| Both sides previous revisionPrevious revisionNext revision | Previous revision |
| wro-2 [17.08.2022 13:08] – dusan | wro-2 [19.02.2023 15:18] (current) – admin |
|---|
| == On the Silver Globe: From a Vintage Print Photography to a Complex Media Installation. Re-contextualization as Preservation Strategy == | == On the Silver Globe: From a Vintage Print Photography to a Complex Media Installation. Re-contextualization as Preservation Strategy == |
| |
| Agnieszka Kubicka-Dzieduszycka, Dagmara Domagała, Cezary Wicher | [[contributors#kubickadzieduszycka|Agnieszka Kubicka-Dzieduszycka]], [[contributors#domagala|Dagmara Domagała]], [[contributors#wicher|Cezary Wicher]] |
| |
| {{TOC}} | {{TOC}} |
| ==== Perspectives on archiving media art on the example of the WRO collection ==== | ==== Perspectives on archiving media art on the example of the WRO collection ==== |
| |
| From the very beginning of the WRO Biennale, a festival of media art in Wrocław organized since 1989, the subject of special concern accompanying the substantive program of the festival has been its adequate documentation - of individual exhibitions, events, installations, concerts, performances, lectures. The event, initially referred to as the Sound-Based Visual Art Festival [PL: Festival Wizualnych Realizacji Okołomuzycznych (WRO)], became a platform for building a documentary collection of contemporary art. It also created favorable conditions for the establishment in 2008 of the WRO Art Center, an institution operating at the intersection of art, communication and technology, which became the guardian of the legacy and organizer of the WRO Biennale.((https://wrocenter.pl/en/o-wro/, https://wrocenter.pl/en/archiwum-biennale-wro/)) | From the very beginning of the WRO Biennale, a festival of media art in Wrocław organized since 1989, the subject of special concern accompanying the substantive program of the festival has been its adequate documentation - of individual exhibitions, events, installations, concerts, performances, lectures. The event, initially referred to as the Sound-Based Visual Art Festival [PL: Festival Wizualnych Realizacji Okołomuzycznych (WRO)], became a platform for building a documentary collection of contemporary art. It also created favorable conditions for the establishment in 2008 of the WRO Art Center, an institution operating at the intersection of art, communication and technology, which became the guardian of the legacy and organizer of the WRO Biennale.[(https://wrocenter.pl/en/o-wro/, https://wrocenter.pl/en/archiwum-biennale-wro/)] |
| |
| The WRO Archive is not only a space for documentation, preservation, and records, but also a way of thinking about the collection strongly correlated with the re-contextualization of its contents - the presentation of documentation of events that originated in a specific context, but as a result of recording on the medium have been transferred from their original temporality into another. This changes the conditions of presentation, the accompanying artifacts, but also the ontic status of the original artistic gesture - for example, a performance turns into a video recording, and a video recording becomes a component of an installation. | The WRO Archive is not only a space for documentation, preservation, and records, but also a way of thinking about the collection strongly correlated with the re-contextualization of its contents - the presentation of documentation of events that originated in a specific context, but as a result of recording on the medium have been transferred from their original temporality into another. This changes the conditions of presentation, the accompanying artifacts, but also the ontic status of the original artistic gesture - for example, a performance turns into a video recording, and a video recording becomes a component of an installation. |
| The collected videos have been made since 1989, with the first WRO Festival, but they are not limited to Wrocław. Among them are documentations made at the ZKM in Karlsruhe or the Ars Electronica festivals in Linz. Among the semi-amateur materials we can also find professional recordings, including registrations and television programs made in collaboration with Polish Television in the 1990s and 2000s. Also an important part of the collection are the original video works submitted as part of open calls to the WRO Biennale, as well as works donated or entrusted by artists, mainly in the form of physical media (tape). | The collected videos have been made since 1989, with the first WRO Festival, but they are not limited to Wrocław. Among them are documentations made at the ZKM in Karlsruhe or the Ars Electronica festivals in Linz. Among the semi-amateur materials we can also find professional recordings, including registrations and television programs made in collaboration with Polish Television in the 1990s and 2000s. Also an important part of the collection are the original video works submitted as part of open calls to the WRO Biennale, as well as works donated or entrusted by artists, mainly in the form of physical media (tape). |
