15.4.08

connecting urban spaces_2008

Connecting Urban Spaces_1 Media art exhibition / collaborative production.

Presentation:
The project ‘connecting urban spaces’ was first exhibited in Brazil in 2007 as an online-based art production. The project generates a show created collaboratively between five artists from different cities in different countries.
The artists created a ‘virtual office’ where in they investigated, discuss and develop multimedia art pieces about cityscapes and urban environments to produce a physical show.
With the idea to connect and research these urban spaces in a nomadic perspective the artists was working - virtually - during four months, using digital technologies such as photography/video/sound, to
document their environments and to produce the artworks (Sao Paulo - Brazil, Paris - France, Copenhagen - Denmark and Cologne – German).
Virtual office_2007: www.tateandocidades.multiply.com
After this time, with the support of Emma Thomas gallery (Sao Paulo-Brazil), I produced an exhibition in the gallery space where these documents was part of the art pieces displayed in the show.
At the same time, other artists with other works related to the city environment were invited for the show, adding to the project complementary mediums such as painting, postal art, stickers and installation. Parallel to the exhibition a virtual gallery was created to serve as a democratic environment for artists to submit their work about the project theme.
Virtual gallery_2007: www.connectingurbanspaces.blogspot.com
Pictures from the exhibition at Emma Thomas gallery, Brazil, July 28 until October 06, 2007









































































































Connecting Urban Spaces_2008 Presentation:
This year, in collaboration with the artists-run organization based in Berlin, Germany, WOOLOO (www.wooloo.org) the project connecting urban spaces will continue.
Using the same methodology, other artists will be invited to produce - in a virtual environment - a show for the physical space, presenting their own projects and allowing all visitors to view this online work production in the process.
The artworks produced - during four months - in the virtual office will generate an investigation about nomadism, urban geography, citizens and community related to the artists’ cities.
Each artist will create a single project to be part of the physical exhibition, displaying in the gallery the documents from the projects’ process and allowing other artist to integrate or appropriate their pieces in the informal ‘virtual collaboration’
How the collaboration happens?
- Each artist will receive a login and password from a ‘multiply website’ where every week they will publish their projects process (as a multimedia document using video, photography, text, sound or web links).
- The website will also contain the section ‘blog’, where every week a theme will be given. The theme will be discussed together to develop a critical review about the project.
-The artists in the virtual office will be allowed to appropriate or incorporate other artists projects’ documents into their own, connecting their themes throw this medium.
- In the end of the virtual office the artist-mediator2 will select - with each artist - a series of documents to be part of the exhibition in the physical gallery.
The project is a constant collaboration between artists/curators/galleries and institutions. During the production we will also be looking for other collaborators to join the project with the intent to integrate other exhibitions/projects in other cities, connecting – literally – these urban spaces.

Virtual gallery:
During the virtual office a small group of artists will present in a virtual exhibition works related to the project’ issue. At the same time a ‘parallel virtual gallery’ (blog) will be create for artists from the wooloo.org database submit their work.




2
‘Artist-mediator’ (curator), the artist that assist social relations to create a networks where the environment is base by the production of art. "Rather than being the sole 'creator' of a work of art, the artist often plays the role of a mediator or facilitator for audiences' interaction with and contribution to the artwork" (PAUL, Christiane. "Digital Art". 2003. Thames and Hudson Ltd, London. p21/22)