Logistics is the basis of globalization and an occupational reality for thousands of individuals in the Halle/Leipzig region. Logistics determines the beat and rhythm of our time. It affects societal processes and organizes the flow of goods, information and people. Wherever logistics is based on the infrastructures of de-industrialized economies and residential environments it is accompanied by promises of prosperity. Here the production of movement takes the place of the production of goods or content, shaping landscapes, influencing regions and defining humans’ everyday lives. Against the backdrop of globalized trade and digital networks such developments are simultaneously taking place at different locations worldwide, which in turn provides insights about historical and political connections. Utilizing an artistic perspective to enable a broad discussion on logistic processes and to render the individuals involved in these processes visible apart from efficiency principles is the goal of the 2018 Werkleitz Festival.
The international works in the exhibition and the film and performance program place the festival’s themes in a global context. The colloquium serves to facilitate open discourse on the tendencies of logistics and expands the festival’s scope with speculations on future processes and systems. Guided excursions to regional locations and a week-long workshop with students of various art academies intensify the examination on site. A bilingual festival catalogue with texts by international authors will be presented at the opening.