| |
| The documentation forms a basis for further activities in the form of printed and electronic publications, installations and exhibitions. WRO Art Center publishes the WIDOK [The View] series dedicated to the history of media art.((https://wrocenter.pl/en/publikacje/ | The documentation forms a basis for further activities in the form of printed and electronic publications, installations and exhibitions. WRO Art Center publishes the WIDOK [The View] series dedicated to the history of media art.[(https://wrocenter.pl/en/publikacje/ |
| )) These are multimedia publications (texts+videos) based mostly on our materials, in some cases also on video fragments acquired from other collections during documentation process. Individual volumes of the WIDOK series included thematic collections, with articles on art, visuality and cultural theory, and a catalog of historical works of video installation, as well as issues devoted to specific artists (Nam June Paik, Istvan Kantor). The construction of such a corpus of issues is inherently endemic, and the projected narrative does not claim universalism, but rather creates space for polyphony, describing phenomena from a specific perspective by authors associated with the Biennale and the WRO Art Center, an institution that is an extension of the Biennale and at the same time a base for its organization. | )] These are multimedia publications (texts+videos) based mostly on our materials, in some cases also on video fragments acquired from other collections during documentation process. Individual volumes of the WIDOK series included thematic collections, with articles on art, visuality and cultural theory, and a catalog of historical works of video installation, as well as issues devoted to specific artists (Nam June Paik, Istvan Kantor). The construction of such a corpus of issues is inherently endemic, and the projected narrative does not claim universalism, but rather creates space for polyphony, describing phenomena from a specific perspective by authors associated with the Biennale and the WRO Art Center, an institution that is an extension of the Biennale and at the same time a base for its organization. |
| |
| The WRO Archive is a source for curating/creating screening programs, so-called thematic paths, as well as for exhibition elements. We aim to make it widely accessible to the public, including professional audiences (curators, art historians, etc.). During the 19th WRO Media Art Biennale 2021 REVERSO, we launched the beta version of the new incarnation of Media Library as an online platform collecting a range of documentation of exhibitions and activities, lectures and artist interviews.((https://czytelnia.wrocenter.pl/, https://wrocenter.pl/en/czytelnia-mediow/ | The WRO Archive is a source for curating/creating screening programs, so-called thematic paths, as well as for exhibition elements. We aim to make it widely accessible to the public, including professional audiences (curators, art historians, etc.). During the 19th WRO Media Art Biennale 2021 REVERSO, we launched the beta version of the new incarnation of Media Library as an online platform collecting a range of documentation of exhibitions and activities, lectures and artist interviews.[(https://czytelnia.wrocenter.pl/, https://wrocenter.pl/en/czytelnia-mediow/)] It is a base for those dealing with the thematic areas of the archive, but also for anyone looking for references and inspiration for their own creative or research activities. It is also a space for media and educational activities, such as presentations of works during art classes at universities and academies. |
| )) It is a base for those dealing with the thematic areas of the archive, but also for anyone looking for references and inspiration for their own creative or research activities. It is also a space for media and educational activities, such as presentations of works during art classes at universities and academies. | |
| |
| ==== Active Art Archive or (Re-)Contextualization as a Preservation Strategy ==== | ==== Active Art Archive or (Re-)Contextualization as a Preservation Strategy ==== |
| Another stimulating thought in this regard comes from Erkki Huhtamo, a media theorist and archaeologist, who in his talk at the 2018 symposium on art and science Future Mind 2 organized by Kyoto University described art in general as a stream of recurring "concepts trying to find their contexts." | Another stimulating thought in this regard comes from Erkki Huhtamo, a media theorist and archaeologist, who in his talk at the 2018 symposium on art and science Future Mind 2 organized by Kyoto University described art in general as a stream of recurring "concepts trying to find their contexts." |
| |
