Abstract the Proposal Mini Manifesto History
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
THE INTER-SOCIETY FOR THE the second symposium, with words, scientifically) approach the representatives of SIGGRAPH, the artistic potentials of our new age. ELECTRONIC ARTS REVIVED? Computer Music Association, Ars Electronica, ISAST/Leonardo, ANAT, History Wim van der Plas, Languages of Design and others, the The idea to start ISEA was conceived by ISEA International Foundation discussion was reasonably civilised, but Theo Hesper, currently a resident of Clazina Kouwenbergzoom 107 behind the scenes tempers flared, as Indonesia. Theo was founder and board 3065 KC Rotterdam nobody wanted to lose autonomy. member of the Dutch Foundation for The Netherlands Looking at ISEA2013’s theme and Creative Computer Applications [email protected] sub-themes, this is the time to put co- (SCCA), of which I was the director. operation on the table! To quote from the The SCCA partnered with the Utrecht Abstract ISEA2013 site: Art School to organise the first ISEA This is an edited version of an introduction written for the panel session with the same name of June symposium in Utrecht. The Utrecht Art 13, 2013. The editing took place after the session -Resistance is Futile: Electronic Art now School made a commitment during the was held. Both the introduction and the panel lies embedded in the heart of our first symposium to organise the next one session are seen as the beginning of a discussion contemporary cultures. too, in two years’ time. that should help to give direction to the future of ISEA. However, less than a year later, I This article was edited by ISEA International -Histories and Futures of Electronic Art: received an e-mail message from Roger board member Bonnie Mitchell, and received input ISEA2013 offers a platform to explore Malina, who had participated in the from the panellists as well as from Wolfgang where electronic art has come from, historic meeting in Utrecht. He informed Schneider, Roger Malina and Peter Beyls. The where it is going and what it might panellists were Bonnie Mitchell, Anne Nigten me that the Utrecht Art School had told (former ISEA board member), Vicki Sowry become. him they were not going to be able to (ISEA2013 organiser), Ernest Edmonds (presenter pull off the second symposium, and he at the first ISEA symposia) and Peter Anders (ISEA -Creation, Collaboration and asked me whether I saw any other International board member). I would like to thank Consumption: ISEA2013 encourages them all for their constructive thinking. possibilities. I worked for the computer The panel proposal is followed first by a mini debate, provocations and engagement in animation department of Groningen manifesto (why cooperation?) and then an historic the global nets of participation. University (then called Polytechnic) of overview of ISEA, which is celebrating its 25th birthday this year. Before presenting the viewpoints Applied Sciences, which boasted a of the panel members, I will try to give some of Mini Manifesto famous art school (Minerva) and a Music those viewpoints an historic context, and add to that for a Network Organisation for the Conservatory with an electronic music some insights from personal experience. Finally, I Emergent Arts department. The school agreed to host will try to draw some conclusions. In that way I hope to lay the foundation for a more or less the symposium; it sprang into action and structured discussion that will continue after the 1. We live in a world that is governed by organised a quite successful second panel and ISEA2013 are over. economic laws. The economy in charge ISEA in 1990. Nearly 500 proposals is mainly based on profit maximisation were received, and approximately 250 Keywords: Electronic Art, Emergent Art, Media by individual enterprises (as opposed to History, International Symposium on Electronic international and 250 Dutch participants Art, Inter-Society for the Electronic Arts collective initiatives). attended. First in Utrecht, and even more so in The Proposal 2. Meanwhile, history is being governed Groningen, an enthusiastic group of The original aim of ISEA was to connect by expansion of human knowledge, Australians insisted that they would all organisations that are active in the encompassing both insight and organise the third symposium in 1992 in field of the electronic (or emergent) arts; imagination, or science and art, together Sydney. That symposium was of a larger thus ISEA would become a meta- known as culture. scale, involving major musea and organisation. galleries; the following symposia held in The goal of the first ISEA 3. The development of science and its Minneapolis (1993) and Helsinki (1994) Symposium, held in 1988 in Utrecht, the practical application, technology, is were rather modest; however the one Netherlands, was not to begin a series, extremely fast, providing for rapid held in Montreal (1995) was relatively but to establish the meta-organisation by changes in production, medicine, social large. creating a gathering