08 October 2008

video feature
Maracaibo
Fernando Asián
Salon de Arte Digital
Museo de Arte Contemporaneo MACSUL

Maracaibo

Maracaibo

Visting Venezuela in October 2008 has for Wilfried a particular relevance. 2008 had been really a horrible year so far, earlier in March his mother had a stroke and his partner died in an accident far away in USA, those two most important persons who accompanied Wilfried before, during and after his coma. Without their neverending love, Wilfried would never had decided to return to life, and now from one moment to another these reference persons do not exist any longer, he cannot believe it!. Wilfried has the worst crisis after the coma 10 year ago in 1998. Wenn Fernando Asian, the director of Carpe Diem, a cultural organisation located in Maracaibo/Venezuela – organising the annual festival – Sálon de Arte Digital, is inviting him to attend the 10 day lasting festival in 2nd biggest town of Venezuela, he sees the chance to escape the complete depression in Cologne, and while the departure for Venezuela is coming closer, he is thinking to escape completely and vanish in Venezuela in the rainforest or elsewhere, because Wilfried will never overcome the loss of his partner, any motivation is lost. Wilfried had already since 2005 contacts to Fernando, when he participated this year for the 1st time in the digital art festival, but in 2006, when Wilfried attended the digital art festival in Havanna – Sálon de Arte Digital, Wilfried met Fernando as a like-minded person – they liked each other spontaneously.

at a bar in Maracaibo

Today, 08 October 2008, is the final day of the festival in Maracaibo – some really impressive but also adventurous days have passed, one of the days during the local election campaingn, while Wilfried was sitting with Fernando and other local and international participants in the Museum of Contemporary Art the heads of the opposite political party were massacred ja´ust a few meters from the Museum on the university campus, and on another day the festival participants made an excursion to the rainforst in the region of Sinamaica. It would have been the chance to escape in the rainforest, but Wilfried thinking of that he probably would become the meal for wild animals or terrorists was frightened by this idea and was looking for other occasion to realize his escape.

Santa Lucia

It is dangerous for tourists, therefore the festival participants were as foreigners not allowed to leave the hotel without a security person, so during the 10 days of staying in Maracaibo in a 5 star luxury hotel they were living like in a ghetto, protected inside, but outside was war.
The time in this exotic Caribbean town was really exciting, also because Wilfried was presenting during the festival an exciting videoart program.
Tomorrow, all foreign participants will leave Maracaibo, for participaing in VIII World Meeting of Intellectuals & Artists in Caracas, standing under the Patronage of the President Hugo Chavez.
Again residing in a state owned luxury hotel, the hotel is hosting this gigantic meeting, as well. Again he and the other participants are prisoners, because they are not allowed to leave the hotel without a security. Because Wilfried would like to visit the historical center of Caracas, which as he saw on the map would nearby the hotel, during the time of waiting for the congress, he is thinking to make a short sight seeing tour on his own risk, but hardly making his first step outside of the hotel, he is followed by a hotel security like a shadow. He feels extraordinary uncomfortable, rather like a criminal, but actually he just wanted to walk just a few meters and get some impressions of Caracas.

Lightning at Lake Maracaibo

Wilfried is hurrying up, and then really far away from the hotel, the security person is giving up, and Wilfried feels free – but just for one moment, because now without supervision he feels as if thousand eyes would be watching him, all criminals of the world gathering in Caracas waiting for the moment to attack Wilfried, he feels like in a surrelist painting of Salvador Dali, but now he seems to be so close to the historical center, he would not give up. Then, when Wilfried is about the cross a big boulevard, he feels that someone is following him, and when he is reaching the opposite side of the huge street, he suddenly becomes aware that within seconds a huge machete appeasrs before his eyes, and in a reflective reaction he is grabbing the arm holding this big knive and is biting the person into the arm. Being shocked by Wilfried’s attack, the attacker lets go of him and now for the first time he sees this person running behind a motorbike which had been waiting for his accomplice.

