Can we really say that in the era of algorithms, openness and mass digitalization, the underground art scene has the same status as that of 10, 20 or 30 years ago?

 

Given that the contemporary art world claims to be open to new forms, to the different, the radical and the unheard, how is the underground, which has been about the same from the very beginning, be any different? It appears that the main difference may be the lack of market relations, the institutional dynamics of the contemporary art scene and the supposed level of openness.

 

The long-standing accusations of gatekeeping (controlling who gets particular resources, power, or opportunities, and who does not) against the underground may actually be more valid for the mainstream, which selectively takes from other scenes when it needs some freshness, or biting radicalism, while building a relatively arbitrary art history often based on personal familiarity. In truth the underground doesn't guard its boundaries (if we can really define them) as much as the mainstream.  

 

At the same time, the underground scene has its own problems that may often doom its artists. There we often find unnecessary animosities, harmful stereotypes, gatekeeping again, or the underground itself is used as a stepping stone towards the mainstream which takes as much as it gives. Another frequently asked question is how long does someone remain as an underground artist?

 

We believe that the deconstruction of these typologies can reveal how the different scenes and classes interact with each other, how they function in the context of the contemporary world, and to what extent they can shake off their problems. Moreover, as right-wing politics and policies increase in number, effect and severity in the world, it is important for the underground to take a stand through art, as it has always has in the past.

 

Against this backdrop, we also ask ourselves the following questions: what are the substantial differences between the mainstream and the underground? Who has a place in the underground scene? How far can we stretch the concept of "underground" and is it still relevant to the history of this type of culture and to today? What is the difference between the concept and the scene itself? How can we approach the paradoxes of both scenes' supposed identities which are often tied to popularity, exposure and knowledge? What are the problems of the underground and its types? How many types of underground scenes are there (criminal, right-wing and so on)?

 

These and other questions raised around the festival highlight the importance of the underground as a fundamental platform for creative expression and exploration, which is not without its problems. Every year we ask ourselves these questions again and again, feeling the need to redefine and adapt our own understandings and place to what is happening.
 

The festival is currently accepting proposals for performances, installations, video art, public interventions, actions, live sets and other artworks that resonate with the theme and spirit of the of festival's 2025 statement. E - mail: contact@synaesthesiacollective.art

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Statement by Georgi P. Pavlov & Yves_0. Visual identity & web design by Diana Bunkin. Sofia Underground 2025 is organized by Synaesthesia Collective and Studio Dauhaus.
 

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