The Gift, and Especially the Obligation to Return It - Jasmina Cibic’ Foundation of Endeavour

Abstract

Foundation of Endeavour centres on Jasmina Cibic’s ongoing investigation into the idea of political gifts of culture, exploring their role within national and political structures during moments of European crisis in the 20th century. The exhibition in the Museum of Contemporary Art in Ljubljana (MSUM), curated by Igor Španjol, comprises several of Cibic’s recent works: All the Power that Melts into Noise, Foundation of Endeavour, The Spirit of Our Needs, and the 20’ art film project The Gift. The author argues that the multipartite exhibition succeeds in conveying often overlooked manifestations of “soft power” formidably well, thus shedding light onto the historical, anthropological and sociological facets of political gifts and also suggesting relevant considerations on the significance of notions such as “public art”, “internationalism”, and “national culture”.