About
A gift is never just a gift. It moves, it lingers, it changes shape depending on who’s the receiver or who is giving it. It can be generous, transactional, an offering, a burden. It can bring people closer, or create an unspoken debt. A gift is never neutral.
The Gift is an exploration of what it means to give and receive, and the complexities that come with it. In 2024/2025, Paskamer worked with invited residents to dive into the many ways gifts shape relationships, traditions, and economies. What makes something a gift? How does care show up in the act of giving? When do gifts bring people together, and when do they create obligations or tensions?
At its core, a gift is something given freely, with no expectation of return. But is that ever truly the case? A gift can be an act of generosity, but it can also be a way to hold power. It can create closeness or distance. It can be a small gesture, like a compliment, or something grand, like a chandelier. Sometimes it’s an object, and sometimes it’s an idea. Gifts are full of contradictions, which is what makes them so interesting to us.