KLEX 2011 Feature Artist : Michael Brynntrup (Germany)
Born in Muenster (Westphalia) in 1959. Studied Law, Philosophy, and History of Arts at the Universities of Muenster, Freiburg, Rome and Berlin (1977-87). Fine Arts at the Braunschweig School of Art (1987-91, attended film and video classes of Prof. Birgit Hein and Prof. Gerhard Buettenbender). Received Master’s degree in Braunschweig in 1991. Experimental poems, paintings, fotography, copyart since 1977. Texts and diary since 1979. Installations, performances, events since 1980. Over 70 experimental short films and videos since 1981, four feature films. Film exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art New York in 1987, 1992 and 1999. Participation in many international film festivals (17 films at Berlin Film Festival since 1984). Numerous film awards (e.g. “1st Prize German Competition Oberhausen” in 1991). Numerous Werkschauen (e.g. in USA, Canada, Russia, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Finland, Poland, Brasil, Colombia, Indonesia and the Philippines). Numerous film tours (e.g. ‘Missionstournee’ and ‘Nordamerika- Mission’) with presentations of special compiled film programs. Founding member, oyko-film-coop and Interfilm Festival in Berlin 1982. Film journalist, ‘die tageszeitung’ Berlin 1982-85. Participation in the roundtable of Berlin Film Production (the Berlin Model for Cultural Film Funding, 1989/90). Jury member for several international film festivals. Organisation of german/international, avantgarde and GLBT film events for the Museum of Modern Art Frankfurt and several other institutions and for international festivals (e.g. in Sao Paolo, St. Petersburg and Chiangmai). Presentation of touring programs of German experimental filmwork at home and abroad. Occasional co- operation with the Goethe Institute, Council Programs for Visiting Foreign Artists, the Senate of Cultural Affairs for Berlin and the Stiftung Deutsche Kinemathek. Publications on Off-Off-Cinemas and on Super-8. Since 1990 workshops, project advising and apprenticeship counselling in the area of media production (including BBJ-Consult/Berlin und Cineworks/Vancouver). Guest lecturer on Experimental Film and Interactive Media (e.g. at Merz Akademie Stuttgart and at Beijing Normal University Zhuhai/China). Since 2006 Professor for Film/Video at Braunschweig University of Art. For more information please log on to http://www.brynntrup.de/x1111kl/
Recent Works from Alumni of the HBK Film Class | Recent German Experimental Film
Over 2500 short films are produced in Germany every year. In all genres, short films are the most innovative form, and experimental short films represent an even more intense form of this innovative drive. With such an abundance and diversity of short films, any specific selection can no more than crack open the window, offering just a very limited look at the phenomenon of “recent German experimental film.” The program presented here is specifically limited to films and videos from alumni of the HBK Film Class. For almost forty years, the Film Class has been constantly producing new films and new filmmakers, exercising a significant influence on the imagery of German experimental film up until this very day. This program covers the entire spectrum, but always with the signature of the Film Class. On the one hand are highly polished and staged films, but with the filmmaker also in the picture, as the “hero/heroine” of the narrative. At the other end of the spectrum, we see the “classical” found-footage film, but with the highly personal (bio-)rhythm of the auteur. All these works have the subjective approach in common. They are all authentic testimonies of personal perceptions and understandings.
