The contemporary art world is characterised by an increasingly complex network of institutions, projects and cooperative endeavours reflecting our constant search for new and original artists on the international level. This situation favours international cooperative activities and independent art institutions that are not bound by their funding institutions and can thus develop an independent identity.
These aspects of the contemporary art world are the focus of a conference organized by the K4 Gallery. The conference represents the culmination of the Reykjavik-Prague Interbridge project, a long-term collaborative project involving Icelandic and Czech fine art students.
The conference's aim is to look at possibilities available to independent institutions on the international level. Most conference presentations will look at specific projects and institutions, but others will present a scientific assessment of these conditions and of the possibilities available to modern art.
The starting point for these considerations is the hope that we have placed in the authenticity offered by smaller and more independent institutions. Although at first glance, this level of "intimacy" - both in terms of galleries as well as in terms artistic practice - may seem naive and idealistic, on a deeper level it can help to reveal the possibilities available to contemporary art.