| Both conceptual inspirations are helpful in presenting another example of preserving the essence of media artworks rather than their physical forms, which become obsolete for various reasons. The exhibition //Reincarnation of Media Art// [RoMA],((https://wrocenter.pl/en/rma/ | Both conceptual inspirations are helpful in presenting another example of preserving the essence of media artworks rather than their physical forms, which become obsolete for various reasons. The exhibition //Reincarnation of Media Art// [RoMA],[(https://wrocenter.pl/en/rma/)] curated on behalf of WRO Art Center by Agnieszka Kubicka-Dzieduszycka, was originally conceived and co-curated by Japanese, New York-based artist duo exonemo (Yae Akaiwa, Kensuke Sembo) on the occasion of the 15<sup>th</sup> anniversary ofYamaguchi Center for Arts and Media (YCAM), a vibrant venue for the production and presentation of media art in Japan, where it premiered in 2018. Exonemo, who themselves have experienced the obsolescence of their own digitally born artworks, created a unique environment to reflect on the limited lifespan of media art and its potential future beyond the impermanence of their materiality. The exhibition includes a selection of "still life" works by artists who have worked with YCAM in the past: Koichiro Eto, exonemo, Masaki Fujihata, Toshio Iwai, Kazuhiko Hachiya, Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, Nam June Paik, Tadasu Takamine, Nao Tokui and Tetsuya Umeda. These now-defunct artworks were displayed in burial chambers inside a massive Mausoleum of Media Art resembling a burial mound. Video interviews with these and other artists provided different perspectives on the role of art as a transcendent vehicle for concepts traveling in time and finding new appropriate forms of expression. An additional layer of documentation and contextualization was provided by the audio guide, which could be played on a variety of historical devices (ghetto blaster, walkman, CD player, minidisc, etc.). Most importantly, the approach to preserving media art through documentation and (re)contextualization was indicated by the situating the exhibition in a burial mound, a culturally encoded object, commonly associated with the impermanence of life and death, which served as a platform for researching and documenting local media art histories in other regions as well. |
| )) curated on behalf of WRO Art Center by Agnieszka Kubicka-Dzieduszycka, was originally conceived and co-curated by Japanese, New York-based artist duo exonemo (Yae Akaiwa, Kensuke Sembo) on the occasion of the 15<sup>th</sup> anniversary ofYamaguchi Center for Arts and Media (YCAM), a vibrant venue for the production and presentation of media art in Japan, where it premiered in 2018. Exonemo, who themselves have experienced the obsolescence of their own digitally born artworks, created a unique environment to reflect on the limited lifespan of media art and its potential future beyond the impermanence of their materiality. The exhibition includes a selection of "still life" works by artists who have worked with YCAM in the past: Koichiro Eto, exonemo, Masaki Fujihata, Toshio Iwai, Kazuhiko Hachiya, Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, Nam June Paik, Tadasu Takamine, Nao Tokui and Tetsuya Umeda. These now-defunct artworks were displayed in burial chambers inside a massive Mausoleum of Media Art resembling a burial mound. Video interviews with these and other artists provided different perspectives on the role of art as a transcendent vehicle for concepts traveling in time and finding new appropriate forms of expression. An additional layer of documentation and contextualization was provided by the audio guide, which could be played on a variety of historical devices (ghetto blaster, walkman, CD player, minidisc, etc.). Most importantly, the approach to preserving media art through documentation and (re)contextualization was indicated by the situating the exhibition in a burial mound, a culturally encoded object, commonly associated with the impermanence of life and death, which served as a platform for researching and documenting local media art histories in other regions as well. | |
| |
| When Agnieszka Kubicka-Dzieduszycka visited the RoMA exhibition at YCAM, preparations for the 30<sup>th</sup> anniversary edition of the WRO Media Art Biennale 2019 were already well under way. She immediately wanted to realize this unique exhibition formula to look back at the history of the WRO festivals through no-longer functional media artworks from the archives of both institutions: WRO and YCAM. The presentation at the WRO Art Center was the first - and so far the only - successful attempt to create a living archive of "dead" artworks enriched with local content, thus expanding the scope and timeframe of the RoMA exhibition. | When Agnieszka Kubicka-Dzieduszycka visited the RoMA exhibition at YCAM, preparations for the 30<sup>th</sup> anniversary edition of the WRO Media Art Biennale 2019 were already well under way. She immediately wanted to realize this unique exhibition formula to look back at the history of the WRO festivals through no-longer functional media artworks from the archives of both institutions: WRO and YCAM. The presentation at the WRO Art Center was the first - and so far the only - successful attempt to create a living archive of "dead" artworks enriched with local content, thus expanding the scope and timeframe of the RoMA exhibition. |
