2007

Focus on Media Art

From the headquarters Amicitia the 11th edition of the Media Art Festival burst loose. The Media Art Festival offered a surprising ten day mix of film and video, music, performances, internet, special exhibitions, presentations and workshops with the theme ‘Focus on media art’
On over 2800 square metres in the festival centre Amicitia, more than 150 works of art were shown. Media Art Friesland tried to become more compact. The satellite locations, the Fries Museum, VHDG, Museum Smallingerland in Drachten, showed SPOTLIGHT exhibitions. The ISMAF award nominations were shown in Gallery Sign in Groningen and the XPERIENCE event was held in Podium058.

“With less works an increase in quality has been reached. A more intensive development has been followed through to clarify the festival structure and with it the festival programme and this enourmous building”, according to Nadine Bors, festival director.

OPENING

The festival was officially opened by Heiner Holtappels, director of the Netherland Institue for Media art (NIM) in Amsterdam, artist and coordinator Visual Arts with the Hogeschool voor de Kunsten en Vormgeving in Arnhem.

“I’m jealous. Of this organisatin and this festival with a clear overview of international and national media art in the widest sense. As a scout, Media Art is unsurpassed. The Netherlands and especially the north can take pride in this unique institution.”, according to sir Holtappels.

The rest of the opening consisted of performances by Powerplant (NL) and Meri Nukula (1977/FI) with ‘In The Flesh I Reside’. After the official opening the British film and video exhibition ‘Across the Channel’ was launched in satellite location VHDG in Leeuwarden.

ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

The Artist in Residence was a large success this year. Krista Burger and Nina Thibbo from Powerplant were invited to develop and experiment with their live cinema. “For the very first time we were able to work on one project alone. This allowed us to experiment more with technology, materials and script and to realise a larger project.”, according to Krista Burger.

Through de AiR, with support and presentation possibilities, artists can take their experiences and products into their further career.

AWARDS

The ISMAF, International Student Media Art Festival, Award was awarded to Englishman Laurie Hill with the work ‘My life at 40’.

‘My life at 40’ is based on Laurie Hill’s diary that he kept at the age of twelve. The diary starts a dialogue with Hill aged 34. Future plans, reflection and wishes go hand in hand with old and new techniques. The sublimely designed two dimensional animation has been built up in a three dimensional surrounding. With humour, a clear contrast and tension has been built such as owning a sexy Lamborghini and a lot of money against the moral profession of wildlife parks and breeding animals threatened by extinction; races and breeds all over the world.

The relationship between the images (sketches with a soft graphite pencil) and sound is characteristic, original and very cinematic. A perfect balance.” according to the judges.

NEW AND DIFFERENT

New to the festival were: Frisian productions, the YOUNG TALENT Pitch and Market and the Japanese presentation platform Pecha Kucha. The 11th festival edition characterised itself by characterisations, enlargement and deeper understanding. The programme was formed through three central themes: World View, Document and Analogue vs Digital.

Characterisation formed the central theme to the festival itself, the individual programme parts and the further development of a number of programmes.

Especially in the SALON, the film and video programme, characterisation was clearly visible. The three main theme’s with each three programmes of an hour lead the audience through the world of contemporary film and video works. Out of over 800 entries from 23 different countries and 4 continents, 80 audiovisual documents were selected for the film/video salon. Three themes (World View, Document and Analogue vs Digital) with each three programmes were selected with Tijmen Hauer, artist, film maker and curator of the Filmbank and Plan B in Amsterdam. The film/video salon showed work by

• Casten Ashmann (GER),
• Guli Silberstein (IL),
• Kotaro Tanaka (JP),
• Robert Scheidel (GER),
• Michael Maziere (UK),
• Fred Pelon (NL),
• Jean Gabriel Periot (FR),
• Ben Rivers (UK),
• Antonin De Bemels (BE) and
• Martha Colburn (USA) and many more.

YOUNG TALENT

In previous years the national exhibition YOUNG TALENT was spread over numerous locations throughout Friesland, in 2007 YOUNG TALENT was shown as a whole in festival centre Amicitia. YOUNG TALENT consisted of the works by 28 young promising artists from the eleven art academies of the Netherlands. YOUNG TALENT offers young artists a platform within the international context of the festival. Talent scouts have all the opportunities to hunt down their own favourite(s). We are especially proud of the work made in the mini Artist in Residence by YOUNG TALENT artists Steef van Lent and Edwin Stolk.

