Lectures
Malmö
Photo: Åke Hedström
In the lecture series on Utopias, we take a closer look at historical and contemporary visions of the future, dreams and unrealised hopes.
19 October, at 4 pm. Ilmar Reepalu: Utopian Malmö
The average age of the Malmö population is 35, and some 150 nationalities are represented here. That makes the city one of Europe’s youngest and most multicultural. Ilmar Reepalu was on the Malmö City council for around a quarter of a century. During that time, the Kockums Crane has disappeared from the horizon and has been replaced by the Öresund Bridge, the City Tunnel and Turning Torso. What hopes remain unfulfilled, what possibilities are waiting to be materialised? What is utopian Malmö? (In Swedish).
16 November, at 4 pm. Donatella Bernardi: Adriano Olivetti and community
Adriano Olivetti (1901-1960), entrepreneur, engineer and politician, was an enlightened industrialist who was forever challenging technology, management, patrimony, art and design, as well as ethics. Olivetti pioneered what could have been called a “happy concrete utopia”, an unique “Modern Italian Way” which took shape in the difficult Post–WW II period and continued to flourish until the early Sixties, i.e. the “Italian Economic Miracle” age. In 1958 Olivetti’s Company assembled Elea 9003, the first fully transistorized commercial computer. Olivetti, in his rule of free and independent intellectual, was a precursor of many contemporary themes such as: sustainable development, the “commons”, the constant quest for the spiritual and material elevation of workers having abandoned the countryside for the factory, the strong creative sector at the core of industry, territory and community planning in a perspective that today might be called “glocal”. As an industrialist, Olivetti was able to foresee the real potential of Computer Science, its value of being a potential network of intelligence and collective creativity, a vision that had guided his choices in industrial, social, architectural and urban planning. Delving deeper into his story, making it known beyond the borders of Italy is, paradoxically, the key to understanding what went wrong in his beloved country. (In English).
30 November, at 4 pm. Mårten Björk & Natacha Lopez
Natacha Lopez, freelance journalist with a focus on migration and labor, and Mårten Björk, phd student in religious studies/theology, talks about the new political movements that emerged in the wake of the global crisis.(In Swedish).
14 December, at 4 pm. Bas Lansdorp: Mars One, oneway astronauts
The mission of Mars One is to be the first project to take people to Mars. In 2023, the first crew of 4 will land on the red planet. The project will be largely financed through sales of TV rights to the filmed material from the spaceship and the base camp – a “Big Brother” in space. The plan does not include any means of returning to Earth. And yet, more than 100,000 applications have been received so far from aspiring astronauts. (In English).
The lectures will be held at The Loading Dock at Moderna Museet Malmö. Included in the entrance fee. Free admission for members of MMV.