#DNL35 · June 13–15 2025

SHADOWS OF ILLIBERALISM

Resisting the Radical Right

Studio 1, Kunstquartier Bethanien, Mariannenplatz 2, 10997 Berlin & Streaming 
Workshop at Stadtwerkstatt, Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 11, 10178 Berlin

Community Meetup: 3. April at nGbK, Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 11/13, 10178 Berlin

Conflicts are escalating both locally in Berlin and across Europe, with the rise of right-wing extremism and far-right ideologies. On a global scale, since Trump's second term, ultra-conservative social visions are being implemented, immigration policies are being enforced, and national sovereignty and borders are being defended. This context requires a scientific analysis that goes beyond polarisation and the instrumentalisation of conflicts for political purposes, often targeting the most vulnerable sectors of society. In analysing such a complex issue, we propose to use artistic strategies as visual evidence to inform about the reality in which we live and to promote a constructive dialogue between different actors in our field of art and culture. 

With the term "shadows of illiberalism" we refer to the concept of “illiberal democracy”, which describes a governing system that hides its nondemocratic practices behind formally democratic institutions and procedures. Amnesty International notes that in July 2014, the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán gave what has come to be known as his "illiberal democracy" speech in Romania, in which he juxtaposes a democratic “Western" system based on liberal values and accountability to what he calls an "Eastern" approach based on a strong state and weak opposition.

To date, Orbán's new right-wing sovereigntist alliance, Patriots for Europe, has gained enough support to become a political group in the EU Parliament, bringing together MEPs from 12 EU member states, including members from Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Greece, Italy, Latvia, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain, as well as Hungary. In addition, other members who have expressed interest in joining are from Poland and Slovakia, and other parties that are speculated to join include MEPS from Slovenia and Aternative für Deutschland (AfD) in Germany.

In Germany, nationalism and far-right ideology have been on the rise for more than a decade, and the AfD as the second most popular party since 2023. Similarly, a conservative movement against "wokeness" is taking over in the US, a country where Donal Trump is the new president since January 20, 2025, criticising race theory, gender rights and queer theory, often provoking irrational chains of reactions supported by conspiracy theories and harassment campaigns based on isolationism, anti-feminism, homophobia, white supremacy as well as anti-Semitism and Islamophobia.

On the other hand, Russia's invasion of Ukraine has created a threat to neighbouring countries such as Georgia, where a controversial 'foreign agent' law was passed, threatening the existence of many local NGOs working on democracy and civil rights, and the escalation of violence against LGBTQ+ communities made headlines during the attack on Tbilisi Pride 2023, a violent counter-demonstration organised by far-right, nationalist and ultra-nationalist groups.

In such a scenario, which is clearly based on the weaponisation of culture, the role of art and visual culture becomes necessary to produce evidence of these phenomena. This conference builds on our previous 2018 series entitled 'Misinformation Ecosystems', which analysed cultural, political and technological issues related to fake news and right-wing supremacist ideologies through our conferences HATE NEWS and INFILTRATION.

We aim to update a previous debate on the strategic production of misinformation and misleading propaganda by bringing together speakers who share methods (from these or similar cases) that can be used to produce evidence of online hate, systematic discrimination, targeting of women, minorities, and people at risk. The focus will be on the strategic use of online tools by political right-wing groups, the weaponisation of LGBTQ+ culture by far-right groups online and offline, the rise of anti-democratic and authoritarian ideologies in Europe and the complicit role of Big Tech, where algorithms and social media platforms are misused by the far-right to polarise users and increase online traffic.

In this conference programme, we want to raise awareness by reflecting on possible counter-measures from artistic, technological and political frameworks.

SHADOWS OF ILLIBERALISM will showcase technological/media, artistic and activist practices to produce strategies to counteract human rights violations and environmental violence by state or corporate actors. The conference is preceded by a meetup at nGbK where to analyse a specific local case study where to understand how weaponised discrimination works.