such as friendships) is often immeasurable, yet economy seems to operate, and place value, on what is finite and thereby measurable. In the video programme ’How do you earn your money?’ Rotterdam artist Hester Scheurwater will talk about her artistic practice, in which she examines and criticizes the role of women as sex objects. Scheurwater tells how she manages her finances and how these are influenced by desire.

About the speakers on 24 April:

Sjoerd van Tuinen is Assistant Professor of Philosophy of Man and Culture at the Erasmus University Rotterdam and coordinator of the Centre for Art and Philosophy (EUR). As part of a Veni research project, he developed a new approach to the ethical-political question of ressentiment, a resentment that stems from power and is expressed in a lapse in values. In addition to philosophy, Van Tuinen specializes in the sociology of culture, aesthetics, and social and political theory. He has authored the book ’Sloterdijk. Binnenstebuiten denken’ (2004) and has published several articles including ’Overvloed’ (2012).

Hester Scheurwater is a Rotterdam-based visual artist. In her videos and self-portraits, she examines and criticizes the role of women as sex objects. She photographs herself in her private surroundings, in provocative poses, and places these images on Facebook. Her films and video installations are exhibited internationally in museums, galleries and at art fairs, such as Light Industry New York (2009) and Villa Elisabeth Berlin (2011). In Rotterdam, her work has been shown in Roodkapje (2010), Galerie Frank Taal (2012), and RE:Rotterdam (2013), a.o.

Antonia Hirsch is a Berlin-based artist and writer. In her work she examines how personal experiences can be compared to standardized systems of measurement, such as time, currency or the metric system. She is currently querying the notion of infinity that seems to indicate a quasi-spiritual transcendence (what is infinite trumps all that is finite, i.e. human life), yet it is also fundamental to the concepts that structure our material existence, such as capitalism’s concept of “infinite growth. Hirsch’s work is shown world-wide, including at the ZKM | Museum of Contemporary Art, Karlsruhe (2011), Istanbul Biennale (2007), Or Gallery Berlin (2012), Republic Gallery Vancouver (2013), and Ludlow 38, New York (2012).