Flag of Compassion: Public Declaration, Manifesto and Afterword by the Artist

Abstract

Flag of Compassion is an ongoing conceptual artwork, initiated in 2002. It explores how an artwork can activate ethical questions within the field of the arts as well as in society as a whole. The Flag is a symbol of the notion of compassion with which everyone can share their own understanding of compassion. The artwork consists out of various elements: the word ‘compassion,’ an instrument ‘the Flag,’ a Manifesto, a foundation managing the artwork ‘the Unda Foundation,’ a distribution network and a website. www.flagofcompassion.com.

This chapter comprises the Public Declaration of Flag of Compassion, the Manifesto Flag of Compassion and an Afterword by the Artist. The Public Declaration states how Flag of Compassion is a new art form, a new form of public space and a new form of monument. The Manifesto Flag of Compassion is a proclamation written from the perspective of the Flag. In the afterword, the artist, Rini Hurkmans, elaborates on the Declaration and Manifesto as she substantiates her motives, intentions, design and the choice for a flag. She clarifies how Flag of Compassion functions outside the conventions of normal flags and how a common memory is built with a flag that calls for personal definitions. With this artwork, she wants to create space in which different voices and positions can be articulated and made visible. It is an art form that makes heterogeneity not only seen and heard but also effective. It is effective because it reveals the different ways in which people interpret the concept of compassion as well as what they have in common. The Flag functions as an interruption of assumptions and challenges to (re)define positions that have been taken.