NON-PRODUCTIVE READERS is a reading group for informal discussions about art, cultural theory and experimental writing. Initiated by Bryony Dawson in 2022 and named after Josef Strau's essay The Non-Productive Attitude, the group loosely explores modes of passivity, ambivalence, failure and refusal as vital aspects of creative and institutional practice. Past readings have included texts by Lisa Robertson, Jean Genet, Tiqqun, Clarice Lispector, Katrina Palmer, Jalal Toufic, Gertrude Stein and Seth Price.

The reading group takes place in the pauses between exhibitions. The selected texts will respond to the experiences and insights of the previous exhibition and thematically introduce the following project.

Discussions will be mainly in English, with whisper translation and German text versions available. No prior knowledge or background in art or cultural theory is required—only a motivation to read and think with others.

Each session is dedicated to a different text, so there is no pressure to commit to the whole series. Lurking listeners are always welcome.

To receive the reading material, please register at: readinggroup@halle-fuer-kunst.de

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In the 1st session on 22/05/2025 we read:
Jean-Luc Nancy, Listening, 2002

In this lyrical meditation on listening, Jean-Luc Nancy explores sound in relation to notions of self, knowledge and subjectivity. His text asks us to consider how listening engages with the world differently from hearing, seeing and reasoning. While traditional philosophy privileges vision and rationality – modes of perception that locate, signify and contextualise – listening is an embodied openness, attuned to resonances that exist beyond clear meaning. Nancy asks: What secret is at stake when one truly listens, that is, when one tries to capture or surprise the sonority rather than the message?

Because "the ear has no eyelid" (Pascal Quignard), sound cannot be shut out or ignored: it penetrates, surrounds and traverses the body; it resonates rather than simply represents. This resonance, according to Nancy, is a figure for subjectivity itself—the self is like an echo chamber, a spacing or vibration that is always unfolding in relation to what it receives.

The annual programme at Halle für Kunst Lüneburg e.V. is funded by the Ministry for Science and Culture of Lower Saxony, Lüneburgischer Landschaftsverband, and Hansestadt Lüneburg.

BRYONY DAWSON is an artist and writer living in Berlin. Working across moving image, sound, writing and installation, her practice is currently concerned with modes of (mis)translation between language, image and space, and the generative possibility of their slippages and failures. Her work has recently been exhibited at Between Bridges Residency (2023, Berlin, Germany) Kingsgate Project Space (2023, London, UK), and Castlefield Gallery (2022, Manchester, UK).

JEAN-LUC NANCY (1940-2021) was a prominent French philosopher known for his work in phenomenology, political theory and aesthetics. He also wrote on art, literature, and religion, often blending philosophical rigor with poetic style. A student of Georges Bataille and influenced by Martin Heidegger and Jacques Derrida, he emphasised the interconnectedness of individuals and critiqued traditional notions of subjectivity. His key works include The Inoperative Community (1986), The Birth to Presence (1993), and Being Singular Plural (2000).