Artistic barcamp and interactive game on the societal role of artists between the poles of cooperation and competition

moderation of generative slots
karl kilian | alexandra reill | christian stefaner-schmid | agnes peschta / susanne schuda | brigitte wilfing
electronic sound performances arthur denisson / eargazm | das_spice

development of interactive structure | interactive spatial setting
peter koger | alexandra reill
interactive light / barcode programmming peter koger
game design | text alexandra reill
idea | concept | curating | programming alexandra reill

photo| video documentation peter horn
public relations | production management alexandra reill
production kanonmedia in cooperation with
co space | grüne bildungswerkstatt wien | peter j. fuchs “direct marketing“ | pink zebra theatre
in the framework of the festival kultur.herbst.neubau | vienna 2014

In an interactive media setting CLOUDS IN THE SHARK POOL reflects the role of the artist as a medium between the poles of cooperation and competition – an antagonism forming one of the main pillars of onholding scientific discussion. Where does the artist stand today? In the process of humans and machines growing together more and more one can divine a medialization of identity, thus a synchronization of individuality. As a consequence, the question needs to be posed whether not only information itself is a medium but whether the artist her-/ himself – thus, humans themselves – are nothing but media.

After 100 years of having been perceived the role of the artist as ‘freed’ it has become redundant. (*)

In small groups, participants discuss quotes from art history and art theory and try—as in a UNO game—to combine two cards to hand in to the moderator, explaining what prompted them to combine them and earning points for doing so. Once the small group has no more cards, their round is over, and they can continue discussing openly until the other groups have finished theirs. Afterwards, the points earned by each group are announced and entered into the list of rounds. This ultimately determines the final winning group.

The card game itself is structured in its evaluation categories according to the catalog of factors valid in the scientific discipline of happiness research. However, the awarding of success points according to these categories proves in practical application that this can only be done arbitrarily, i.e., from the completely individualized and thus authoritarian perspective of the moderator(s), thereby negating the meaning and possibility of practicability. Nevertheless, it is to be expected that the players will accept the assessment…

In this collective real-time production, CLOUDS IN THE SHARK POOL reflects on the role of artists and cultural creators as a medium caught between cooperation and competition—an antagonism that is one of the cornerstones of ongoing scientific debate. Where do artists stand today? In the ongoing convergence of humans and media, we can foresee a medialization of identity and thus a synchronization of individuality, raising the question of whether not only information itself is a medium, but also the artist, indeed humanity itself.

(*) Alexandra Reill, note, 2012. Translation: AR

CLOUDS IN THE SHARK POOL supported by

our thxs go to
— department of culture of the city of vienna
— commission of culture 1070 vienna
— grüne bildungswerkstatt wien
— peter j. fuchs “direct marketing”
— pink zebra theatre
— café window
— cospace kandlgasse

CLOUDS IN THE SHARK POOL staged at

— co space kandlgasse / vie / a / 14

CLOUDS IN THE SHARK POOL listed in | featured by

— arts-numériques / paris / f / 14
— actioner / berlin / d / 14
— classic.rhizome / nyc / us / 14
— rhizome / nyc / us / 14
— lurk / int / 14
— theaterkompass / d / 14
— wiend.at / vie / a / 14
— strawanzerin / vie / a / 14
— eop / vie / a / 14
— eventphant / linz / a / 14
— grüne bildungswerkstatt österreich / vie / a / 14
— grüne bildungswerkstatt wien / vie / a / 14
— der falter / vie / a / 14
— allevents.in / vie / a / 14
— wherevent / vie / a / 14
— wauwau / vie / a / 14
— esel / vie / a / 14
— wissenschaftskompass / vie / a / 14
— digicult / milano / i / 14