Ruben Montini's 'One Person Protest' at BWA Warszawa Confronts Anti-EU Sentiment

Ruben Montini, a Sardinian artist based in Berlin, performed 'One Person Protest' at BWA Warszawa in Warsaw, Poland, in June 2017. The performance, held alongside Małgorzata Szymankiewicz's exhibition 'Stretching of Concepts,' involved Montini lying on the gallery floor covered by an EU flag bearing the German text 'Wenn wir nicht dafür sorgen, Dann wird das niemand Anderes machen' ('If we don't do it, no one else will'). The quote, originally from Martin Schulz's March 19, 2017 speech as SPD candidate for German chancellor, was misinterpreted in Italian media as referring to Europe. Montini's work addresses the rise of anti-European nationalism, particularly in Poland under the conservative PiS party since 2015, which has led to protests like the one outside the Powszechny Theatre against Oliver Frljic's play 'The Curse.' Montini sees the EU as a guarantor of fundamental rights and warns that its collapse would be disastrous. His earlier Polish engagements include a 2015 project 'Pomada' curated by Karol Radziszewski at CCA Warsaw and a 2012 performance at COCA Torun in 'Theatre of Life' curated by Dobrila Denegri. Montini's ongoing project 'Questo anonimato è sovversivo' involves collective embroidery across institutions, including the Royal Needlework School in London, Museum Europäischer Kulturen in Berlin, and Sardinia.