Aktuelle Arbeiten von Alumni der HBK-Filmklasse | Recent Works from Alumni of the HBK Film Class [ 68 min | 2008-2011 | 8 films ] (curated by Michael Brynntrup)
Christoph Girardet und Matthias Müller – Maybe Siam 12:20 min | 2009 | video (BetacamSP 16:9) | bw+col | sound (english)
Carsten Aschmann – Gas Avalon 14:00 min | 2011 | video DVD (HDV 16:9) | col | stereo (deutsch, english subtitled)
Arne Strackholder – Blumen, Fische, Katze, Haus, … | flowers, fish, cat, house, … 4:20 min | 2009 | video (DV 4:3) | col | sound (no dialogues)
Bjørn Melhus – I’m Not the Enemy 13:30 min | 2011 | video (HD 16:9) | col | stereo (english)
Caspar Stracke – Rong Xiang 8:34 min | 2008 | video (DV 4:3) | col | stereo (english)
Per Olaf Schmidt – one 103 happy : 83 sad minute and thirty seconds 1:23 min | 2009 | video (DV 4:3) | col | sound (english)
Volker Schreiner – Cycle 4:14 min | 2010 | video (DV 4:3) | bw+col | sound Mirko Martin – Noir 8:08 min | 2008 | video (HDV 16:9) | bw | stereo (english)
“3.11” What is to be remembered? : Japan
“3.11” This digit became a historic sign to be remembered with a specific time and date, March 11, 2011 at 14:26:23. It divided “before” and “after” that specific time. Numerous images reporting the disaster, put all Japanese people into paralysis. What happened at that time? What will begin from now on? Many news and myriad websites, or people who had cameras in his or her hands, tried to grasp complete picture. Direct devastations by the earthquake and tsunami; invisible terror by nuclear power plant accidents; recovery deterred by various problems; repercussions onto atomic energy administration all over the world; the size of the picture petrified us. A tide of scenes and facts that nobody wanted to see nor to know, swept over us. The people who had never spoken appeared on various media. For now, each has his or her own thing to say. There might be things they don’t want to deal with, and facts that they want to hide. Right now, what we need is not just affection and friendliness. Pure sentiment and honesty alone cannot budge this situation. “UNEXPECTED” became a buzz word. An enormous deprivation, that was quite-predictable, gave birth to a chain of sorrow and anger. Where should those sorrow and anger be directed? No, somebody might say pessimistically that a country like ours have no hope anyway. That is also an honest word by Japanese people. The word “EIZOU” was quizzed its meaning more than ever. Every body gasped at watching coarse “EIZOU” that somebody shot with mobile phone. Countless citizens and artists pointed cameras trying to capture the “after” the moment. What on earth can “EIZOU” do? “3.11” program was woven with a straightforward cause. We wanted to ask: what are the independent “EIZOU” artists, like us, were thinking when the earthquake struck us; what have changed to them “before” and “after” that? Hence, these videos were not directed to a unified volition nor political assertion. This program accumulates videos that each artist has experienced during and after the moment.
Iso – Katsuyuki Hattori 3:11 min | 2011
A Few Minutes Later – Hiroaki Sato 3:11 min | 2011
Bye Bye Alfred – Kotaro Tanaka 3:11 min | 2011
The Lake – Aki Nakazawa, Jan Verbeek 3:11 min | 2011
To be announced – Akiko Nakamura 3:11 min | 2011
Don Ska Ban – Naoya Ooe 3:11 min | 2011
Tangram (2011) – Kentaro Taki 3:11 min | 2011
Video Feedback Aleatoric no.1 – Masayuki Kawai 3:11 min | 2011
A Growing Historical Evidence in My Life – Bon Tan Sui 3:11 min | 2011
Voice of Farmland – Eiji Azuma 3:11 min | 2011
Making of Tokyo – Yousuke Sano 3:11 min | 2011
To the Eyes of Sleepless Nights – Yu Shigematsu 3:11 min | 2011
Dot – Youhei Kurozaki 3:11 min | 2011
… ………., –Haruyuk i Ishii 3:11 min | 2011
A Found Beach – Keitaro Oshima 3:11 min | 2011
Commemorative Photos – Maki Satake 3:11 min 2011
Swimming Up from Fukushima Gulf to Home River – Hiroshi Ashikaga 3:11 min | 2011
Hi-Kage – Sayaka Shimada 3:11 min | 2011
Co-curator : Hiroaki Sato
Hiroaki Sato is a video artists, writer, curator and lecturer. He was born in 1962. Working with text, images and especially video art. He is one of the founders of Spread Video Art Project 2 (SVP2). His book, “The Fightin’ Video Camera” was published in 2008. In it, he comments on the contemporary Japanese situation of video art, documentary film, video activism and education. He is currently teaching in Nihon University College of Art Department of Cinema, Tokyo Polytechnic University, Musashi University Department of sociology, Nippon Engineering College.
Co-curator : Katsuyuki Hattori
Katsuyuki HATTORI – Born Tokyo, Japan, in 1973. He co-founded seminal video art organizations in Tokyo: Spread Videoart Project, art Lab. GOLDENSHIT, and VIDEOART CENTER Tokyo. Exploring various aspects of video art for over 10 years, he creates both representational and non-representational video works. His works are shown in “18. Kasseler Dokumentarfilm-und Videofestes” (2001, Kasseler) “laisle.com video experimental e video arte,” (2003, Rio de Janeiro), “telepidemic! Int.” (2004, Hong Kong), “punto y raya festival 0.2” (2007, Madrid). He was an artist in residence at VIDEO POOL Media Art Center (2007, Winnipeg).
