In the exhibition Stuttgart – Afghanistan, the Linden-Museum Stuttgart is showing a site-specific interactive installation by the artist, author and director Aman Mojadidi. Among other things, he curated the documenta 13 branch in Kabul in 2012. His works deal with belonging, identity politics, conflict and migration, often with reference to Afghanistan.

Under the title In the midst of wind and sky, Mojadidi is working on a collaborative performance installation in the museum that brings together people and their different stories, experiences, hopes and dreams. At the heart of the project is a collectively designed flag, which is intended to serve as a symbol of social diversity and polyphony. It is designed as a textile mosaic and is explicitly intended as a counter-design to flags that are waved by nationalists and extremists with manipulative and divisive intent.

Mojadidi sees his installation as a workshop that is set up in the exhibition. Here, visitors have the opportunity to create their own miniature flags from fabric and other materials, which he will then sew together by hand to form a large flag. It will continue to change and with it the collective idea of the flag and the emerging community it is supposed to represent.

The workspace becomes a place to talk about the complex meanings of flags, which often do not find space in a superficial view. After all, they not only stand for a place and its people, but also for an ideal and imagined image of a multi-layered and diverse community. These discussions are an integral part of the installation and offer visitors the opportunity to exchange views on profound questions of identity, culture and belonging.

The flag can be viewed as a growing work of art in the exhibition. Between April 20 and 27, 2024, you can work on the flag together with Aman Mojadidi.