Sinamaica

All this is happening within just a few seconds, so Wilfried – probably even more shocked than the criminal – is standing in the never ending traffic completely paralized while he is watching the criminals excaping. The 1st thought of Wilfried is, no, by no means he would escape in Venezuela, the most depressive life in Cologne would be better than being killed and thrown away as rubbish in Caracas. It takes another hour to return to the hotel, where the doctor cares about Wilfried injuries. So, Wilfried will return to Cologne some days later as if another life has given to him. One year later, when Fernando (Asian) is inviting Wilfried to presents the same comprehensive videoart program in October 2019, at different places in Maracaibo, among others, the magnificent Teatro Baralt, which he had been visting together with Fermando one year ago, Wilfried is reacting on a some mistakes in Fernando’s organisation as an exploding volcano – why? In April 2009 invited to make a presentation in Casablanca/Morocco, on the 1st day, 1 April, Wilfried was attacked again by two criminals, who wanted to pick his camera and bag and again he was nearly killed fighting this time with two 18 year old and physically very strong guys for more than half an hour for his life, but in the end more dead than alive he is giving up, and the guys escape.
However the traumatizations are so heavy – within one year the loss of his two most beloved relatives and two unusual brutal attacks – so, when Wilfried returns to Cologne – he is at the end of his physical and psychlogical powers. The 1st thing the psychologist he is consulting is doing to set Wilfried in an artificial coma for the next weeks, and when Wilfried hears about Fernando’s mistakes hardly reanimasted from the coma – he simply is exploding, although it actually hadn’t been such tragic (these mistakes). This article would like to honour Fernando Asian and the same time Wilfried would like to apologize again, because due to his own traumatizations he had been reacted in a really inappropriate way!

Salón de Arte Digital

Fernando Asián – Carpe Diem

@ MACSZUL – Museum of Contemporary Art

4th Salón de Arte Digital

“Identity of Colour”, 07:07:07, 2016
Film created by media artist Agricola de Cologne, based on the artist’s poem and voice performance of the same name created and executed in 2001.
The work combines DaDa like poetic texts, vector grafics and musical components created by the artist himself.

Agricola de Cologne – Urban.early sunday morning_raw, 2002, 4:40
Synopsis
Video based on a poetic text by Agricola de Cologne inspired by the Central Station of Milan (Italy).

Metropolis: sunday morning, between open end and twilight, between hope and resignation, between following a dream and returning that night to the home town or village outside.
Coming from the disco, full of the impressions of that juicy girl or that horny boy, doubtful of whether preserving innocence or following the instinct for an outstanding erotic adventure.
It is the moment of not yet knowing, vacillating between yes or no.
It is a same ritual each week-end, even if decisions are made once.
It is a game between identifying and identity.
The work describes the urban landscape as a scenario of a play, where the protagonists are embedded in without any chance to escape.

Women:Memory of Repression in Argentina
4th Salón de Arte Digital – Museo de Arte Contemporáneo del ZULIA, MACZUL – – IV Edition – Maracaibo/VE 2005 – 20 June-2 July

*Museo de Arte Contemporáneo del ZULIA, MACZUL – Salón de Arte Digital – 2005
*Museo de Arte Contemporáneo del ZULIA, MACZUL – Salón de Arte Digital – IV Edition

5th Salón de Arte Digital

violence inc – VideoChannel Salon de Arte Digital Maracaibo/Venezuela – 1-9 October 2006

*Salon de Arte Digital – MACZUL-Museum of Contemporary Art Maracaibo/Ve 2006 Rivals & Friends

5th Salon de Arte Digital Maracaibo/Venezuela 1-8 October – net: Violence Online Festival; special VideoChannel selections 2006

6th Salón de Arte Digital

Wilfried Agricola de Cologne – House of Tomorrow, 2005, 3:40
The house of tomorrow is the house of one’s identity, it does not need to be a concrete house or building, but represents a secure and protected place where people can stand for what they are and represent, a human being. And this human may have many identities in different fields, the sexual identity represents only one among many others.

