My first SPACEX secondment to Prague City Gallery took place in the final week of March 2023. My focus was on the history of fascism and antifascism, especially using the history of emotions approaches to study this subject matter.
My trip was an excellent opportunity to explore a city with a complex history and consider the relationships between representation, fascism and antifascism. I was able to explore museums and galleries and reflect on a range of aspects of a developing project.
I had opportunities to meet with members of the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague, where I gave a talk to students on studying fascism and the history of emotions theories. On my walk to the lecture, I took a picture of an antifascist sticker at the Prague Metronome, typical of many ways antifascist cultures manifest in urban settings. I included this in my talk too.
I also had an opportunity to work closely with my host organisation, Prague City Gallery, to discuss developing a project around Czech artists and antifascism. I met with artists who are working with themes of antifascism and activism, and developed some initial ideas for the longer project. In particular this will think about the ‘emotional regimes’ developed by fascist cultures, and how antifascist art responds to these typically antagonistic ideals.
I now want to delve further into this aspect of antifascism and explore the ways antifascists develop emotional connections to ideals such as democracy and the defence of personal liberty, as part of their opposition to the politics of the extreme. In 2025 I am set to return to Prague, for follow-up interviews with artists, where I aim to develop my research into a new study of antifascism related to conceptualisations of affect.