Talk to Grurried Stocker, Director of the Ars Electronica
Today in Linz begins the media art event ARS Electronica 2001. This-year festival topic "Takeover" and a short "Statement", The Ars Director of Grurried Stocker has written, mild uncertainty caused, especially in artists crises, which is meant now. Anyway, after years of topics such as Infowar or Life Sciences, it will give rise to a strong concentration on art as a topic. In a conversation with Grurried Stocker on the topic of this year "Ars", For the positioning of the festival and the role of art in society, Cornelia ZollFrank asked the questions.
Grurried Stocker on a reception from 1999. Source: Ars Electronica as the title "Takeover" It is already clear, the this-year Ars Electronica is about the idea of taking over. You can see briefly who takes exactly what?
Grurried Stocker: "Takeover" not only means supp receipt, but can also overtake. In the sense of supp receipt, one can relate to three things. That one is "The art of art takes over the media art". That’s great, that’s big. We are pleased that media art is increasingly established and accepted in art business, but unfortunately a lot on the track remains because of the art operations in the form, as it deals with media art, only certain areas and forms of media art accepted. Another "Takeover" is that the media industry takes rough parts of the creative potential, keyword brain drain. That means the fact that young people have been increasingly observing that young people go to the media creative industry and thus a rough potential of those who were otherwise effective in art-related or artistic territories, now otherwise used otherwise. A third "Takeover", Although more Wishful Thinking is a hard fact, it is that the art (note – if I speak about art, I speak more and more about contemporary media art) into other areas, there will be effective. Strategies of art to deal with certain terms and principles with new media and information technologies at a high standard, are supported in other, non-artistic areas of society. This corresponds to a thesis of the dissolution of art for many years, not in the sense that she is trying out and disappears, but rather looks out how a mineral in a fluid and becomes effective. This is the utopian version that we do at the topic "Takeover" blame. Ame that the forms of the "Takeover" real developments are real developments, or are it rather allegations / settlements they make to achieve something that? If yes, what?
Grurried Stocker: I ame that not a single word from which we have in this year in our program ies is the invention or setting, but all observations of real developments. Of course, however, this takes place in homopathic dosages when viewed the ratio of art and society. Art was, is and is probably always a niche segment of our society in this form. And if one speaks of effects and revolutions, then one thinks very fast to coarse, spectacular umbrellars that affect whole humanity. In fact, it is small dimensions, which should not be a valuation criterion. Female Takeover, Source: Kunstraum Goethestrasse Where does the desire come from in the art business "Non-artists" or "Still non-artists" lose in? What qualities do they do not have professional artists?
Grurried Stocker: The question is, what are professional artists? Are those who have studied art that have been exhibited by a work of a university? I mean artists who actually operate the art as profession.
Grurried Stocker: But what makes professional artists authorized? If we look at the history of media art, then the interesting thing is the departure that brought media art. He has hardly been represented or operated by people who wore the job title artist at this time. When they started working, there was still the media art yet and had to be invented. The people who made that have either come from areas that were considered as non-professional artificial arts, or they were newcomers from other disciplines, such as.B. Nam June Paik, the musician, before he successfully tested as a video artist. The best of the art "Non-artists" Connect, therefore, that history has repeatedly showed us that from apparently artistic areas that the new impulses come to the art and art operation, enrich and renew. It is an enormous important potential. And to make another comment on the first question, the aspect that the art operations ame media art. It is to be observed that only certain forms of media art hold into the institutions, causing development slowed down, is slowed down, and it is obsolete the question of wherever all the approaches that are not one of the shaped forms. We are also very interested in this. The art and the art system are thus obtained by integration of innovative, but actually artificial impulses even alive?
Grurried Stocker: Yes. If you are talking about art business and institutions, they also mean the Ars Alectronica, or where did they settle the ARS in the relationship to artist? And also works as a lock in the operation?
Grurried Stocker: The ARS Electronica has, of course, become a not insignificant part, part of the art and culture business – no question. We are confidentally established. There are ARS Alectronica now for 22 years. But what the ARS Electronica makes and makes it again and again to the coveted attack goal, is a very successful strategy, not in a certain direction or pose staying. Takeover campus, "meatpace" Source: urban workshop Where were you settled in with regard to the art business?