Workshop Artist : Kotaro Tanaka
Born in Tokyo, Japan in 1979. Filmmaker, VJ(video jocky), Part-time instructor of movie. His works are exhibited in the country and overseas such as Image Forum Festival, International Film Festival Rotterdam and Europian Media Art Festival. His main theme in his works is “Gazing”. He is trying to expand the meaning and the concept of it. Also his theme is how to narrate “stories” without common scripts, by just audio visual. He thinks that he has to try new narrative of cinema and believes that he has what he can do for cinema so much. Website : http://kotarotanaka.net
Second-hand Material Original Works : Hong Kong
Hong Kong government has recently been reviewing the Copyright Ordinance. Artists who use found footage or images in their works are liable to criminal charges. This situation worries many artists. It can happen in other countries. Therefore this program “Second-hand Material Original Works” will concentrate on this issue, showing derivative experimental shorts. Hong Kong Government makes it clear that “Kuso” style works are infringement of thecopyright law. “Kuso” is popular in some Asian countries. It means Internet users transform or adapt some soap operas, films and TV commercials. The style is always funny and mostly exaggerated. The purposes are always subversive and making fun of the original production. Hong Kong government is always the target of this kind of creation. It seems that the government is using the amended law to combat “Kuso” style political criticism. One of the references of “Kuso” is experimental films. It is a kind of derivative work using found footage and images. Using this kind of material to make art is a common practice with a hundred years’ history. In 1919, Duchamp added two moustaches to the face of a copy of a painting of Mona Lisa. He tried to challenge the sacred status of a master piece. Andy Warhol’s copies of images of Campbell soup and Marilyn Monroe brought popular culture into the arena of the arts. These inspiring master pieces may now be violated of copyright laws in Hong Kong! In the evening of September 22, the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau hosted a meeting to explain the new amendments of the Copyright Ordinance. The guest lawyer invited by the Government cited two anecdotes to explain how “Kuso” style work violated the law. It is like someone visiting a restaurant, he said. He gives his car to a valet who has his car parked. The valet takes the car and rides around. The second anecdote concerns a hostess who tells her domestic helper to clean a ring. The domestic helper puts on the ring to show off. These anecdotes immediately aroused a lot of objection on the spot. One of the participants of the meeting objected to the lawyer’s comparing artists to thieves. Another participant complained that the analogies were totally inappropriate as in those two hypothetical situations, no new works were produced. I agree with him. In case of using found footage as art material, the original work will not disappear. These analogies illustrate how the Government and other people misunderstand art. In many cases of artists using found footage, the point is to call the audience’s attention to the original context of the discourse. It is like citation. Artists used ready-made objects such as symbols, signs, posters, video clips and so on, as a metaphor or as a way to redefine the meaning of the original object. Citation is widely acceptable and an honorable practice in writing. Why do we then make citation a crime in other expressive media? Why can’t we accept pictorial critiques or use of visual metaphors? In Peter Cheung’s view (Director of Intellectual Property Department) , we need to ask for the creator’s permission when we use found footage or image (isdgovhk). According to the same logic, when we use a quote, we need to ask for the author’s permission. Furthermore, we can only use it if s/he like our articles. Otherwise, we might “affect prejudicially the copyright owner(s)”. If that is the case, how can anyone even write or publish anymore? According to many regular practices around the world, as long as the artists comply with the principles of fair use, and the works are not for commercial purposes, they should not be regarded as infringement of copyright. In many countries such as Belgium, France, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Spain, there is legislation in place to expressly permit caricature, parody or pastiche. Nordic countries allow artistic transformation: that is, the production of a new work based on an existing work does not require the consent of the right holder. Austria, Germany and Portugal have adopted the principle of fair use. They generally agree that derivative or transformative works will not infringe, but of course these transformations must have kept certain distance from the original (Westkamp 45). Moreover, works can only be used after they are being published. The rationale for many of these exemptions is based on fundamental constitutional rights e.g. freedom of speech and art. (Westkamp 254). Caricature, parody and pastiches can be regarded as independent works. In Sweden, a radio program used the characters of a children book. In 2005, the Swedish Supreme Court agreed that it was a parody and was considered as an independent work rather than an infringement. The case was dropped. (Westkamp 434). To provide more information for the discussion of this issue, the program “Second-hand Material Original Works” will show seven experimental short videos which involve the use of copies of images or found footage. The style of these works