Research Report

During the academic year 2008-2009, I have received an individual research grant at the Center for German Studies, applied for an international reintegration grant within the FP7 framework of the Marie Curie International Reintegration Call, and became a member of the Israeli local team of the European Magazine Cafe Babel. Additionally, I took an active part in the academic life of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Van Leer Jerusalem Institute and the Konrad Adenauer Center at Mishkenot Sha'ananim. Numerous cultural events taking place at the Mount Scopus campus of the Hebrew University, Goethe Institute of Jerusalem, and Jerusalem Cinematheque created a background for my initiative to contribute to a blog of the CafeBabel website that has wide European and international readership. Currently I am working on a working paper for the Center for German Studies series that takes Berlin Biennale as a subject of theoretical and analytical reflection into its focus. As planned, the second year of my post-doctorate at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem will be dedicated to expanding the scope of my research in comparative direction.

As a primary supervisor of my post-doctoral research, Dr, Jeanette Malkin of the Theatre Department of the Hebrew University held regular meetings with me and was in contact over e-mail during the past academic year. As a secondary co-supervisor, Prof. Christian Kohlross of the Department of the German Language and Literature of the Hebrew University has been available for my inquiries over e-mail and in person at numerous occasions. Abroad, I have re-established contact with Prof. Wolfgang Kaschuba from the Georg Simmel Center for Metropolitan Studies of the Humboldt University of Berlin, Germany, where he is a director of an Ethnology Institute. He extended me an invitation for a research stay. As well, Prof. Richard Münch from the Sociology Department of the Otto-Friendrich University of bamberg, Germany, has confirmed his willingness to support my future application for joint research. In addition, I have come into contact with Prof. Mario Perniola from the Department of Philosophical Research of the Tor Vergata University of Rome, Itality, given his centrality for my current research. I plan future research collaboration with all of the above scholars.

For example, for my application for the Marie Curie International Reintegration Grant I had received preliminary agreements for future research projects on art biennials in Germany, Italy and Israel from Prof. Wolfgang Kaschuba, Prof. Mario Perniola and Dr. Jeanette Malkin. Even though the results of the application process for this grant will become known only during July, 2009, it has helped me to apply for Polonsky Post-Doctoral Fellowship at Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, which has not been successful, and for a reseach grant at the same institute. My resume also reflects the publication as e-books of my doctoral dissertation and examination papers at GRIN Publishers in Munich, Germany. Their innovative approach to publication distribution over the internet and across bookstores suited my needs, especially since I made a shift in my research approach from a stress on sociological theory towards cultural studies, as my work on independent research project reflects.

Not least because it does not contradict the framework of my current post-doctoral position, I have successfully applied for a month-long summer school of German language at Bauhaus Academy of the Weimar University in Weimar, Germany. My application has won support from the German Academic Exchange Service (Deutscher Akedemischer Austausch Dienst (DAAF)) that provided scholarship for expenses attendant to my attendance of the summer school in August, 2009. My stay within the framework of Bauhaus Academy in Weimar will allow me to access its universitity and city library with their extensive holdings of classical and contemporary literature on sociology, cultural and metropolitan studies. As well, during my research and study stay in Weimar I will have an occasion to visit Prof. Wolfgang Kaschuba from Berlin and Prof, Richard Münch from Bamberg, Germany, for coordination of research plans. Not least, I will also have an opportunity to forge contacts with scholars from the Weimar University that has a prominent position in cultural and media studies in Germany.

In the context of my research efforts, I became a member of the Israeli local team of the European Magazine Cafe Babel on whose website I began contributing on the topics of European culture and urban space beyond the EU. Currently, my contributions take form of blog posts on cultural events and art exhibitions in Jerusalem. After its reorganization, the Cafe Babel magazine will be accepting articles for regular publication from our local team in Israel. As an award-winning network and internet project, the European Magazine Cafe Babel connects cities, organizations and indivividuals into a border-crossing conversation, which is not insignificantly connected to my academic research. In my research on art biennials, internet initiatives and new media play a significant role not only as means to archive these event but also as a larger approach to the changing relations between metropolitan centers and global culture. Both theoretical developments and institutional innovation play equal role in shedding light on art biennials as a phenomenon that continues to spread and grow in its geographical scope and media resonance.

In my research, I match the theoretical clues I derive from Mario Perniola theorization of aesthetics, modernity and experience with the documentation that pertains to art curators' statements, publicity materials and scholarly commentary, with the aim of reducing the factual compexity of even one art biennial, such as Berlin biennale. Standing on the intersection of cultural, urban and metropolitan studies, research on art biennials follows in the wake of their international adoption by cities around the world in the process of their increasing culturalization in the 1990s. At the Center for German Studies of the Hebrew University I have an opportunity to facilitary a direct access to European research on this topic by improving my command of German langauge. My informal attendance of advanced courses of German under the instruction of Ms. Anette Dressel, DAAD guest lecturer, at the Hebrew University has greatly helped me to receive official certification of my advanced level of knowledge of German language, as is evidenced by OnDaF.de test ceritificate.

During my post-doctorate, I take full advantage of opportunities to attend numerous academic conferences, guest lectures, workshops and research seminars taking place in Jerusalem. Among the latter is the research seminar on "Collective Identities" that Prof. Shmuel N. Eisenstadt directs at the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute in which I have been participating this academic year. At the Center for German Studies I have attended a workshop "Artists at Work - The New Berlin: Redefining Memorials in Contemporary Germany" given by visiting Prof. Renata Stih and Dr. Frieder Schnock. Additionally I attended a series of lectures by visiting Prof. Heidemarie Uhl from the University of Vienna, Austria, on "Memorie in Europe since 1945: Transformations of Memory, Representations of Rememberance". During the visit of DAAD delegation to the Hebrew University, I attended the lecture by Dr. Christian Bode on "New Developments in Higher Education in Europe and Germany".

Among the more interesting conferences I have attended is "1989-2009: Taking Stock of East-West EUnification" Conference taking place in June 14-15, 2009, at Mishkenot Sha'ananim that was organized by the Centers for German and Austrian Studies of the Hebrew University. As intellectually invigorating was the Conference on "Paul, the Apostle of Exception: His 2000th Annivessary and Renaissance Today" taking place at the Hebrew University and Van Leer Institute in June 5-6, 2009. Attendance of the "Ottoman Roots of Contemporary Realities: the Middle East and the Balkans Compared" Conference has made me alert to possibilities and pitfalls of comparative approach as it took place in January 18-20 at the Hebrew University and Konrad Adenauer Center. As enriching were the series of lectures organized by the Research Seminars on Cultural Studies and the Jerusalem Seminar in the History of Political Thought taking place at the Hebrew University.