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DUE TO THE SITUATION IN LEBANON (MAY 2008), THIS PART IS PRESENTED ON FRIDAY JUNE 13, 2008 19h-20h45
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Ricardo Echevarría, Visual artist and independent curator. President of AVAM, Spain.
Born in Toledo, 1972.
Formation.
Fine Arts (New Media) and Electroacustic Music
Phd. In New Media and architecture studies.
Solo Exhibitions: Párraga Art Center (Murcia), ArtNueve Gallery (Murcia), Blanca Soto Gallery (Madrid), Forvm Chantal-Grande (Tarragona), Caixa Foundation (Lleida)…among others.
Group Exhibitions: Art Glogauer (Berlin), Madrid Abierto, Palau de la Virreina (Barcelona), Arco, MACBA (Barcelona), Museum Reina Sofía (Madrid), LACPS (Los Ángeles, EE.UU), Centro de Arte Santa Mónica (Barcelona), Germinations X (Athens, Greece), CyMar (Weimar, Alemania), among others..
Projects and activieties: President of AVAM (Professional Art Assocition of Madrid), Curator for La Caixa Foundation (Barcelona), NBK Gallery (Berlin), founder of Aleph-arts (1996), first net.art site in spanish, curator of the online exhibition at Universal Expo of Hannover, Möbius Internacional Award, Castilla-La Mancha 1st. prize for photography & videocreation |
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Presentation of the selection (Curated by Ricardo Echevarría)
"Stirrings Still"
Beside the boom of the video as artistic media/category in the decades of the 70´s till late 80´s, it’s since the 90’s when a video art scene could be consider as relevant in the artistic environment in Spain.
The lack of technical education in audiovisual was a common characteristic of the art schools since the last decades. Also, the access to professional resources was a big issue (even today) in our country.
However, the arrival of computers put in the artist hands a better tool of experimentation in this media. Artist could focus, then, in the concept rather than in the form of the video creation.
From a formal experimentation in the last decades came up several discursive lines that today are the basic substrate of the Spanish video art environment.
These lines are, in my opinion, the following:
Video performance, an exhaustive use of the video as final destination of the performative acts rather than public performance. In this aspect, the works of Joan Morey are focus.
Creative doumentary/post-cinema. A step beyond the classic narrative structure of the documentary approach and a “violation” and extensive use of the classical cinema structures in the opposite way: de-structure the narrative line in order to open the multiple meanings. Ivan Merino is working many years ago in this field.
Post TV. An extensive usage of TV footage in order to produce a critical discourse against the media. This particular aspect is represented in this screening by Andres Hispano & Felix Pérez Hita’s work.
Computer animation. Far from the commercial FX productions, computer tools have made possible the usage of this type of representation by contemporary artist. Sofía Jack video’s are develop in this scenario.
Post-cinema and conceptual video. Usage of the video as part of a conceptualist discourse of the artwork. This is mixed with the de-structure of the narrative classic lines and with the movie footage appropriations as part of the artistic work. My videos are set up in this environment.
Joan Pueyo is an early artist (not with enough recognition) who worked in all these lines since his first productions. He can be considered a pioneer in this aspect.
There are other aspects to take in consideration of the vide art scene in Spain.
There is no a distribution structure for the video arte works. Either TV stations (commercial and governmental) and web video hosting portals are not interested in video art as part of their grids.
Galleries are applying a “traditional-art-object” scheme for merchandise the video art. This situation is making video art go against it’s own principles: the potential to reach wider audiences.
Publishing is also a big issue. None media production companies are normally interested in video art. Magazines and Museums also do not play this role as alternative.
Landscape is not the best (you can check out at the international meetings to there is normally none or very small Spanish representation). Also the discursive lines described above are not new. But quality is improving and there is an extensive usage of the video by the artist as “natural” tool/media for the artistic creation. This situation is taking video to an equal position to the rest of contemporary artistic categories in Spain.
Ricardo Echevarría. Madrid January 3, 2008 |
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Joan Pueyo, “Massa sol al cap”, 1999, 7 min
One of the pioneers in the videoart landscape in Barcelona, Joan shows in one of his last jobs before quitting the artistic activity a puzzle of his ideas about body, daily environment and inner thoughts about craziness. The title in catalonian language means "too much sun in the head". |
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Ivan Marino, “Über die Kolonie”, 1997, 18 min
Ivan goes to Berlin to film a documentary about a residency for abandoned kids. He found old film footage of previous documentary and he built the history of the place and people who used to live there.
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Joan Morey, Arcada Girl”, 1996, 4 min
(video Performance)
Solo video-performance of a drag-queen doing a simple act. Throwing up. |
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A.Hispano & Felix Pérez-Hita, “El mundo inmediato”, 2000, 15 min
(creative documentary)
A reflection of the media landscape and the media control using the tv footage. |
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Ricardo Echevarria, “Be”, 2001, 3 min
(conceptual videoart)
A simple sequence showing a doble reflection (image and conceptual) of the verb "to be" |
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Ricardo Echevarria, “Yosinyo”, 2004, 14 min
(conceptual videoart)
The title "me-without-me" show a serie of secuences in wich the idea of "less ness" is floating in the footage towards the video.
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Ricardo Echevarria, “Double lcon", 2005, 5 min
(postcinema)
A new mix of the last secuence of the last movie of Bruce Lee (Double Dragon) shows in double screen a reflection (using the mirror) about image, icons, and selfness. |
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Sofia Jack, “Casa B-300”, 2006, 6 min
(animated graphics)
A animated computer graphic history about how machines becomes shapers of the human environment. |
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Ricardo Echevarria, “Arquitecturas del pensamiento”, 2004, 12 min
(creative documentary)
Originally created for the 100 years of La Caixa foundation, shows the architectural and conceptual process of building sense and culture. The narrator voice use the Tao Te King as link between the different scenes.
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(c) FIFVC 2004-08
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