MediaArtNet

http://www.medienkunstnetz.de/concept/

"Media Art Net www.medienkunstnetz.de

• Objectives
  Media art—by definition multimedia, time-based or process-oriented—cannot be sufficiently mediated in book form. Mainstream art and cultural mediation, still being primarily print-based, do little justice to its specificity. On the other hand, Net-based media have not yet been able to establish platforms that reach more than the usual circle of insiders. Introducing the range of topics related to media and art, «Media Art Net» thus aims at establishing an Internet structure that offers highly qualified content by granting free access at the same time. Tendencies of art and media technology development throughout the twentieth century serve as the background for promoting historic and contemporary perspectives on artistic work in and with the media. A combination of diverse representational modes will offer a condensed, attractively presented multimedia focus for the interested 'surfer,' as well as profusely documented in depth information for users specifically involved in research. The main objective is, therefore, to establish theoretically and audio-visually convincing forms of relationships and references that cross the boundaries of genre. A consistently bilingual version (German/English) further transmits the international character of this undertaking.
• Access
  «Media Art Net» foremost promotes topical cross references offering various access points:
  • specific: the classic index and search engine based on a complex structure of database links
  • the exploratory approach: via visual summaries
  • the artistic perspective: as it emerges in newly commissioned Net projects by Blank&Jeron, Ismael Celis, Daniela Alina Plewe and others
  • scientific-historic aspect: as formulated in topical essays by competent authors
• Topics
  An initial step is the exemplary survey of historic and current positions and contexts of media art. In a second phase, exploring eight thematic topics locates seminal interfaces between media and art. A network of curators presents a variety of approaches and contexts:
  • Aestethics of the Digital MECAD, Barcelona, Claudia Giannetti
  • Image-Sound-Relations HGB, Leipzig, Dieter Daniels
  • Cyborg Bodies HGKZ, Zürich, Yvonne Volkart
  • Generative Tools IMG, Mainz, Tjark Ihmels
  • Photo/Byte HGB Leipzig
  • Art and Cinematography HfBK, Dresden, Gregor Stemmrich
  • Mapping and Text ZKM, Karlsruhe, Rudolf Frieling
  • Public Sphere_s ZKM, Karlsruhe, Steve Dietz"