Based on Arts of the Working Class's praxis-oriented actions and experiences in adjusting economic models of distribution within the arts, we will discuss the nature of inequivalent exchange in this field and its local and interlocal consequences.
General political and economic contradictions have, for decades, pushed major art institutions—which are a major systemic influence—toward symbolic practices in their search for legitimacy. It is arguable whether these strategies have only intensified these contradictions. The question remains: how can progress beyond the symbolic be facilitated? Students and future art workers are invited to share their concerns and visions, discussing what can be a source of sustainability for their practice and what they see as a threat.
The lecture will be held by Pauł Sochacki, the co-founder of Arts of the Working Class.

12.11.2025, 19:00 CET,
online (click for the Zoom link)

Arts of the Working Class

Since 2018, Arts of the Working Class (AWC) has bridged real and discursive connections across art and society, between academic and anti-academic studies, formality and informality, discipline and chaos. AWC connects the established and wealthy with socially vulnerable communities in a model of resource redistribution, both financial and social. Operating as a multilingual street newspaper, AWC publishes five thematic issues per year with a circulation of roughly 70,000 each. While being an affordable, popular voice for art workers, it offers, at a street price of €2.50, a stable income for the homeless and other marginalised groups in Berlin and other cities. Funded by advertising, donations, and partnerships, street vendors can pick up the paper for free and keep the profit.

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