Giving Contours to Shadows is a research and exhibition project which takes its cue from the Glissantian concept that history, a ‘functional fantasy of the West’ cannot be left in the hands of historians only.

In that sense, the project looks at ways, by which artists (predominantly from the Middle East and Africa), curators and thinkers relate to their own epoch, to times past and to the drawing of prospective trajectories, thus weaving alternatives to established narratives – from embodiment practices to possibilities of pre-writing of History.

The project and this publication uncover, discover and recover narratives, memories, knowledge and other histories in the form of a thematic reader comprising a collection of essays and critical texts, as well as image and text material about the participating artists.

The exhibition and program are framed in five thematic chapters: Performing and Embodying histories, Wandering through histories, Unthinking the Chimera, Sequestrating History and Pre-writing histories.

Published on the occasion of the exhibition and research project Giving Contours to Shadows at Neuer Berliner Kunstverein and Savvy Contemporary, Berlin, 24 May – 27 July 2014.