Dessau, Germany OSTranenie 97
5.-9. November
Das Internationale Fourm Elektronischer Medien
by Kathy Rae Huffman
+ + +
The 1997 Ostranenie festival videotapes and Forum sessions took place in
the Bauhaus Aula, which was filled to capacity (160 persons) for most of
the program. The central space of the festival, the site of the famous
Bauhaus architecture/design collective which found it necessary to
disband under the dictates of Hitler's Germany, was an inspiration to
all. Perhaps because of this, my personal interest in video, which I
have dismissed in favor of Net.surfing for the past three-plus years,
was renewed. It was my first visit to Dessau, and although I knew it
well from the previous catalogues, I had not been able to attend in
previous years. It is sometimes spelled "OSTranenie," emphasizing its
focus on the development of media in Central and Eastern European
countries, issues surrounding the East/West "transformation" and the
resulting cultural relationships made possible by the melting of the
cold war, and the opening of borders into the east. It was a true
meeting place for media artists who normally live in the grey area of
their newly emerging cultural situations at home.
OSTranenie began "small" in 1993 as a "project," according to Stephen
Kovats, a Canadian with an architecture background who came to the
Bauhaus to conduct research and lead a workshop in media art. The
festival concept began as a personal exploration to find out more about
the role of the media in the "revolution" against Communism and Russian
control that began throughout Eastern Europe in the early 1990s, making
headlines around the world. With no real experience or financial
support, Kovats' personal energy, along with the participation of
numerous advisors, has propelled Ostranenie into a major international
event. In the beginning, Ostranenie focused on video art, since that was
the area of expertise for most of the event's first advisors, who
included Keiko Sei (Prague), Marina Grzinic (Ljubljana), and Alexander
Koprin (Moscow). The event was launched with approximately 120,000 DM
cash, raised from regional and local sources. Inke Arns was co-director
of the first event, which Kovats jokes was organized from phone booths.
But, the result was a major meeting, long awaited by the media art
community.
By 1995, Ostranenie festival applications doubled, and the money
diminished almost by half. 1993's event had revealed the spectrum of
media activity taking place in the otherwise invisible east. For 1995,
Kovats was determined to establish dialogue between the participants. He
also notes that the profile of artist shifted in 1995, changing from
more well known, influential filmmakers who worked in video to a new
generation of amateur artists who came of age during the conflict for
independence. These younger artists had little interest in the east/west
analysis, and were more curious about exploring their regional turmoil,
often using the media as a tactical tool to expose subtle tensions and
conflicts otherwise unknown. Ostranenie became a neutral zone in 1995, a
place where Croatian and Serbian artists, as well as Russian and Latvian
artists, for example, could show their tapes, installations, and speak
up in podium discussions, meeting on common ground for civilized
dialogue about personal and political realities. The city of Dessau was
also utilized in a new way, highlighting historic buildings in the
former East German city with media installations and performance events.
More than 500 proposals inundated festival organizers in 1997. Since
interest and need was far greater than the festival's structure could
handle, they did not know what to do. Attempting to insure "inclusion,"
a curatorial committee, including a number of bi-cultural
representatives, and women like Nina Czegledy (HU/CA), Adele Eisenstein
(USA/HU), and Bojana Pecic (YU/DE), was formed. One of the committee's
primary objectives was to find 'revolutionary' media pioneers, and to
define how the 'new order' of Europe was defining national identity. By
curatorial intervention, the hope was that pioneering work in the east
countries could be brought into perspective.
[…]
It was a basically a festival of videotapes. The strongest selection
centered around the war in Yugoslavia. An impressive selection of video
from Bosnian artists suggested a new sensibility from a generation
emerged from conflict and strife. The delegation of Bosnian artists
drove two days from Sarajevo, overcoming the restrictive visa
requirements that severely limit their travel outside the protected
borders of their newly recognized country. Their visit was made possible
by funding from the Soros Center for Contemporary Art in Sarajevo, and
tapes were presented in-person by Enes Zlater, Timor Makarevic, Jasmila
Zbanic, and Srdjan Vuletic. Their personal testaments revealed the
courage of the human spirit to continue to search for humor and interest
in life under the most unbearable conditions. As Jasmila Zbanic states
in one of her videos, "…in 1996, I woke up and realized that I had
survived the war…"
[…]
By incorporating the full spectrum of interests of artists from Eastern
Europe, the Ostranenie festival is a special tribute to the history of
this community of thinkers who bring life and spirituality into their
art. Kovats felt it was the "perfect place" in 1992, and the works of
the 1997 media artists lived up to the standards of honesty, and sense
of purpose that the artists, designers, and architects from the Bauhaus
would surely appreciate. For 1999, Kovats will change. Why? Because the
work itself has changed, and systems have emerged to link individuals
and institutions outside of the festival.
Starting in 1999, the Bauhaus and Dessau will no longer be the focal
place for Ostranenie. Ostranenie will be moved into the next Century via
a CD ROM and book that will reflect on the transformations of the
opening of the East. Kovats hopes that Internet connectivity will
improve substantially in the East, allowing the organization of an
on-line conference which will include more than the handful from each
country.
