The Vibration of Things / Die Vibration der Dinge

Does another form of reality or even truth lie in objects? What social functions and meanings do objects have? What makes us humans want to control or own anything? Objects are also social objects. Objects vibrate, resonate, that is, they possess a charge that can change and even disappear. The conception of objects having agency changes relationships in fundamental ways. Especially against the background of a forced migration of objects, through war and robbery, or other transfers into new social contexts, it becomes clear that relationships between different people, but also their objects, have been violently interrupted.
The current controversy over restitution highlights the urgent need to restore these relationships. Beyond the restitution of property, this includes the recognition of other knowledge systems, including non-cognitive ones. Only in this way can relationships be restored that were and are being driven apart by colonialism, imperialism, and capitalism.
Under the title The Vibration of Things, the catalogue of the 15th Triennial for Small Sculpture Fellbach brings together artistic, literary, and theoretical contributions addressing fundamental questions of the present—questions that are central to our coexistence on this planet. Starting from the assumption that objects are vital, living, and bearing power, this catalogue is dedicated to socially highly topical questions of ownership, restitution, interconnectedness, and responsibility.