Ykon

Herald of the M8 Summit. Cingapure, 2013.

Helsinki, Finland. Group formed in 2003.
Ykon’s main aim is to support the development and sustainability of every kind of Utopia, micro-nation and experimental or alternative forms of society. The group was formed after the first Summit of micro-nations organised in Helsinki as part of the 2003 Amorph! performance festival. The event brought together leaders and representatives of fictional or real nations to establish a space for free self-affirmation, “remembering that nationality and state are recent mental and socio-cultural constructs, which can be replaced by other forms of involvement and identity”. Ykon are concerned with
topics such as alternative economies, social architecture, spatial design, experimental education and post-nationalism. As an alternative to the hierarchical format of the conference or lecture, Ykon developed the Ykon Game, inspired by the North American utopian Richard Buckminster Fuller’s World Game. Ykon Game is a game of interpreting characters which encourages active reflection on the peaceful resolution of conflict and will be played during the 8th Mercosul Biennial as part of the education programme. A Geopoetic flag workshop (2011) is a participatory work in which the public is invited to create a flag during a two-day workshop. Ykon invites the public to cut up the flags of the
203 nations officially recognised by the UN into their different colours and shapes, to then rearrange them into a huge group flag. The workshop aims to encourage discussion of the conventions governing this element, which is both ubiquitous, hugely symbolic.