| Together with exonemo and the YCAM team (coordinated by curator Kazuhiko Yoshizaki), thanks to special support from the Japan Foundation, we prepared a regional iteration of the show by arranging the burial chambers inside a gallery at the WRO Art Center, the entrance to which resembled a path leading to a burial mound with walls made of clay and straw. In such a setting, we decided to exhibit several dead artworks from the original exonemo selection (Koichiro Eto, Masaki Fujihata, Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, Nao Tokui) together with works by Piotr Wyrzykowski, Anna Plotnicka, Gameboyzz Orchestra Project, and Lukasz Szalankiewicz (aka Zenial) that have been created/produced/presented by WRO in the past. | Together with exonemo and the YCAM team (coordinated by curator Kazuhiko Yoshizaki), thanks to special support from the Japan Foundation, we prepared a regional iteration of the show by arranging the burial chambers inside a gallery at the WRO Art Center, the entrance to which resembled a path leading to a burial mound with walls made of clay and straw. In such a setting, we decided to exhibit several dead artworks from the original exonemo selection (Koichiro Eto, Masaki Fujihata, Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, Nao Tokui) together with works by Piotr Wyrzykowski, Anna Plotnicka, Gameboyzz Orchestra Project, and Lukasz Szalankiewicz (aka Zenial) that have been created/produced/presented by WRO in the past. |
| |
| In keeping with the original concept, which paid special tribute to Nam June Paik (two special grave chambers for Paik's dead artworks from the collection of the Nam June Paik Art Center in Seoul), we were also able to show two unique remains of his works from the private collection of Paik's former student and technical assistant. One of these two corpses was a CRT television screen recording from an installation of //Zen for TV// in 1976. Paik then made it on site for an exhibition at Kunsthal Charlottenborg in Copenhagen. Parts of the old TV were replaced in 2001-2002, according to the artist's instructions, when another CRT set was placed in the original Danish case to play the recording. Later, this version of //Zen for TV// was acquired to the collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. | In keeping with the original concept, which paid special tribute to Nam June Paik (two special burial chambers for Paik's dead works from the collection of the Nam June Paik Art Center in Seoul), we were also able to show two unique remains of his works from the private collection of Paik's former student and technical assistant. One of these was a CRT television screen recording from an installation of //Zen for TV// in 1976. Paik then made it on site for an exhibition at Kunsthal Charlottenborg in Copenhagen. Parts of the old television were replaced in 2001-2002, according to the artist's instructions, when another CRT was placed in the original Danish case to play the recording. This version of //Zen for TV// was later acquired by the Smithsonian American Art Museum. |
| |
| An important element of the exhibition was a Wrocław-specific audio guide, explaining the various reasons why the presented objects - traces of past artworks - became dead without losing the meanings accumulated over time. This curatorial commentary provided insight into the more universal aspects of media art history, while a series of video interviews with Polish artists allowed reflection on the life and death of time-based art. These interviews were displayed inside the burial mound of the RoMA exhibition and can still be viewed on WRO's vimeo channel, adding further layers of meaning to the - seemingly dead - artworks, keeping their essence active despite the passage of time. | An important element of the exhibition was a Wrocław-specific audio guide, which explained the various reasons why the objects on display - traces of past artworks - had become dead, without losing the meanings they had accumulated over time. This curatorial commentary provided insight into the more universal aspects of media art history, while a series of video interviews with Polish artists allowed reflection on the life and death of time-based art. These interviews were displayed within the burial mound of the RoMA exhibition and can still be viewed on the WRO's Vimeo channel, adding further layers of meaning to the - seemingly dead - artworks, keeping their essence active despite the passage of time. |
| |
| ==== On the Silver Globe: From vintage print photography to a complex media installation ==== | ==== On the Silver Globe: From vintage print photography to a complex media installation ==== |
