Dierk Schmidt. The Division of the Earth2011

"For the past five years the Berlin-based artist Dierk Schmidt has led a project titled The Division of the Earth: Tableaux on the Legal Synopses of the Berlin Africa Conference (2005-10), bringing to the fore the history and ongoing repercussions of Germany's colonisation of Namibia. A new publication, also titled Division of the Earth, signals the completion of this lengthy project, which has comprised two painting series and an extensive programme of lectures, workshops and seminars involving students, artists, art historians, historians, lawyers and activists. Indeed, Division of the Earth engages a range of interlocutors, summoning varied perspectives. The book records and expands on these dialogues, as well as the two series of paintings, making these activities the heart of its...