House of Tomorrow
6th Salon de Arte Digital – Museo de Arte Contemporaneo MACSUL Maracaibo/Venezuela – 7-17 October 2007

CologneOFF I & II
6th Digital Art Festival Maracaibo/Venezuela – 7-17 Oct 2007

7th Salón de Arte Digital

7th Salon de Arte Digital
Museum of Contemporary Art MACZUL Maracaibo/Venezuela – 1-8 October 2008
CologneOFF IV OFF, CologneOFF IV LAB & CologneOFF IV Mother, CologneOFF III – Art Cartoon & Animated Narratives, CologneOFF III – Feature Nick Fox-Gieg, Cinematheque – Slowtime/Dreamtime, VideoChannel – Videoart from Ukraine

CologneOFF IV

CologneOFF III – Art Cartoon & Animated Narratives
Their Circumstances by Ji Hyung Ahn (South Korea)
Prostituto, ta. by Silvia Cacciatori Filloy (Uruguay)
Brand New Morning by Konstantin Dimitriev (Russia)
The Changing Man by Rami Fischler (Australia)
Controlled Dream Machine by Anaisa Franco (Brazil)
Tomorrow by Kaspars Groshevs (Latvia)
A Dollhouse is… by Henry Gwiazda (USA)
Pilot/Gamer by Gerald Habarth (USA)
Swimming Pamela -Running Ken by Ina Lotzl (Austria)
Where Stories Come From by Lycette Bros. (Australia)
Apokalypse Cow by Man Kim (South Korea/USA)
Radiocar by Hermes Mangialardo (Italy)
Krypt by Lars Nagler (Germany)
Rain Terrain by Martin Oja (Estonia)
DO YOU KNOW THAT BAD GIRLS GO TO HELL by Tom de Pekin (France)
Bustle by Ying-Fang Shen (Taiwan)
Are You Cool Helen? by Nadja Solari (Switzerland)
Lefty’s Pathos by Simon Streatfeild (Australia)
Evil Fun with Zimmy by Andy Sykes (UK)
Scratch by Alexander Satim Timofeev (Russia)
Particula by topo – Leonardo R. Beltrán Navarro (Chile)

CologneOFF III – Feature Nick Fox-Gieg
featuring these 9 films/videos

All about the Magnet, 2002, 0:36
Disarmed , 2002, 2:42
Peace Through Strength, 2002, 2:54
Mother of All Bomb, 2003, 1:46
Six Premonitions, 2003, 2:13
The Foxhole Manifesto, 2004, 4:10
I Wanna Be Famous, 2005, 2:54
The Little Bird of Disaster, 2006, 2:40
The Option of War, 2006, 6:30
Cinematheque – Slowtime/Dreamtime

VideoChannel – Videoart from Ukraine

Yuriy Kruchak:Benas: 0:57, 2007
Svitlana Oleshko & Mykhaylo Barbara Stas Perfetsky is returning to Ukraine: 7:51, 2005
:Max Flood: Let’s walk More: 1:49, 2007
: Oksana Chepelyk: Urban Multimedia Utopia – UMU:
: Borys Pasichniy and Julia Pavlovska: Milk: 3:51, 2007 :
: Oleg Ushchenko:Genius: 1:25, 2006 : :
: Yuriy Kruchak:Showcase: 2:49, 2006 :
: Longing For Students: 3:47, 2007 by Mykola Kondratenko:
: Used to be Keys: 2:30, 2007 by Kateryna Babkina:
: The Aim Of The Game: 4:20, 2007 by Olexiy Khoroshko
: Shifting Time: 6:00, 2004 by Oksana Chepelyk
Indoor-Outdoor, 3:51, 2007 by Viacheslav Poliakov