vary, some of them are serious research and discussion of culture, not restricted to “Kuso” style. TONG Wing Sze’s < City Memory. Memorize Hong Kong > made the images in a hundred Hong Kong Dollar bank note alive. Buildings were erected one by one but old objects were shown to have fallen down. The fireworks inside the bank note burnt the note itself. It seems to criticize the over-developed and money ruled society. Linda LAI’s work expresses her resistance against cliché statements made about Hong Kong while reaching out to its past via found images and sounds. . Her work, “VOICES SEEN, IMAGES HEARD” is a dialectical representation of her research process as a historian. With the images and sounds she found, she attempts a narrative of Hong Kong that is different from the (stereo-) typical Hong Kong story. She reveals clichés, and undoes familiar discourses, in order that she can go back to the fragments of the everyday ground level, suggesting that asking the question ‘what is Hong Kong’ is more important than providing stock answers. This approach is humane and inspiring. With the found materials she collected from different sources, she pieced together a story of the surfaces of Hong Kong that can only be viewed from outside. IP Yuk Yiu’s work “The Moon is Larger in Peking – short version” also used a well-known Hollywood film based on a story that has supposedly happened in Hong Kong. He used a deconstructive method to eliminate some important elements of the film “LOVE IS A MANY SPLENDORED THING”, such as moving images, acting and sound etc. Instead, he used subtitles, flashing of still images and movie clips to compose a film. The style of the film is totally changed. It also inspires others to think of the form of a film. Hector RODRIGUEZ’s work “Flowpoints: Kiss,” which also transforms an American classic, used motion tracking software to trace the movement of human beings. The computer codes he wrote generates abstract lines from the footage of Andy Warhol’s film “Kiss.”. The work shows the tension between abstraction and figuration, between movement/rhythm and objecthood. The work tries to grasp the rhythm of the bodies. Although the lines look simple, one can still feel the emotive force of human beings. . Ellen PAU also used the method of subtraction for her “Fanfare for the Common Man” She chose the daily behaviors of human beings in the animated news, put them together and added the background music of Olympic Games. The work seems to question the dramatic news reporting and to cast doubt on the news’ authenticity. Although the news clips came from different news stories, they are consistent and seem to be telling the same story. Her work grasps the pulse of the times. CHOI Sai Ho used a different method to treat the news. His work “Star” is like a collage of news, banners and sound of demonstration of the “protecting the historic sites – Star Ferry Pier and Queen’s Pier” event. The rhythm is so intense and the work shows the violence of the news event. The TV news in LAW Yuk Mui’s “Disabled Novel” shows another image where the news items are just like parts of normal life, quiet, monotonous and melancholy. Works using found footage have rich artistic expressions. It can be historical research, political criticism, life experience, artistic reflection and media exploration, etc. There are many other possibilities that this program cannot include. They are independent and original works. They are very different from the original works. If these art works have no exemption from copyright laws, it will be restricting artistic expressions and may lead to self-censorship. Wish the public can understand the expression of contemporary art and make it flourish. Reference: Westkamp Guido. The Implementation of Directive 2001/29/EC in the Member States. February, 2007. Web 9 September, 2011.
City Memory. Memorize Hong Kong – TONG Wing Sze 5:00 min | 2008
VOICES SEEN, IMAGES HEARD – Linda LAI 27:58 min | 2009
THE MOON IS LARGER IN PEKING short version – IP Yuk Yiu 8:00 min | 2004
Flowpoints: Kiss – Hector RODRIGUEZ 10:00 min | 2011
Fanfare for the Common Man – Ellen PAU 4:00 min | 2010
Disabled Novel – LAW Yuk Mui 17:36 min | 2010
STAR (alternative version) – CHOI Sai Ho 8:00min | 2011
Curator : MAN Ching Ying Phoebe
Phoebe is a conceptual artist, media sculptor, independent curator and devoted teacher. She is a communicator. Her works are attempts to communicate with herself, the society, the art history and the audience. She believes the “personal is political.” Starting with self-exploration, researching ideologies and doing experiments of visual language, her works are mostly cross-disciplinary and address social concerns. Her working media include mixed media sculpture, installation art, performance, video art and web art. Her works have been shown extensively in international exhibitions, including Venice Biennial, Shanghai Biennial, Gwangju Biennial, European Media Art Festival, Videobrasil International Electronic Art Festival, Impakt Festival, International Video & Mulitmedia Art Festival: Videoformes, etc. She received awards from the Hong Kong Independent Short Film & Video Competition, Asian Cultural Council, Hong Kong Museum of Art and Philippe Charriol Foundation. Marie Claire magazine selected her to be one of the ten “Smart Women of the 21st Century” in 1998. The sanitary napkin flowers series installations and video work “Rati” have received popular recognition. She was the co- founder and board member of Para/Site Art Space. She curates shows about young artists, women’s art, interactive art and video art and is the examiner of Hong Kong Arts Development Council.