24-25 May 2008
EF Kunsttour
1 May 2008
EF Euromayday
21 November 2007
Does a progressive Euregionalism exist?
6 July 2007
Mapping the Euregion
14 June 2007
A flag for the Euregion
23 - 25 novembre 2006
L'Eurégion en tant qu'espace public-politique
16. - 18. November 2006
Die Euregio als ein raum der Übertretung
22 June 2006
The Euregion as economic opportunity
21 June 2006
The Euregion as global knot
EF HEERLEN: A FLAG FOR THE EUREGION MEUSE-RHINE
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REPORT ON THE EF HEERLEN!!!
Thursday 14 June 2007, 13h30 - 18h
Glaspaleis Heerlen (Bongerd 18, Heerlen)
Would you like to express your view-points on…
Programme:
13.30: BAVO (cultural philosopers)
- introduction
14:00: Miran Mohar (New Collectivism)
- lecture
15:00: break
15:30: Wim van den Bergh (architect), Guus Beumer (NAi Maastricht), Vinca Kruk (Metahaven), Nanouk Schrader (Mahl Magazine), Gon Zifroni (Jan van Eyck Academy), Pieter van Bogaert (Lieven de Boeck)
- presentations and discussions
Content:
To represent a flag for the Euregion Meuse-Rhine is all but easy, not in the least case because the Euregion Meuse-Rhine Foundation fails to define its political ambition clearly. Does foundation merely distribute EU subsidies or is it a centre that co-ordination cross-border affairs such as drugs traffic or disaster management? Or, conversely, does it aim at integrating people, resources and institutions so as to meet specific challenges that ‘pheripheral’ regions are faced with? The current logo of the Euregion Meuse Rhine Foundation – a dynamic, circular interlocking of three parts that move centrifugally as well as centripetally – clearly reflects this dilemma. On the one hand, it expresses the need for full integration and combining forces to form a united front that can compete with regions all over the globe. On the oher hand, it shows it is highly dependent on national allegiances, on the economic and social gravity points of its respective nation-states.
Given this, to propose a flag for the Euregion Meuse-Rhine is manifest a political act, a positioning vis-à-vis the current condition of and future developments in the Euregion. However symbolic such an intervention be, the impact of a common sign of identification that can channel and direct political affects, cannot be underestimated. Its aesthetics can make opinions incline towards diversity or unity, towards being in favour or against a common identity. The there’s also the issue of continuity. Should a flag for the Euregion Meuse-Rhine incorporate existing flags? Or should it rather encourage the construction of a new, common identity? Perhaps the ultimate political strategy would be to resist the temptation to solve the obvious political ambiguity of the Euregion Meuse-Rhine through design and use the flag as a vehicle for the discussion and politicization of its ambiguous mandate.
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REPORT ON THE EF HEERLEN!!!
Thursday 14 June 2007, 13h30 - 18h
Glaspaleis Heerlen (Bongerd 18, Heerlen)
Would you like to express your view-points on…
- How to represent the mixed ambitions of the Euregion Meuse-Rhine in one symbol?
- What a flag of the Euregion should look like?
- The presuppositions that such flag design should reflect regarding the current state and future role of the Euregion Meuse-Rhine?
- The adequacy of existing logo’s of Euregional organizations and institutions to represent their distinct, trans-national character?
- The use and advantages of one flag for the Euregion Meuse-Rhine as a common, supra-national means of identification and a device to channel its political aspiration?
- The potential of a flag as a tool for critique and politicization? the interplay of aesthetics and politics within flag design?
- Many more issues that relate to the represenation of the Euregion Meuse-Rhine?
Programme:
13.30: BAVO (cultural philosopers)
- introduction
14:00: Miran Mohar (New Collectivism)
- lecture
15:00: break
15:30: Wim van den Bergh (architect), Guus Beumer (NAi Maastricht), Vinca Kruk (Metahaven), Nanouk Schrader (Mahl Magazine), Gon Zifroni (Jan van Eyck Academy), Pieter van Bogaert (Lieven de Boeck)
- presentations and discussions
Content:
To represent a flag for the Euregion Meuse-Rhine is all but easy, not in the least case because the Euregion Meuse-Rhine Foundation fails to define its political ambition clearly. Does foundation merely distribute EU subsidies or is it a centre that co-ordination cross-border affairs such as drugs traffic or disaster management? Or, conversely, does it aim at integrating people, resources and institutions so as to meet specific challenges that ‘pheripheral’ regions are faced with? The current logo of the Euregion Meuse Rhine Foundation – a dynamic, circular interlocking of three parts that move centrifugally as well as centripetally – clearly reflects this dilemma. On the one hand, it expresses the need for full integration and combining forces to form a united front that can compete with regions all over the globe. On the oher hand, it shows it is highly dependent on national allegiances, on the economic and social gravity points of its respective nation-states.
Given this, to propose a flag for the Euregion Meuse-Rhine is manifest a political act, a positioning vis-à-vis the current condition of and future developments in the Euregion. However symbolic such an intervention be, the impact of a common sign of identification that can channel and direct political affects, cannot be underestimated. Its aesthetics can make opinions incline towards diversity or unity, towards being in favour or against a common identity. The there’s also the issue of continuity. Should a flag for the Euregion Meuse-Rhine incorporate existing flags? Or should it rather encourage the construction of a new, common identity? Perhaps the ultimate political strategy would be to resist the temptation to solve the obvious political ambiguity of the Euregion Meuse-Rhine through design and use the flag as a vehicle for the discussion and politicization of its ambiguous mandate.
First Euregio Meuse-Rhine Democracy Awards awarded (19-5-08)
On May 24th 2008, during the EF KunstTour, the first two Euregion Meuse-Rhine Democracy Awards will be officially handed out to Wim Cuyvers of the project Traces of Autism: Wander Research in the Euregion Meuse-Rhine and to Saskia Gorgels-Lindelauf of the KvK Limburg. Read the press announcement.EF on Euromayday Parade Aachen (14-4-08)
On May 1st, the EF will organize a mobile forum during the Euromayday Parade in Aachen, which is organized on occasion of the awarding of the Karlspreis to Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy.
Weekend of Euregional debates during Kunsttour 2008 (14-4-08)
On Saturday the 24st of May, the EF will organize a full day of debates, interviews and live columns in the Jan van Eyck Academy as part of the Kunsttour (art fair) 2008 in Maastricht. The gravitational point of the event will be a House of Commons (Lagerhuis) in which Euregional issues will be discussed and voted on. EF aims at the people of the Euregion (1-1-08)
On January 1st, the EF launched its new campaign for the year 2008 with the motto: The EF comes to the people of the Euregion Meuse-Rhine!. After two years of expert meetings, the EF will now organize a series of popular events in which the citizens and users of the Euregion Meuse-Rhine will occupy centre stage. Click here to read the press release.