Trauma in Art & Practice
Collection of artworks, images and exhibitions photos related to transsomatic trauma
“In those very same government offices, we were treated like guerrillos (underground fighters).” In Colombia’s armed conflicts, the poor rural population – caught in the crossfire of the fight against the guerrilla – has for decades suffered (and continues to suffer) murder, sexual assault and displacement – a never-ending vicious circle of violence and fresh trauma. This vicious circle was broken for the first time in 2016 by the peace agreement between the government and the guerrilla. The Museo Casa de la Memoria (House of Memory) addresses historical crimes and, in doing so, supports the country’s complex peace process. LINK
Somatic Memory of Historical Violence
Transgenerational Epigenetics of Trauma - the Shoah, Antisemitism, and Racism
STREAM
This is a collection of artistic works, impressions, images, and quotations on the theme of the transgenerational transmission of trauma and the body’s memory of violence. These are materials by other creators who have made their impressions and images available to us.
Can we see ourselves reflected in surfaces, structures and textures? Dorothee Krings (Berlin) has been, and continues to be, a photographer, amongst many other things. In recent years, she has organised private ‘trauma salons’, where participants could share personal perspectives on their own histories, their wounds and how they cope with them. For her, macro photography is an imaging technique that visually reveals what seems impossible: the deeper layers of time. Her images speak of the fragility of our world and, by extension, of our own vulnerability.
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In the first season of the podcast “Invisible Wound” Sharon Ryba-Kahn speaks with both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians about the meaning of collective and transgenerational trauma. In episode 3 we meet Abe Schwartz and Uncle Boydie, an elder. Together they have made it their mission to make the name of William Cooper (Uncle Boydie’s grandfather) known to the world. A man who fought for others when his own people were being persecuted. Hear the podcast of AMCHA Germany
Whispers. – Stories that make you scream. Many traumatic war experiences remain hidden. Many victims are scarred by deep horrors that are just as painful as the indifference and enforced silence that go hand in hand with fear and impunity. LINK
Memoria (2021-2022) by Jessica Rimondi in the exhibition liminal landscapes, Summer Berlin 2023
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In episode 4 we meet Alec Morgan and Tiriki Onus. These two collaborated on a documentary film called ”Ablaze“. It tells the incredible story of Aboriginal activist Bill Onus, Tiriki’s grandfather. While discussing the film, we learn about trauma and injustice, but also about how filmmaking can be a tool and a political statement. The Podcast “Invisible Wound” von Sharon Ryba-Kahn is part of the project “Hakara – facing transgenerational trauma” by AMCHA Germany.
Memories of violence and resistance – The Museo Casa de la Memoria (House of Memory) in Medellín/COL has existed since 2011 and is the first museum in the country to focus on the victims and perpetrators of decades of armed conflict, civil wars and drug gang wars. One focus is on the participation of the descendants and their trauma and memories. LINK
View of the exhibition “liminal scapes”, which dealt with transgenerational trauma from an artistic point of view. Berlin in summer 2023.
View of the exhibition “liminal scapes”, which dealt with transgenerational trauma from an artistic point of view. Berlin in summer 2023.
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The Podcast “Invisible Wound” von Sharon Ryba-Kahn is part of the project “Hakara – facing transgenerational trauma” by AMCHA Germany. In Episode 5 we meet Larissa Behrendt. We discuss her work as a lawyer, and her novel „After Story“. Through her works we will discover her approach to fighting injustice and how making characters complex enough enables you to show them from their most vulnerable sides as well as the documentary film „After the Apology“ and the topic of the Stolen Generations as well as her approach of narrating trauma and the importance of empowerment in her work.
To examine violence, we need different languages with which to tell the story. Every art form, technique and artistic expression has depicted violence in its own way. More than just a document, art reflects, takes sides, condemns and illustrates the complexity of pain and war. Art speaks when words are not enough. It moves through the realms of emotion, challenges ideas and words, subverts logic and shatters archetypes. – The Museo Casa de la Memoria (House of Memory) shows how art grapples with violence and trauma in Colombia. LINK
Sound installation by Jakob Weingartner with the podcasts “Erzähl doch mal” in Berlin 2023
Quoted from the book “Devoted to Life” about the lives of Holocaust survivors and their families in Israel, book by Helena Schätzle und Amcha Deutschland e.V.
An illustration of the work “Gestern haben wir viel getanzt” (Yesterday we danced a lot) by the artist Nathalie Frank, Berlin 2023
“Invisible wound” – Podcast by Sharon Ryba-Kahn. In the second season she meets international artists and trauma experts to explore what transgenerational trauma means to them.
Exhibition visitor in front of works from the graphic novel series “Gestern haben wir viel getanzt” (“Yesterday we danced a lot”) by illustrator Nathalie Frank, Berlin 2023.
Can we see ourselves reflected in surfaces, structures and textures? Dorothee Krings (Berlin) has been, and continues to be, a photographer, amongst many other things. In recent years, she has organised private ‘trauma salons’, where participants could share personal perspectives on their own histories, their wounds and how they cope with them. For her, macro photography is an imaging technique that visually reveals what seems impossible: the deeper layers of time. Her images speak of the fragility of our world and, by extension, of our own vulnerability.
Generation and chronology. We interpret the timeline of history and violence in our own unique way: as a line, a spiral, a cycle, or even without any particular form. Although time is often depicted linearly, the events that have shaped the history of violence overlap. The timeline is intended to contribute to a political analysis of the last 70 years, focusing on power and its abuse, which has contributed to the emergence of conflicts and violence across the globe. Exhibition at the Museo Casa de la Memoria (House of Memory) in Medellín, Colombia, 2023. LINK
Can we see ourselves reflected in surfaces, structures and textures? Dorothee Krings (Berlin) has been, and continues to be, a photographer, amongst many other things. In recent years, she has organised private ‘trauma salons’, where participants could share personal perspectives on their own histories, their wounds and how they cope with them. For her, macro photography is an imaging technique that visually reveals what seems impossible: the deeper layers of time. Her images speak of the fragility of our world and, by extension, of our own vulnerability.
Understanding these losses enables us to grasp the extent of the damage and to sense the vast universe of suffering, longing and lost love that intertwines with our projections of the past, the loneliness of the present and the challenge of building a future. Exterior view of the Museo Casa de la Memoria (House of Memory) in Medellín, Colombia, 2023. LINK
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Tania Crampton-Larking about the importance and beauty of nature in her life and in her writing: Her own traumatic experiences as an Aboriginal woman have been very painful, but she has never given up. The Podcast “Invisible Wound” von Sharon Ryba-Kahn is part of the project “Hakara – facing transgenerational trauma” by AMCHA Germany.
All image content is shown here for educational purposes according to the fair use principle. If we have inadvertently infringed any image rights, please write to us (contact details in the legal notice) and we will remove the content immediately. Unless otherwise stated: Photos by F. Springer.
