the foreign correspondant

On my journey and in Leipzig I will ask various people how they would like the country in which they live to be seen. How do they interpret my question? Is "their country" the place where they really live with its buildings, means of transport, work and food? Or is their country defined by the way these buildings and methods of transport differ from those in other countries? Does a country consist of its history or of its achievements? Do the people I question think it appropriate to give a personal answer or an official one?

I will collect the objects, answers and commissions I receive. I will record the names of the contributors and the circumstances in which they were given.

I will be travelling from April to September 2004. The way in which my diplomatic efforts are received, the interest and the contrasts I encounter with my suitcase-sized country exhibitions, the people I meet and my experiences will be documented in stories, videos, photographs and drawings. The stories will be published on the internet, and in newspapers in the countries I visit and in Germany. A wall newspaper will slowly grow in the GfZK during my travels. In November 2004, there will be lectures, a book and an exhibition in the GfZK on the project.

My diplomatic mission and reporting is part of the Cultural Territories - an initiative of the federal cultural foundation (Bundeskulturstiftung) in
cooperation with the museum of contemporary art.