The Knot
Kopa Cwila, Ursynów, Warsaw
June 24-July 5, 2010
Press text: The Utopian World Championship at the Knot
The Utopian World Championship (UWC) is an attempt to shed light on the status of contemporary utopian thinking by awarding the best essay in an open, global competition in utopian thinking and writing, and by publishing the essays submitted by the participants.
The Utopian World Championship was first launched in March 2001, and has since been arranged twice and awarded a first prize of 1000 Euro to two champions, who have been invited to Stockholm to receive their prize at a gala night. The first awarded essay was written by the psuedonym T.R.O.Y., an American student and activist living in Sweden, and the second by the Professor Emeritus in anthropology, Mr Cyril Belshaw from Canada. Their essays have been printed and distributed to Heads of State, governments, NGO:s and other institutions all over the world. All participating essays are available at the website http://utopianwc.com. The website is also the place where contestants sign up for participation and post their entries. The Utopian World Championship was initiated by SOC.Stockholm and is managed by the artists Jon Brunberg and Annika Drougge since 2006.
Jon Brunberg will present the project in several ways at the Knot in Warsaw, Ursynów. There will be daily, public, readings from the participating essays and seminars with the Knot's inhabitants. In a concluding, public event, on the 3d of July, the third Utopian World Championship will be officially announced, and the website open for registration of participants. The two hitherto awarded essays in the revised edition of 2009 will be available at the Knot. The championship aims to promote the idea about the good society (eu-topos) at all levels of society, and the edition is an important part of that work. A part of it is earmarked for Heads of State all over the world, including the Acting President of Poland, to whom copies will be delivered during the week.
More information:
The Knot, website
Photos from the installation at Kopa Cwila and the announcement and opening ceremony on July 3, 2010 (the latter were taken by Joanna Erbel).