Thomas Wolkinger from Falter weekly magazine has written a good article about our current show MOTEL by Hanakam-Schuller - thanks for that Thomas!!

Check out the PDF for more. Or check out their website under: http://www.falter.at

All my best,

Daniela Haberz

The first edition of our co-operation with the new E-flux print Journal found by head of E-flux network Anton Vidokle that gained world-wide recognition with their online newsletter, distributed to 500.000 people internationally every day. The exhibition MOTEL by Hanakam & Schuller is the first that is involved in the E-flux Journal project participation of para_SITE Gallery and will also be sent to the E-flux headquarters in New York. More here and the Jounal is attached. All the best, Daniela Haberz

Already the start image of this blog poses the most interesting question of this Biennial:

"How many masterpieces does a city need?"

If you walk around the Architecture Biennial of this year you find some interesting projects but mostly done by artists and not architects or should the old discussion on the borderline between art, architecture and let's say design be addressed again?

In this case I would like to leave this discussion aside as it has been led so many times that it starts to bore most of us and in truth there has never been found any satisfying answer.

So let's just go back to my suggestions what to see at this year's Biennial in Venice.

The top two pavilions for me are Canada (as always one of the best and dedicated to a fabolous Canadian artist named Philip Beesley. I have seen a similar concept at the Ars Electronica Website that has been featured a couple of years ago but Philip has worked with the space in the pavilion so brilliantly that I have invited him to do a show at para_SITE Gallery next year in September. Link: www.hylozoicground.com

My other favorite pavilion is the Austrialian pavilion which features four different architecture collectives however also with a rather artistic approach and what I liked best was the way they attracted you towards the pavilion. Bordering the alley leading towards the pavilion the trees were holding orange wooden cubes that seamed the way towards the pavilion. The pavilion itself was dominated by orange lines that inside glowed in the dark. The videos were 3-D and showed city scapes and the other one an underwater skyline like exerted out of a science fiction novel.

Check out the pictures for more.

The other pavilions were not really interesting except for the pavilion that features different international contributions.

But travel to Venice yourself to make up your own mind if you can. Every review has a personal view of the things that are seen and as everybody is different the likes and dislikes will be different. And afterall Venice is a beautiful city to spend some quality time and relax in a nice ambience.

Our video portrait on the Biennial will be up in a couple of days for an even closer insight and especially for those that cannot manage to go in person.

All the best,

Daniela Haberz

   

 

New event series named Design LAB featuring young design collectives and offices presenting them and their work to a broad public.

An evening presentation will be documented by para_SITE TV resulting in a portrait on the Design Collective. The event will be followed by a two week long exhibition featuring a prototype or not yet marketed product designed by the Design Collective.

Further support for realization as well as financing of the prototype is currently under discussion.

We are looking forward to the first event of this series on 5th November presenting the Young Design Collective "Dottings" based in Vienna, Austria.

Their exhibition will be on view from 6.11-18.11.2010

Looking forward to seeing you all there,

Daniela Haberz & the para_SITE Team

At the moment two very good exhibitions can be visited at the Kunsthaus Graz, Austria.

Adam Budak's show Human Condition - Empathy and Emancipation in Precarious Times features the fantastic Albanian film maker Adrian Paci with three of his films.

The exhibition departs from one central work by Kris Martin that shows the famous Laokoon Group in a sculpture with on first sight very classical appearance however, on closer look the snake is missing. Looking across the room the snake can be found in a self-portrait by renowned Austrian artist Maria Lassnig.

The entire exhibition is departing from this central work right in the corner when you advance with the Travelator to the sound of a Radiohead song chanted by Suzan Philips in Scottish accent. (check the time it only plays at certain hours but its defenitely worth waiting for it.)

My favorite work was the film projection right at the entrance. It was screened with an old film projector that made a cracking sound whilest spooling the film forwards to be screened. The work is titled: "Per Speculum". You are faced with a crowd of young children facing and starring right at us. In the next minute you realize that the kids are looking at a mirror and we are looking at the mere reflection of their faces caught by the mirrored glass wall. Then a smash and the mirror is shattered into little pieces which are quickly collected by each child. As the day progesses and the night falls the children mount a nearby tree sitting on different branches again facing us this time with the pieces of mirrored glass in their hands pointing in our direction.
The light hitting the mirrored surface is again reflected towards us making the tree shine like being invaded by little glowworms. Definitely worth to take the time to watch it entirely.

Check here for more details: http://www.museum-joanneum.at/en/kunsthaus/exhibitions/human-condition

The upstairs exhibition "Bless 41" is curated by Katrin Bucher-Trantow and shows different fashion and design pieces also dominated by light-based objects.

Check out this link for more info: http://www.museum-joanneum.at/en/kunsthaus/exhibitions/bless-n41