Not Berlin and Not Shanghai

Published 15 May 2009
This volume presents different viewpoints on the periphery/center dichotomy with their connotations of east/west, north/south, local/international in terms of the operating system art. For a long time, the idea of center/periphery had validity in what was known as the north/south dialogue. Today however, with the important dynamics of new art centers in regions that used to be perceived as periphery from a European perspective, the issue is subject to debate. At the same time, relationships of center/periphery exist between places with intensive art output, a prime art world, and cultures of discourse as well as subsidiary locations, most of which are situated in the provinces. The differences in the approaches illustrated in Not Berlin and Not Shanghai indicate the potential for controversy with which the center/periphery model is currently under debate.