Grurried Stocker: I settle us in a border area. The potential of the ARS electronica is to act in a run, a kind of mediation or brokerage function to take over between different areas. The definition "Festival for art, technology and society" has been the program of the Ars Electronica program for 22 years and gives the direction, not yet a Assign these areas, but to carry out different weights. The topics of recent years "Infowar" and "Life Science" went towards society and science / technology, and this year, the pendulum in a different direction, namely the art out. The important for us is to always stay in motion. And not want to want art operations, goods surely; We are too close to this. With the "Takeover" Will not the concept of art as such in question. Why can it be useful to have such a claimed terrain?
Grurried Stocker: For me, art is always a form in society to work. Art defines itself on their effects, to open alternative concepts, counter models and insights. This aspect of art is extremely important to us. If we also hurt the alleged territorial claim of whom, as this year, then this is a sign of how important our access to the topic is, and how important is the importance of concept art and its maintenance in our society. I have been confessed several times with the reproach in the last time, that was a romantic concept of avant-garde. But maybe we should also look at Avantgarde again something relaxed. Avantgarde is not a form of art, but a function of art. If, within the art in recent years, the view was increasingly represented that art had lost its avant-garde entitlement, and that the concept of art had uberhallt, then I could agree with this only in terms of some aspect. The art is by no means ending or affected, but on the contrary, just umbut a different function. They are also artists, if I am properly informed.
Grurried Stocker: Yes, suspended artist. Because of my current role as artistic director of the ARS, I do not appear as an artist. I do not remain the time to develop projects themselves, and I then did not want to accommodate my work in a program of me. Although I often have a design influence in ideas and implementations, but this is not the artists of these projects. And I’m sure it’s not just the idea, but the implementation manifested through which artistic work and quality manifest. Partial view of illustration on topic "Takeover" by Kaneko Nanpei and Okada Tomohiro What is your artist picture out? Is artists a – almost normal – profession or is it rather a pretending state of "Creativity burst"?
Grurried Stocker: One aspect that comes into play again and again is the risk of living a professional artist / artist. The number of artists who really can afford to fully dust the profession was always very low and will probably stay. I make sure that a third of the artists can live from their activity. According to the IG media, it is only 5%.
Grurried Stocker: Even worse. Then it is even more dramatic than I got it. And what have the artists for a choice? They can teach, as journalists work, or in artful areas, as in the gastronomy, as a waiter jobben. An important aspect of the question of the job profile of professional artists is always, which makes you artist? Is it a personal convocation to be artist, even if you can not live it? Is it the bill that the university ies me or is it the accreditation of art business? I think it’s the mixture of all this, and alone the condition of the "Creativity burst" Will not bring us further. As I said, I became the artist with the effect, the function of art related. Ultimately, it is the function of art to preserve a place for counter concepts and alternative models. That’s why I vote for art, especially in artificial areas, are the science or economy. Only the presence of art and artists mimic it to develop action and thinking concepts against the mainstream. To describe an artist as creative and limitless, is, of course, a very general and almost artistic image, yet it serves as a mission statement for a flexibilized and asthesized society, which descripted by globalization and immaterialization of the work generally unregulated work control and social degradation.
Grurried Stocker: I doubt that the wide population of such a model can learn something. To be incredibly creative, but never to know what you pay the next rent can certainly not give a model. If I engage in the tendency of social degradation, from which Europe is just haunted, that does not happen voluntarily. 22-year hackers may find it cool to work in another company every few weeks, but that has nothing to do with whether a neo-liberal economic concept is societal. Nonetheless, diligent myths are created, from nomads, creative hackers, codes, circuit benders etc., to help create acceptance for a new, flexibilized model of work.
Grurried Stocker: Glamourose views of the new generation of young, dynamic programmers, inventors, web designers, etc. Although can be drawn, they have only temporary validity. And as a model for social security, they are certainly unsuitable. The example of the US should make this very quickly clear. In addition, such myths are not so new. The vagabond artist, which is located by the non-locality an independent spirit, is a stark-holding, romantic artist image, but certainly no invention of the media industry. Likewise, it behaves with the socially independent position of artists, probably it is even what all artists have all together. How does the new art matter, not just the traditional art business, but also to the art market? What is its economic basis? And there is a border between the new art and the New Economy, or goes together?
