Unruly Kinships. Photo: © Kris Dittel 25 Oct 2025
15:00 - 17:00
Book Presentation: Unruly Kinships, edited by Kris Dittel and Aneta Rostkowska
On Saturday 25 October, curators and editors Kris Dittel and Aneta Rostkowska present Unruly Kinships. This book introduces various alternative perspectives on interpersonal relationships in contemporary society, focusing on collectivity and moving away from the boundaries of blood relations and the nuclear family.
Unruly Kinships explores the possibilities and forms of kinship, examining how people create relationships with(in) the world. It is the outcome of a three-year research project encompassing a study group series, an exhibition with a lively program of lectures, performances, workshops and this book. During the event, Dittel and Rostkowska reflect on the process behind the project and discuss key topics of the book.
Through essays, artistic reflections and conversations, Unruly Kinships delves into kinship as something to be made and not given – as an ongoing process of relational experimentation. Spanning three chapters and featuring contributions from artists, theorists and writers, the book ventures into unruly desires, ancestral connections and liberatory forms of care to envision expansive possibilities for kinship. By challenging the boundaries of blood relations, Unruly Kinships inspires a reimagining of care, solidarity and connection in a world where the nuclear family no longer holds absolute sway.
During the event, the book is available for sale at a discounted price. Please register here.
Contributions
The book includes contributions by Alex Bailey & Krõõt Juurak, Kris Dittel, Clem Edwards, Alva Gotby, Alexis Pauline Gumbs, Pauline Curnier Jardin & the Feel Good Cooperative, Anja Khersonska & Yin Aiwen, Sophie Lewis, Khanyisile Mbongwa & Li’Tsoanelo Zwane, Paloma Nana, Lola Olufemi, Lena Anouk Philipp, Liz Rosenfeld, Aneta Rostkowska, Selma Selman, Suzanna Slack, Jay Tan and Fran Trento.
Unruly Kinships is designed by Roxanne Maillet and published by Jap Sam Books and Temporary Gallery, Centre for Contemporary Art, Cologne. It was made possible with the support of Stiftung Kunstfonds, Kunststiftung NRW, medienwerk.nrw and the Mondriaan Fund.
This event is in English. Admission is free.
Do you also think art should be free and accessible? Please consider supporting us with a donation when registering or by becoming a Framer Framed Friend!
This event may be photographed and filmed. Kindly let us know in advance if you prefer not to have your picture taken. For seated programmes, places are always made available for wheelchair users. Please speak to the host before the programme begins.
Framer Framed is supported by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science; Amsterdam Fund for the Arts; Municipality of Amsterdam; and VriendenLoterij Fonds.
Book Launch / Citizenship /
Exhibitions
Exhibition: Shapeshifters
A group exhibition examining how colonialism has shaped museums, archives and other institutions of knowledge
Network
Kris Dittel
Writer, Curator
Yin Aiwen
Designer, artist and theorist
Aneta Rostkowska
Curator and researcher
Clementine Edwards
Artist
