Sidsel Nelund : Who’s Afraid of Fear?

Who’s Afraid of Fear? 

Over the course of the fall, literary and art historical non-fiction writer, para-curator and cyclical agent, Sidsel Nelund, will conduct an open research investigation into fear in the art world. The paradox of fear being integral to the creative process and also its growing hindrance is sparking this investigation: What fears affect art professionals? Where do the fears come from, how do fear shape art practitioners, their practice and the collective endeavors they are part of?

In a critical era of polycrisis, fear is a physical and mental force that transforms the art profession. Fear is futuristic and a tool of envisioning what might come next: fear of rejection, fear of economy, fear of public life, fear of being redundant, fear of visibility, fear of colleagues, fear of success, fear of failure, fear of having a voice, fear of structures, fear of systemic injustices, fear of harassment, fear of shaming, fear of critique.

Yet, the fear-based approach inhibits creative processes when given too much space. Some level of safety – inner as outer – is needed. So how can these fears be faced? And how can they find a place to be release?

Taking inspiration from the black African-American embodiment tradition and South American hospicing modernity practices, Sidsel Nelund will, over a series of sharing sessions, weave together a hybrid method that is at once theoretical, communal, and emotional. Rooted in a cyclical creativity approach she has developed over the past decade, these sessions will explore fear with curiosity, and connection. Nelund hopes to inspire a practice of courageous togetherness, because fear both bind people together and disperses, so what if we gather to normalize fear and find ways to move beyond?

Let’s face the fears together, discern what is real, what is ours to face or not, and let isolation and loneliness transform.

The Who’s Afraid of Fear? investigation is part of the book project How to Survive the Art World: An Ecosystemic Approach to Art, which is a book as talisman for strengthening the inner creative process and its meeting with the outer world.