PUBLICS and the Saastamoinen Foundation are delighted to present The Octopus: On Diversities, Art Production, Educational Models, and Curatorial Trajectories, published in the book series of the University of Applied Arts Vienna Edition Angewandte by De Gruyter.

Edited by Basak Senova, the book shares contributions by Ruth Anderwald + Leonard Grond, Çelenk Bafra, Yane Calovski, Jonatan Habib Engqvist, Olfa Feki, Hristina Ivanoska, Johannes Jäger, Anne Klontz, Bronwyn Lace, Maria Lantz, Verena Miedl-Faißt, Maarit Mustonen, Marcus Neustetter, Egle Oddo, Barbara Putz- Plecko, Basak Senova, Renad Shqeirat, Bochra Taboubi, and Johan Thom and project texts by Noor Abed, Sophia Bellouhassi, Younes Ben Slimane, Férielle Doulain-Zouari, Eser Epözdemir, Els van Houtert, Bengü Karaduman, Marwa Manai, Verena Miedl-Faißt, Nondumiso Lwazi Msimanga, Maarit Mustonen, Jannis Neumann, Sofia Priftis, Alina Rentsch, Kim M. Reynolds, Julia Stern, Bochra Taboubi, and Conny Zenk. The Octopus: On Diversities, Art Production, Educational Models, and Curatorial Trajectories was designed by Funda Senova Tunali and Basak Senova.

This book is the accumulation of the Octopus Programme (2019-2022), which was designed as a guided research-based educational programme that encouraged artistic research and production-based collaborations in different geographical regions. The Octopus Programme developed new critical perspectives to process artistic research and practices while bridging and acknowledging: the diversity of socio-political realities, academic and non-academic intellectual models, institutional and alternative curatorial practices, accessed and distributed resources and facilities, and multiple knowledge production models. By merging the viewpoints of academic entities and contemporary art institutions, the programme developed a generative research methodology by creating an autonomous network.

The Octopus Programme was initiated in 2019 by the University of Applied Arts Vienna and the Kamel Lazaar Foundation with a pilot phase linking Vienna and Tunis. In 2020, the programme launched its main phase as a joint project by the University of Applied Arts Vienna; Kamel Lazaar Foundation, Tunis; Konstfack University of Arts, Crafts and Design and Index, Stockholm; the University of Pretoria; The Centre for the Less Good Idea, Johannesburg; Birzeit University; the Palestinian Museum, Birzeit; Khalil Sakakini Cultural Center, Ramallah; SAHA Association, Istanbul; PUBLICS and Saastamoinen Foundation, Helsinki. Five interconnected evaluation committees selected participants from Austria, Finland, Tunisia, Palestine, South Africa, Sweden, and Turkey. The Octopus Programme offered peer-to-peer educational sessions, online and class discussions, research field trips and working groups, collaborative production-based workshops, and lectures in numerous European, Mediterranean, and African cities. In 2022, the programme concluded with two exhibitions in Tunis and Vienna.

The book was printed with the financial support of the University of Applied Arts Vienna, along with support from Saastamoinen Foundation, Konstfack – University of Arts, Crafts and Design, Kamel Lazaar Foundation, and SAHA Association.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Basak Senova is a curator and designer from Turkey. Curated the pavilions of Turkey and Northern Macedonia at Venice Biennale (2009/2015); 2nd and the 5th D-0 ARK Underground Biennial (BiH) (2013/2019); Helsinki Photography Biennial 14; Jerusalem Show VII: Fractures (2014); the inaugural exhibition of B7L9, Climbing through the Tide in Tunis (2019); and served as Art Gallery Chair of ACM SIGGRAPH 2014, Vancouver. She acted as an advisory board member of the Turkish Pavilion in Venice Biennale, Istanbul Biennial, and the D-0 ARK Underground Biennial (BiH). She serves on the editorial board of PASS, International Biennial Association’s journal. Senova completed a long-term research-based project CrossSections that took place in Vienna, Helsinki, and Stockholm between 2017 and 2019. She is a Guest Professor at the University of Applied Arts Vienna, running the Octopus Programme.

To find out more see theoctopusprogramme.uni-ak.ac.at

Or buy the book at the following  link www.degruyter.com/document/isbn/9783111365541/html