documenta archiv new member of AsKI (Arbeitskreis selbständiger Kultur-Institute e.V.) - Appreciation as an internationally important and independent cultural research institution
Sponsored by documenta und Museum Fridericianum gGmbH (hereinafter "documenta gGmbH"), the documenta archiv has been accepted as a member of the Arbeitskreis selbständiger Kultur-Institute e.V. - AsKI (Working Group of Independent Cultural Institutes) at the end of 2020. The decision of the AsKI and its members, including Akademie der Künste in Berlin, das Deutsche Literaturarchiv Marbach und das Freie Deutsche Hochstift in Frankfurt am Main, recognizes the international importance of the documenta archiv as the memory of the documenta world art show, as a center for the preservation and documentation of testimonies of 20th and 21st century art, and as an independent and forward-looking cultural and research institution alongside the documenta exhibition and the Fridericianum. At the same time, the profiling of the documenta archive as an internationally competitive institution for the collection, documentation and research of contemporary art and its significance for social, political and societal developments, its presentation and art journalistic exploitation is recognized and promoted.
The Chairman of the documenta gGmbH Supervisory Board, Mayor Christian Geselle, emphasizes the archival and scientific achievements of the documenta archiv, which are also honored by its inclusion in the AsKI: " The membership in the AsKI is a great success for the documenta archiv and documenta gGmbH. The documenta archiv is not only important in its role as the memory of documenta - it also makes a significant contribution to guiding the world's most influential art exhibition into the future. All artistic directors draw on the archive's holdings when working on their show, including ruangrupa. At the same time, research from the archive is helping to clarify and develop the currents of contemporary art and its social significance. This interplay between art and science is unique and essential, and strengthens documenta in its significance." In this context, the so-called cataloguing campaign also plays an important role. With this, the evidence of the artistic and curatorial work relating to the documenta exhibitions is being professionally prepared for national and international research in accordance with archival and scientific standards sincs 1955. The City of Kassel and the State of Hesse together are providing a total of 5.4 million euros for this purpose until 2023.
The director of the documenta archiv, Dr. Birgitta Coers, is pleased about the future prospects that AsKI membership offers: "For the documenta archiv, this membership ensures new functional and content-related possibilities for interdisciplinary cooperation. Synergies with other archival institutions arise, among other things, in the fields of digital preservation, long-term archiving and presentation of the holdings."
The General Director of documenta gGmbH, Dr. Sabine Schormann, emphasizes: "Membership in the AsKI is also so valuable because support can be expected in the field of archival education, cultural education work and the development of effective public event formats, as well as in cultural policy issues and legal matters. She warmly thanks Dr. Birgitta Coers and her predecessor, Dr. Birgit Jooss, who had initiated the membership, for their initiative and successful work.
About the AsKI
The Working Group of Independent Cultural Institutes (Arbeitskreis selbständiger Kultur-Institute e.V.) was founded in 1967 at the suggestion of the Federal Ministry of the Interior. At present, 37 legally independent and academically independent, non-profit foundations and associations are organized in the AsKI e.V., together with the museums, art halls, archives, libraries, research and documentation facilities they support. The members are nationally and internationally visible cultural institutes, which represent the cultural, historical and scientific diversity of the country thanks to their collections, research and mediation activities. With the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Friedhof und Denkmal e.V., Kassel, Kassel already hosts a founding member of the association. The AsKI is the sponsor of the only German museum abroad, the Casa di Goethe in Rome.
AsKI e.V. is an influential partner as a representative of interests vis-à-vis the parliament, the federal government, the State Ministry for Art and Culture, the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media, as well as at the state and municipal levels. It aims to increase the visibility of arts and cultural institutions in the public sphere and to strengthen the socio-political relevance of cultural work. Members benefit from internal funding programs, interdisciplinary cooperation projects and jointly developed framework topics that bring together various member institutions with diverse disciplines along current issues in research projects and exhibitions.
