Artist Talk: Mourad Ayyach (PS)

Artist Talk by Mourad Ayyach (PS) about the project 'Habaq Movement' which won the Award of Distinction in the Digital Communities category of the Prix Ars Electronica 2020.

Artist Talk: Eric Siu (HK) & Joel Kwong (HK)

Artist Talk by Eric Siu (HK) & Joel Kwong (HK) about the project 'Be Water by HongKongers' which won the Golden Nica in the Digital Communities category of the Prix Ars Electronica 2020.

‘site inspection’ – Virtual cocktail party & FM4 Radio Show in VR
sound:frame / Eva Fischer (AT), Marijn Bril (NL), Angie Pohl (AT)

For this year’s Ars Electronica, sound:frame and Pausanio invite the audience to join an exclusive virtual cocktail party in the Area for Virtual Art’s mozilla hub space. Together we will teleport from one artist’s space to another and have a virtual toast.

'site inspection' - Virtual exhibition tour
sound:frame / Eva Fischer (AT), Marijn Bril (NL), Angie Pohl (AT)

The sound:frame curators Eva Fischer and Marijn Bril will guide through the Area for Virtual Art and talk with the exhibiting artists and some of the Area’s team members, about their approaches to virtuality and digitality.

sound:frame & Pausanio virtual – Area for Virtual Art
sound:frame / Eva Fischer (AT), Marijn Bril (NL), Angie Pohl (AT)

sound:frame together with Pausanio presents the Area for Virtual Art – an online platform for digital art and virtual formats. Discover current artistic approaches in virtual exhibitions and meet people in discussion programs and live events to exchange thoughts and create new ideas and concepts. The Area for Virtual Art develops into an international hub, giving a platform to current digital art forms and connecting people all over the world.

Dialogue#4 – shifting perspectives
HKU University Of The Arts Utrecht (NL)

In Dialogue#4 we talk about shifting perspectives. With several artists involved in the exhibition we discuss the aspect of “reality” and in what way art should contribute to a broader perspective on reality. Things we take for granted are maybe not what they seem, or at least there is another way of looking at them. When looking at it this way then there is no fake news as it is just another perception of reality. In a world fixed on maintaining certainty, and thus one perspective as the truth, how can artists fight against this narrow minded view on reality?

Dialogue#3 – demystifying technology
HKU University Of The Arts Utrecht (NL)

Dialogue#3 is about demystifying technology. Technology is often a black box. We have no clue what is inside the equipment we use every day. In some cases, there is even no way to open the tools we use so frequently. In what ways can we hack the technology we encounter and use every day and all day and can we give a new or different use and meaning to it? What do we learn from this process and about the way things are made and maybe should be made?

Dialogue#2 – imagining tomorrow
HKU University Of The Arts Utrecht (NL)

Dialogue#2 is called imagining tomorrow. Nobody can deny our world is in a huge transition. We live in an age of uncertainty where we are forced to rethink basically every aspect of our society from the personal to the governmental to the spiritual. We discuss with artists how they look at the responsibility of creatives when it comes to changing the world. And, is it just about exposing the problems we face or can you do more as an artist?

Dialogue#1 – data driven art
HKU University Of The Arts Utrecht (NL)

The dialogues are moderated sessions to have a more in depth look at and discussion on the underlying themes of the works at the exhibition. Dialogue#1 is about data driven art. With artists involved in the exhibition we discuss the need to make the invisible world behind technology in our society visible.

Online Exhibition NEW CONNECTIONS
HKU University Of The Arts Utrecht (NL)

The opening night will feature several live performances all related to the theme “new connections”. This for example by revisiting and passing on music traditions through electronic means, new tactile electronic instruments and an AV show performed by live coding artists.

Postmasters presents Nicola Verlato, Donato Piccolo and Kristin Lucas
Paulina Bebecka - Postmasters Gallery, PostmastersROMA, Rome (IT)

​In the current uncertain climate of physical disconnection, hyper digital connection and distortion of life as we know it, I wanted to express that humanity is still at the very core of our increasingly technological experience on earth. The chosen artists bring about an examination of reality and the need to cherish our humanity through various digital media, such as artificial intelligence, 3D scanning, 3D gaming software, generative 360 WebXR animation, drones, and techno.

