In August 2015, PAF visited Oslo within the “Live Cinema Lab,” a part of the Festivals of Live Cinema project. PAF made the trip in order to map the local art – visual art, film and musical – scene and to establish important collaborations with artists and institutions.
During the several-days stay in the capital of Norway, PAF curatorial team encountered and got to know the work of about fifteen Norwegian artists. PAF team also carried out meetings in key institutions for archiving and distribution of moving image – Atelier Nord and Norwegian Videokunstarkivet.
Music and Visual Artí
By the means of field research, PAF managed to peep inside the local, very specific musical production. The field research included dialogues with experts in Norwegian musical scene, visits of specialized shops with local music, meetings with selected artists and organizers of cultural events etc.
In fact, the musical element is a very important part of the live audio-visual projects Live Cinema. Within these, the collaboration of Czech and Norwegian artists, who have various approaches and creation philosophies, creates very interesting connections and enriches the artists on both sides of the project.
Mutual exchange of experience with databases and getting to know the “how-to” of the Videokunstarkivet.
PAF team also visited several concerts, musical events and exhibition openings in art galleries in order to examine the quality conditions of local musical and visual art production, the quality and the way of organizing cultural events, and mainly to look around the potential locations – cultural venues and institutions.
Petr Svarovsky, a Czech artist who has been living in Oslo since 2003 (for more than ten years, he worked there as a teacher at the Academy of Fine Arts) helped PAF team with the research on Norwegian personalities. Through a series of meetings and arrangements of personal meetings, Svarovsky enabled PAF to gain a more comprehensive and “insider” look into the local visual art and musical scene.
Meeting the Experts
During the meeting in Videokunstarkivet, the database and archive of Norwegian video art from the mid-sixties up to now, PAF was initiated into the situation of Norwegian video art, its archiving and distribution. Furthermore, PAF team gained an insight of how this open-source database works and got trained in its usage. Just like during the meeting in Atelier Nord, a mutual exchange of experience of existence, distribution, curatorship and creating databases of contemporary production of moving images of film and video occurred. Moreover, further collaboration was established.
During the research stay in Norway, PAF presented its own activities, mainly the project ‘Festivals of Live Cinema’, PAF – Festival of Film Animation Olomouc and Other Visions.
The established collaborations, gained contact information in the programme management sphere and the gained experience will be a huge contribution to the Czech-Norwegian collaboration even after the “Festivals of Live Cinema” project is over.
Atelier Nord. From left: Alexandr Jančík, director of PAF; Martin Mazanec, head programme manager of PAF; Linda Våge, Atelier Nord.
Photo (c) Marie Meixnerová.
Meeting the Norwegian visual artist and musician Lars Hordnus (TCF).
Photo (c) Marie Meixnerová.
Visiting the music performances of local Oslo artists in the streets.
Photo (c) Marie Meixnerová.
xamining the organization and production of local festivals and reconnaissance of artists.
Photo (c) Marie Meixnerová.
Mutual exchange of experience with databases and getting to know the “how-to” of the Videokunstarkivet.
Photo (c) Marie Meixnerová.
+ Text on the „Videokunstarkivet – Norway’s Digital Video Art Archive“.
Meeting local the music group form of graduates of the Oslo Academy of Fine Arts.
Meeting the artists. From left: Alexandr Jančík, Martin Mazanec, Petr Svárovský.
Photo (c) Marie Meixnerová.
Mapping the local art scene. Kunstplass, et visningssted for samtidskunst.
Photo (c) Marie Meixnerová.
Meeting Norwegian artists.
Photo (c) Marie Meixnerová.
Paying visit to local galleries. Oslo, August 2015.
Photo (c) Marie Meixnerová.
Meetings with the artists: Monica Winther: Lost in Paradise, Gallery LNM, 13 August 2015.
Photo (c) Marie Meixnerová.
Monica Winther: Lost in Paradise, Gallery LNM, 13 August 2015.
Photo (c) Marie Meixnerová.
More on the project Festivals of Live Cinema – Collaboration of Czech (PAF) and Norweigan (Screen City Festival) Platforms for Film and Contemporary Art of Moving Image and its outputs.
+ Live Cinema Lab in Olomouc, Prague and Stavanger.
+ Other Activities within the ‘Festivals of Live Cinema Project.
Supported by grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. The project partner is Screen City.