SPOTLIGHT

The international exhibition programme SPOTLIGHT offers space for a solo exhibition to known artists from the international field of work. For the first time in festival history, four artists were invited for a SPOTLIGHT solo exhibition. This year with many international and Dutch premieres. Invited were celebrated artists Ulu Braun (GER), Telemach Wiesinger (GER), Max Hattler (GER/UK) and Jayce Salloum (Britsch Colombia/CAN). With the exception of the work ‘Middle East Trilogy’ by Jayce Salloum and Ulu Braun, shown in Amicitia, the other Spotlight pieces could be seen in different locations. The Fries Museum showed: ‘Landscape of Human existence’ by Max Hattler (1976/UK). The exhibition by Telemach Wiesinger (1968/GER) with ‘Landed: the series’ could be seen in Museum Smallingerland in Drachten.

For both Ulu Braun and Max Hattler this was their first solo exhibition. Both artists each showed two Dutch premieres. Braun’s ‘Marked Worlds’ and Hattler’s ‘Landscape of Human Existence’ represented the festival theme of ‘Digital vs. Analogue’. ‘Landed: the series’, the solo exhibition by Telemach Wiesinger with the international film premiere ‘3x1’ represented the theme Document. The solo exhibition ‘Middle East Trilogy: history redux’ by Salloum showed the theme World View.

A group exhibition named ‘Across the Channel’, showing the work of British artists was organised in VHDG in Leeuwarden, in which 37 artists participated.

The exhibition of Marked Worlds was the big hit of the festival 2007. In this Dutch premiere by Ulu Braun, Media Art Friesland showed his latest films and nine new collages.

XPERIENCE

‘Analogue vs. Digital’ was the Xperience theme.During daytime the programme existed of three hour long workshops by the Germans Telemach Wiesinger and Andreas Gogol. Apart from the workshops there was a lecture by Max Hattler and a presentation by Eric and Mary Ross. The evening programme started at Podium058 with the presentation of the Multi Media Art Friesland Award. There were also international performances by ‘the Ultimedia concept’ by Eric and Mary Ross, ‘Landed Takes & Sound Times’ by Telemach Wiesinger and Andreas Gogol, Jos Blomsma with his‘Jean Parlette’, ‘Remixing The Past’ by Max Hattler, ‘Bits and Pieces’ an animation project by Nils Mühlenbruch and Fusion Cooking by Rico S.

CONTACTS & INITIATIVE

Media Art Friesland proved itself this year as an exhibition organiser, intermediary and initiator by ways of expanding the YOUNG TALENT and SPOTLIGHT exhibitions.
As an intermediary familiar contacts were enhanced, new contacts were made and even initiated, such as the Nieuwe Garde Leeuwarden who organised the Pecha Kucha.

Media Art Friesland has dedicated itself to the realisation of a creative network, the Nieuwe Garde Leeuwarden. Nieuwe Garde Leeuwarden was founded by bringing people into contact with each other and their ideas. The first Nieuwe Garde Leeuwarden project premiered at the festival through the first Frisian Pecha Kucha, the Japanese presentation platform for everyone. Here developers showed their own products in 20 images and 20 seconds.
New contacts were established with Tank.tv and Single Shot from London, Kunstenaars & Co and Trans Artists in Amsterdam. Apart from the existing contacts with the Frisian HBO colleges for the benefit of the Xperience, new bonds were formed with 058podium Leeuwarden and the Friesland College Interior & Design and Business Management Services studies. Over 70 mini internships were realised. First and second year students could gain work experience in interior design & routing and service related areas such as guide, information desk, catering and host.

THANK YOU

The Media art Friesland foundation looks back at 2007 as a fruitful and creative year. The festival grew stronger in quality compared to previous years through an intensive cooperation with students from the Friesland College, MBO Interior & Design and several other educational institutes. With Amicitia as the festival headquarters, presenting the festival qith a greater unity was made possible.
The Media Art Festival 2007 could of course not have been made possible without the financial support of the Frisian governments and funding bodies. Last nut not least, Media Art Friesland wishes to thank the students from MBO Interior & Desing and Business Management Services for their efforts which made the festival to a success.