at which the plan for life and so on. The economic motor Before the second symposium, Theo this association of organisations could be requires us to consider every Hesper and I founded the Inter-Society discussed and endorsed. This is exactly technological advance as a potential for the Electronic Arts (with the same what happened, and the association, source of profit. acronym as the symposium), thus called the Inter-Society for the fulfilling the goals expressed at the Electronic Arts (ISEA), was founded 2 4. This obscures our vision of future historic Utrecht meeting. The name was years later in the city of Groningen (the well-being on a global scale. The only coined by Roger Malina. It was an Netherlands), prior to the second ISEA counterweight at our disposition is art, association, and it was intended that its the other side of the cultural moon. In symposium, in the same city. The members be institutes and organisations; continuation of the symposia, thus such a serious context, it is of essential however, as we had no funding importance that all art initiatives which making it a series, was another result of whatsoever, we decided to allow the historic meeting in Utrecht. consciously aim at grasping the individuals to join too, and managed to implications of technological Quite possibly, the goal was too enrol around 100, rising to 200, ambitious, and the founding fathers too development, put their heads together members, many of them non-paying. and co-operate. The aim should be to much ahead of their times. When a panel Only a few (5-10) of the members were meeting was organised on the stage of structurally and systematically (in other institutions; many were students, paying Please reference as: [Author(s)-of-paper] (2013) [Title-of-paper] in Cleland, K., Fisher, L. & Harley, R. (Eds.) Proceedings of the 19th International Symposium of Electronic Art, ISEA2013, Sydney. http://ses.library.usyd.edu.au/handle/2123/9475 Page numbering begins at 1 at the start of the paper. a reduced fee. The association was run have been unrealistic to imagine that this second decision was made in by a number of volunteers–Dirk Boon 3-day summit would result in definitive consultation with the ISEA membership, and Rene Paré in the Netherlands, and, answers to the questions on the table, but and was to become a foundation instead among others, Yoshiyuki Abe in Japan it was, at least, the beginning of a of an association. The Inter-Society went and Rejane Spitz in Brazil. However, collaborative effort to solve common to sleep (it still exists, but is dormant), none of the volunteers could work for problems. and ISEA International saw the light of ISEA as part of their paid professional The question of funding dominated day. job. many of the presentations and The University of Brighton offered to The ISEA members wanted something discussions. As Valérie Lamontagne host the International ISEA in return for their membership dues, so described in the CIAC Magazine: headquarters, with Sue Gollifer as the we negotiated a symposium fee “Certain initiatives did result from this Director. From then on we charged the reduction for ISEA members, and discussion, mainly the desire to form a symposium hosts a fee of €10K, of produced a monthly newsletter, nation-wide media arts lobbying which 80% goes to the University of including an extensive event agenda, job organization.” But her conclusion speaks Brighton; however, this still does not opportunities, calls for participation, etc., for itself: “Media arts still remains an art allow us enough room for development, that was distributed via snailmail. Over practice fraught with contradictions in so we recently raised the fee to €15K. the years, more than 100 newsletters practice and philosophy”[1]. have been produced. Yoshiyuki and The most distinct observation of Valérie Policy Rejane translated the newsletter into was: “Cartographies focused on the one Where the Inter-Society was overly Japanese and Portugese (for the hand on a movement away from optimistic and naïve, the ISEA Brazilians), and we called them our computer-based art practices towards International foundation has limited its Japanese and Brazilian branches. Our interactive projects done in collaboration goals to what it is able to reasonably main job was to coordinate the with the scientific and artistic accomplish. A volunteer organisation continuation of the symposia. community, and, on the other hand, on requires professionals in order to work The Montreal symposium in 1995 was projects being done in an independent effectively. so successful that the organisers were fashion which no longer necessitated ISEA International has only 3 aims: to subsequently able to get funding to take ‘center’ and ‘distributors’. A dichotomy ensure that the series of symposia on the running of the association, and was formed between a populist approach continues, to maintain a secretariat (HQ), bring 'HQ', as we called the secretariat, to technology and more expensive and and to maintain the two websites (the to their city.