[-empyre-] beyond screens

Wed Feb 23 12:07:11 EST 2011

Wow Mayssa, thank you for this profoundly interesting interview! 

Indeed, Hassan answers your question with a provocation for us (writers, curators, scholars) when he says that rather than simply critique the market we need to "find a way of analyzing how works appear and why. This is an art historical project of the utmost importance. It’s not the artist’s job to do that." So in the context of media art in the Arab world, we need to examine dynamics that draw out certain kinds of art and take them certain places, to put it loosely. (Again, I promise will follow up on issue of distribution.)

Hassan makes some comments that hark back to our earlier discussion on political role of (Arab/ME) art. They have a modernist ring: "...the most radical position, the one that allows for the greatest openness (not the multitude of choice but rather the very quality and nature of the relationship to choice) in the relation between the work and the audience, has been the insistence on the work." He finds that weak art demands the audience decode the artist's identity, while the strong position is to "allow the work’s very own enigma to appear."

I would tie this back to Ayah's point that interactive media artists, who are equally engineers etc.: "In the middle east, this fluidity between disciplines is still uncomfortable. You are an artist OR a designer OR an engineer, and that, i think, is preventing the medium from a creative explosion."

Laura

----- Original Message -----
From: "Mayssa Fattouh" <mayssa.f at gmail.com>
To: "soft_skinned_space" <empyre at gamera.cofa.unsw.edu.au>
Cc: "Laura Marks" <lmarks at sfu.ca>, "soft_skinned_space" <empyre at gamera.cofa.unsw.edu.au>
Sent: Tuesday, February 22, 2011 4:22:10 AM
Subject: Re: [-empyre-] beyond screens

Hi Laura, 

Yes true that there are many artists who produce video works in the ME but not many do it for the gallery space specifically which was the base of the intended archive. 
By trying to answer your question about "what makes artists decide to show media works in galleries rather than in the film circuit", I've realized one has to question the approach of artists to audiences, the medium, the gallery relationship versus festival organizers, the gallery image for artists as well as collectors and museums... and is a question that has no straight answer I feel, maybe a part of the answer can be found in my interview with Hassan Khan on Art Territories where I asked him "is the gallery space your preferred choice for showing your work and how would you treat your work if it were outside the art space context" http://www.artterritories.net/?page_id=1577 
I look forward to the continuation of your conversation and thank you again for the food for thought. 

Best, 
Mayssa 

On Tue, Feb 22, 2011 at 3:06 AM, Laura Marks < lmarks at sfu.ca > wrote: 

Hi Mayssa, Nat, thanks for these developments. 

I am puzzled that the BFI archiving initiative you mention (Mayssa) didn't find enough material, because there are so many artists working in video in the region. 

My point was more to ask what makes artists decide to show media works in galleries, rather than in the film circuit? Gheith al-Amine, for example, shows his experimental narrative work at film festivals, while the others you've mentioned show more in the gallery. (Oddly, now that most people work in digital video, these works are called "films," but I prefer to call them the medium-free "movies") This then gets to the question of distribution, which I'll pursue in a later post. 

Nat, and Ayah, great points about technical difficulties of installing complex work. 

Yours, Laura 

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "nat muller" < nat at xs4all.nl > 
To: "soft_skinned_space" < empyre at gamera.cofa.unsw.edu.au > 

Sent: Sunday, February 20, 2011 3:31:35 AM 
Subject: Re: [-empyre-] beyond screens 

just to add into the mix: 

lara baladi's installations (albeit not video) offer a more site-specific approach within this context. good examples are the walk-in caleidoscope of redundant images "roba vecchia" (2006) and " Al-Fanous Al-Sehri" (2002). however, it is hard to imagine them being realised without the big factory space of cairo's townhouse gallery. lara's earlier work, which is so much about the process of image making, was very much influenced by her move from paris to cairo well over a decade ago. she has told me that initially the lack of professional photo labs in egypt and the lack of other resources dramatically changed the way she worked. 
more on lara's work: http://www.bankgalerie.com/content/pdf/pdf1/racinelarabaladi.pdf 

it's also interesting to note that hassan khan showed his 4-channel installation "the hidden location" (2004) for the first time in cairo during photocairo4 (2008-9). previously he could not show it in cairo because the proper video synchroniser was not available in egypt. this echoes ayah's post on logistical difficulties. 

