Post-foundational political thought, based on the recognition of necessary contingency of all political arrangements has been widely employed as both an analytical tool as well as a vehicle for...Show morePost-foundational political thought, based on the recognition of necessary contingency of all political arrangements has been widely employed as both an analytical tool as well as a vehicle for critique in light of several diagnoses of the abysmal future of contemporary democracies. Nonetheless, there is reason to belief that the efficacy of post-foundationalism is compromised through a deficit in the articulation of normative critique, and in the actualisation and operationalisation of critique revealing the contingency of the political, i.e., ethico-political critique. This thesis sets out to fulfil two endeavours: first, identify the possibility of articulating ethico-political critique within a paradigm of post-foundationalism through relational practices in social ontology, and second, apply this paradigm as an analytical tool onto one of the most prominent diagnoses of contemporary democracy’s decline, Wendy Brown’s account of neoliberal de-democratisation. Through this, this thesis argues that the site of ethico-political critique in post-foundationalism may be found in relational resistance practices within the ontic dimension of the social which reveal the contingency of both ontic and ontological arrangements in both the social and the political. Thus, such practices could serve as a first step in articulating a scheme of critique against neoliberal de-democratisation which, according to Brown, currently fails due to the absence of alternative world-views.Show less
This thesis explored in what ways, and to what extent Ahmet Öğüt’s 'Intern VIP Lounge' (2013) can be considered ‘critical practice.’ 'Intern VIP Lounge' was a VIP lounge at Art Dubai 2013 that was...Show moreThis thesis explored in what ways, and to what extent Ahmet Öğüt’s 'Intern VIP Lounge' (2013) can be considered ‘critical practice.’ 'Intern VIP Lounge' was a VIP lounge at Art Dubai 2013 that was exclusively accessible for interns working at the art fair or the galleries in Dubai. Situated at the heart of an art fair, Öğüt’s artistic installation focused on art world’s intern. The thesis’ three chapters consecutively address the subject of the intern in relation to the ‘precariat’ and context of the precarious condition; the installation as a space of ‘unconcealment’ making visible the ‘natural order of things’ as structured and structuring structure that works to keep things as they are; and how events that took place within the installation as ‘knowledge exchange space’ appear affirmative of values that work to maintain the precarious condition. As such, it aims to shed light on the complex, critical role of art in times of dissolving boundaries between art and capitalism - considering artists and cultural workers as part of capitalist production, and all subjected to the global precarious condition.Show less