Grurried Stocker: An important aspect when we talk about the economic situation of artists is the convergence of artistry with the digital revolution. The digital revolution has undoubtedly took part and with her new economic fields were created, where creative people, potential artists are scanned and can be suddenly successful. The phenomenon brain drain, And there is the real option not to more than a waiter jobben, but in a much more obvious area like design or game development can work. The question of gaming development plays an important role in the this-year Ars Electronica. There is a tremendous dynamic in this area. The phenomena of the gaming industry, such as Lara Croft and Final Fantasy, ghosts through the media, but only brought all the very marginal the artistic potential of Computer Game or Network Game. Only if you look at the thing, the potential in itself, the question arises as to whether that can not be very comfortable or. Whether you can not make art very well. It’s not about wanting to do it to art?
Grurried Stocker: The work necessary to make a good game is the very similar, which requires it to make a good book or a good movie. Movie can be art, though, of course, 99% of what she encounters us day as film, nothing to do with art. Nevertheless, you can make a very good art with the medium movie, and with the medium game / computer game you will also make damn good art in the future – even if it still likes to look uninteresting uninteresting at the moment. It will be an important scene of art. That is called, at certain points finds a border rack or. A merger instead – a good game becomes art – at other points, they were maintained the separation, between web design for the brooter advertising and of them separate artistic production?
Grurried Stocker: Yes, quite. In their concept, the operation operandi of their action, their motivations, strategies and objectives do not define the protagonists of the new development as artists. Please describe this a bit more detail?
Grurried Stocker: Kunstlersein has a lot to do with conviction, because to decide to flee a life as an artist, not only has pleasant consequences. The decisive questions is with what motivation is done. If I turn out of motivation to make money something, it is very fragh whether it can be art or be art. If I do it with another intention, z.B. To tell a story, to give a protest or offer a counter concept, then it can be independent whether you earn money or not, very well art. We have to be a strong way to make sure that it is not so very formal criteria of art, but about your effect and function. This is certainly not the only basic form to describe art, but a very targeted form to describe contemporary media art. How does the ARS puts the topic "Takeover" in a program?
Grurried Stocker: Short is not that easy, but maybe you can fix it to a few points. We have the convimate symposium in a number of Conferences converted, which are dominated by the protagonists themselves, D.H. No speculation and theories of it but first hand information. the Electrolobby, which has developed from the Open-X project of the years 96-98, focuses on this border community, which is constantly changing between creativity, art and business and tries a defined path between these "Fronten" go. The Takeover Campus (TOC) as a building for art students and the free media scene (free radios, indymedia etc.) is a new scene of the Ars Electronica.
Partial view of illustration on topic "Takeover" by Kaneko Nanpei and Okada Tomohiro in the illustration of Kaneko Nanpei and Okada Tomohiro seems a woman commutor of the "Takeover" to be. If you see the program books more closely, the proportion of women at the ARS Electronica is approx. 10%. Plays gender / gender in "Takeover" a role, and if so, which?
Grurried Stocker: To what extent it is gender-specific question, who leads to changes, will remain unanswered in this festival. The woman at the top to elect, was very motivated by the experiences of recent years. We noticed that in an increasing MAB women, even very young women, have started to build hardware or program software from the U19 area. The outstanding works of Orit Kruglanski, Rania Ho, Marta de Menezes, but also Naoko Tosa or Tomoko Ueyama last year and the two 17-year Madchen, who produced a voice station for visually developed soundblaster card, have a real euphoria took a proper euphoria. What the 10% is concerned so this is your estimation. I can not and does not want to capture it statistically, but I believe that through the projects "xxero", "female takeover" and "meatpace", The exclusive or. almost exclusively made by women, the proportion of a lot of high and in any case will be significant more obvious! They could describe the caught projects even closer?
Grurried Stocker: "XXero" is a Moo project of women of the faces list. They present their system and make workshops to familiarize women with them and to integrate into the project. The project "female takeover", which is realized by some young curators from Oberosterreich, present artist / feminist practice of women in media art against the background of the "Takeover". and "Meatpace" is a new, again a great project of the Linz Stadtwerkstatt. Then you have to the woman who in the picture "Takeover" Attached, unfortunately considered as a setting and not as an observation.
Grurried Stocker: Unfortunately, there is a part of this, but also the attempt to the aspect "gender" to address. And last but not least, the illustration is to be modeled on the image of delacroix, the freedom to be modeled on ‘the people’ is modeled, where marianne is just the people. And it had been very bad, at this point to replace the woman through a man… (Cornelia SollfrankTo)