/nat 

On Feb 19, 2011, at 09:40, Mayssa Fattouh wrote: 

Sorry forgot to mention Wael Shawky as well. 

On Sat, Feb 19, 2011 at 11:38 AM, Mayssa Fattouh < mayssa.f at gmail.com > wrote: 

Hi Laura, 

I think that most artists who have produced single channel videos have mainly done so as installations, I'm finding a hard time identifying artists who approach single video in a gallery context in the way that Hassan Khan does. 
Those who I found are closest to this direction in some of their videos are Mounir Fatmi, Jayce Salloum, Ahmet Ogut, Sharif Waked... 
Over a year ago during the Tate curators workshop, Elisabetta Fabrizi from the BFI exhibitions had suggested to create an archive of Middle Eastern artists videos dedicated for the gallery context, the problem was that there were very few examples that would give life to this project. 
Again the gallery system in the Middle East wasn't very developed a few years ago for many reasons, this again is changing and with it the artists works. Galleries have now created good contacts with collectors and museums, the number of galleries showing video is also increasing due also to the fact that video is very cost efficient for transportation. It is true though that very few collectors in this region are interested in acquiring video works as we are still here in the concern of the display. 
I wonder if this issue will be discussed in the near future in one of the art fair forums or other, it would certainly be very beneficial for all. 
Thank you Laura for bringing up the subject. 

Best, 
Mayssa 

On Thu, Feb 17, 2011 at 5:14 PM, Laura Marks < lmarks at sfu.ca > wrote: 

Hello Nat, Mayssa, Mirene, Ayah, 

This is such an interesting discussion. I have some questions about single-channel vs. installation, and distribution. It seems a lot of artists are turning to gallery projection where possible (following the long-standing example of Hassan Khan, for example) because they want to shift from the cinematic context to a gallery one. This has happened in Western countries earlier, so there's quite a split between those who present work at festivals and distribute them like films, or get picked up by distributors, and those who present work at galleries and hope to get represented by galleries. The latter I think is more lucrative but more difficult to achieve. I recall Hassan Khan saying at Homeworks last summer that his work is finally being collected by galleries and museums (he's represented by Chantal Crousel), but not being shown--and I think this is because it's not distributed as single-channel work. 

Do you have some thoughts or other examples? 

Laura 

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "nat muller" < nat at xs4all.nl > 
To: "soft_skinned_space" < empyre at gamera.cofa.unsw.edu.au > 
Sent: Wednesday, February 16, 2011 6:48:43 AM 
Subject: [-empyre-] beyond screens 

dear mirene, ayah and mayssa, 

thanks for your great posts! 

re: ayah's and mayssa's observation - as well as my own - that the 
dominance of the screen is very prominent and that spatial 
considerations (a.o. in installations, multi-channel, etc) and more 
interactive/participatory media-based work is scarce, was wondering 
about your thoughts why this is the case. do you think this is due to 
a lack in access, resources, financial constraints,..? perhaps in the 
case of beirut a lack of venues - though now matters might have 
changed with the beirut art centre? or does the prominence of the 
screen mean something different (in the case of lebanon)? i have to 
say that i somehow i have noticed more spatial (media) installations 
in egypt. 

looking fwd to your thoughts. 

/nat 
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Skype mayssafattouh 
+97466894029 
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Independent Curator 
mayssa.f at gmail.com 
Skype mayssafattouh 
+97466894029 
Doha, Qatar 

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Independent Curator 
mayssa.f at gmail.com 
Skype mayssafattouh 
+97466894029 
Doha, Qatar 