Garage Digital: Worlds beyond Worlds
Garage Museum of Contemporary Art / Nikita Nechaev, Moscow (RU)

Works and practices of several artists and collectives, that participate in Garage Digital program, reflect on the different types of networks, infrastructures, ecologies and algorithms, and pose questions of the possible tactics and strategies to reassemble these systems with new types of communities, modes of rationality and production in mind —cunning, poetic, speculative and emergent.

COVID-19 Crisis: How could/can society change?
Walter Ötsch, Renata Schmidtkunz, Antonia Birnbaum, Evelyn Bodenmeier, Leonhard Dobusch, Sighard Neckel

Walter Ötsch develops two scenarios for the future of society: a positive and a negative one. He will give an overview of the possible ideas for the future, both positive and negative, that were considered in the workshop. Together, obstacles and options for the future are discussed.

The Garden of Forking Paths

Online Exhibition In the time of a global pandemic, how can we exhibit and share projects, ideas andartworks with other people in lieu of a physical space? This question informed thecreation of our digital garden project that can be accessed from all over the worldwith an internet connection and a web-browser. We invite you to explore our garden at any time and from any place.

re.riddle presents Falling Up
re.riddle, California, San Francisco (US)

re.riddle presents unique programming showcased in site-specific exhibitions and pop-up events worldwide. The itinerant gallery curates socially engaging and multidisciplinary exhibitions of contemporary art. Its mission is to contribute to the discourse on contemporary art in thought provoking and playfully subversive ways. Via new modes of production, reception and consumption, re.riddle places an emphasis on the whimsical, in hopes that art continues to arouse curiosity and promote an awareness of its profound impact on our daily surroundings and lives.

COVID-19 Crisis: What options does civil society and social media have?
Walter Ötsch, Renata Schmidtkunz, Leonhard Dobusch, Evelyn Bodenmeier

We invite people from the fields of philosophy, sociology, economics and media studies to take part in a public discussion. Experts will present their views, challenge each other and offer suggestions for the future of our society.

COVID-19 Crisis: Future Scenarios
Walter Ötsch, Renata Schmidtkunz, Sighard Neckel, Antonia Birnbaum

The coronavirus shock will change society and it will not be possible to return to the "normal state of affairs" we had before the crisis. Two scenarios are outlined: (1) In the negative scenario, the coronavirus shock will bring little change on the surface, but will, in fact, fundamentally reshape the political shell that surrounds capitalism. This is explained in analogy to developments after the 2008 financial crisis, in which the elites who caused the crisis were not challenged and held accountable. In this thoroughly realistic scenario, a new authoritarian form of capitalism can emerge, in which the new power for the states is also expanded into new forms of surveillance. (2) The positive scenario ties in with many historical experiences in which the world was improved after crises. We are currently experiencing a redesign of political action that contains positive moments such as new forms of talking collectively about fears, new forms of solidarity with strangers and the experience of how important and powerful politics can be. Perhaps in this scenario it may be possible to combine the corona shock with concerns about the coming ecological crises and to take effective steps to mitigate them.

COVID-19 Crisis
Walter Ötsch (AT), Renata Schmidtkunz (AT)

We invite people from the fields of philosophy, sociology, economics and media studies to take part in a public discussion of these questions. Experts will present their views, challenge each other and offer suggestions for the future of our society.

Q&A with Man & Wah

Moderated by independent curator and creative director working in the field of digital/new media arts, Lubi Thomas (AU/UK), this live Q&A event will explore the creative practice and process of artists Man & Wah. Covering topics of nature, the cosmos, information and interdisciplinary artistic practice, Man & Wah will respond to live questions alongside a discussion with Lubi about their narrative video piece, CELESTON, and physical exhibition at Museum of Brisbane.

Man & Wah: Artist Studio Profile

Working within the breadth of nature and the cosmos, the Marco and Micro, Man & Wah (AU) produce lush and alluring photographic, moving image, digital and installation based works. Collaborating with a diverse range of people on projects across the globe, they explore the depths of place through local flora; ultimately illuminating synergies between the limits of the man-made and vastness of natural systems and structures. This video follows the artists’ creative process and explores the places they forage for inspiration and meaning. Created in collaboration with photographer and filmmaker Charlie Hillhouse (AU), this studio profile gives insight into the forces that drive Man & Wah to continue to compel audiences to reflect on the phenomenal complexity of plants and the endless possibilities of interconnectedness.