Second webinar of the series of online workshops

Second webinar of the series of online workshops “New Facets of Political Mobilization in Belarus”

Under initiative supported by the 2020 – 2023 Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid to Eastern Partnership countries programme of the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs

University of Tartu Johan Skytte Institute of Political Studies and The Centre for Eurasian and Russian Studies (CEURUS) in cooperation with Belarusian Student Support Association and Honest University successfully held the second webinar in the series of “New Facets of Political Mobilization in Belarus” on 11 May via Zoom. The focus of the webinar was political mobilization and protest art.

The team of panelists consisted of the following people: Yauhen Attsetski, photographer and civil journalist (Minsk), Aliaxey Talstou, artist and performer (Minsk), Michael Cole, junior researcher (Johan Skytte Institute of Political Studies, University of Tartu), Vasil Navumau, policy expert (OSW, Center for Eastern Studies), Olga Matveieva, associate professor (Dnipropetrovsk Institute for Public Administration of NAPA), Sami Siva, professional photographer (Johan Skytte Institute of Political Studies, University of Tartu)

Yauhen Attsetski discussed various aspects of language of the Belarusian protests, including posters, performances, music photos and videos. He provided several visual examples, such as “queue as a symbol of peaceful protests”. According to Attsetski the language of the Belarusian protests can be characterized by its simplicity, irony and scope.

Aliaxey Talstou shared his views on the opposition of artists. He gave examples of several individual works of art and drew parallels with the 2010 Belarusian protests. Having scrutinized the evolution of political art in Belarus since 2010, he came to conclusion that the artistic aspects of the 2010 protests served as a footprint for the artistic representation of the ongoing Belarusian protests.

Michael Cole presented his research conducted together with Olga Matveieva and Vasil Navumau, which focused on the visual representation of the Belarusian protests in NEXTA, Belarus’ largest Telegram channel. Apart from the visual elements, he touched upon technical and conceptual innovations of the 2020 Belarusian protests.

Sami Siva placed the ongoing Belarusian protests in an international context and viewed photography as the way of experiencing a protest. He juxtaposed the visual aspects of the Belarusian protests with the events of the past, including the Estonian Singing Revolution, which led to the reestablishment of Estonian independence in 1991.

The next webinar of the series will be held on 15 June 2021 from 18.00 – 19.30 (UTC+3). The topic will be “Post-Protest Belarus and European Politics: Trends in 2021”. Registration form on project main page.

For additional information and inquiries please contact Jaak Erik Laja at jaak.erik.laja [ät] ut.ee