Variations. (In-)Attention at the Present Time

Part III: Politics of Attention

Politics is a process that evolves through language as well as bodies and forms of practice. Power relations are based on a "distribution of the sensible" (Rancière), whereby gradations of visibility are produced and organized in various ways: some individuals and groups find themselves in the spotlight, while the existence and concerns of others remain seemingly imperceptible; some are exposed to direct monitoring and control, others do their work "in hiding," where manifold strategies of visualization and attention management become necessary; some practices are public, others remain unseen and socially non addressable. Determined by both space and media, attention is also a kind of work that is distributed variably. While some groups need to be attentive, others can afford indifference or are actually trained in it. The threshold between attention and indifference is often difficult to define. The workshop thus examines different political modes of action and forms of attention or of active inattention and denial. It investigates their oppressive, transformative, or even liberating potentials.