Inclusive history politics in the arts: Intervention at the Peace Cross St. Lorenz

Abstract

The text discusses inclusion and social engagement in art, which are central to my practice. My projects operate at the interface between dialogical education and participatory as well as collective art making. By referring to Kester’s critique of New Labour policies of the late 1990s as leading to a de-radicalized Marxism I argue for an agonistic method that I connect with the idea of ‘radical inclusion’ as a strategic approach to democratization. The problem of Austrian history politics and how the country created the myth of Austria as the first victim of Nazi Germany is the main focus of my intervention at the Peace Cross St. Lorenz in Lower Austria, which serves as an example of my artistic practice of ‘radical inclusion’. The peace cross exists since the 1960s and is celebrating the Jockisch task force. Contemporary historical research has revealed that this combat group was actively involved in war crimes during the Second World War. To counter the myth of an innocent Wehrmacht I mounted in front of the cross a photomontage made in 1933 by the antifascist artist John Heartfield. Additionally, the memorial is augmented by five signboards which present collages produced by local school pupils during a workshop that took place over a period of six months.