VIII World Meeting of Intellectuals & Artists Caracas/Ve – 13-18 October 2008

VIII World Meeting of Intellectuals & Artists Caracas

The VII Salon of Digital Art of Maracaibo inaugurated:
An online video festival and interactive multimedia installations
________________________________________________________________________
Presented by CARPE DIEM, the 2008 edition of the Maracaibo Digital Art Room was inaugurated, in room 4 of the Museum of Contemporary Art of Zulia (MACZUL) which offers us, in its varied program, a tour of the recent work of participants from previous editions in Digital Image, with the exhibition of more than 70 works.
The multimedia artists from Germany, Agrícola de Cologne, Cuba, Héctor Villaverde, and from the USA, Stuart and Nicole Alden, are present at the event, giving talks on Digital Image and showing their work in new media in art. Those interested in obtaining a certificate of attendance at the conferences, can register at the entrance of the Hall.
The German video maker, Agrícola de Cologne, Director of the Java Museum, brings to the show its international video network http://coff.newmediafest.org, which brings together the work of four festivals and nearly fifteen thousand videographers from 70 countries. This online exhibition began the event and will be presented daily by its curator in person to exchange ideas with the audience.
The Show also presents interactive multimedia works that allow the user to modify and recreate the artist’s work, thus stimulating the creative power of the public by placing the necessary tools for experimentation in their hands.
This year the Show also offers a Venezuelan edition of the project “Sharing Dreams / Compartiendo Sueños”, an initiative of a group of North American graphic designers, which has been held in Havana in four editions. With the participation of five Cuban and five North American designers, five Venezuelan designers join the Hall of our city.
The students of the Digital Image course and the attending public were able to share with national and international artists, who in this edition are 70 representing 25 countries.
Tomorrow the documentary video “Pa´ Santo Yo” by the young Venezuelan videographer Rhonny Zamora will be released.
The VII Digital Art Room will be open to the public until October 9 all day until 7:00 PM.

7th Salon de Arte Digital – Museum of Contemporary Art MACZUL Maracaibo / Venezuela – 1-8 October 2008

Inaugurado el VII Salón de Arte Digital de Maracaibo:
Un festival de video on line e instalaciones multimedia interactivas
________________________________________________________________________
Presentado por CARPE DIEM, se inauguró la edición 2008 del Salón de Arte Digital de Maracaibo, en la sala 4 del Museo de Arte Contemporáneo del Zulia (MACZUL) que nos ofrece, en su variado programa, un recorrido por la obra reciente de participantes de anteriores ediciones en Imagen Digital, con la exposición de más de 70 obras.
Los artistas multimedia de Alemania, Agrícola de Cologne, Cuba, Héctor Villaverde, y de EEUU, Stuart y Nicole Alden, están presentes en el evento, realizando charlas sobre Imagen Digital y mostrando sus trabajos en los nuevos medios en el arte. Los interesados en obtener un certificado de asistencia a las conferencias, pueden inscribirse en la entrada del Salón.
El videoasta alemán, Agrícola de Cologne, Director del Java Museum, aporta al salón su red internacional de videos http://coff.newmediafest.org, que agrupa la obra de cuatro festivales y cerca de quince mil videoastas de 70 países. Esta exhibición on line dio inicio al evento y será presentada diariamente por su curador en persona para intercambiar ideas con el público asistente.
El Salón presenta además obras multimedia interactivas que permiten al usuario modificar y recrear la obra del artista, estimulando así el poder creativo del público al colocar en sus manos las herramientas necesarias para la experimentación.
Este año el Salón ofrece también una edición venezolana del proyecto “Sharing Dreams / Compartiendo Sueños”, iniciativa de un grupo de diseñadores gráficos norteamericanos, que se ha realizado en La Habana en cuatro ediciones. A la participación de cinco diseñadores cubanos y cinco norteamericanos, se incorporan cinco diseñadores venezolanos para el Salón de nuestra ciudad.
Los alumnos del curso Imagen Digital y el público asistente, pudieron compartir con los artistas nacionales e internacionales, que en esta edición son 70 en representación de 25 países.
Mañana será estrenado el video documental “Pa´ Santo Yo” del joven videoasta venezolano Rhonny Zamora.
El VII Salón de Arte digital estará abierto al público hasta el día 9 de octubre durante todo el día hasta las 7:00 PM.