TIME FRAME Durban - Summary of activities
5-19 juli
Intersections are physical, conceptual, psychological and philosophical spaces where people, ideas and objects interact. Intersections mark meeting points in our cities and lives. The purpose of TIME_FRAME Durban / 2010 is to explore the intersections of space, place and people in the context of the 2010 World Cup from a grounded and people-centred perspective. With funding from the Mondriaan Foundation, dala (www.dala.org.za) is hosting 10 creative practitioners for a 10 day new media experiment in Durban: Miguel Petchkovsky (Angola / Netherlands), Heiner Holtappels (Netherlands) Elena Perez (Spain / Netherlands), Mayura Subhedar (India / Netherlands), Walter Langelaar (Netherlands), Lilia Perez Romero (Mexico / Netherlands), Doung Jahangeer (South Africa), Rike Sitas (South Africa), Dean Henning (South Africa), Zen Marie (South Africa).
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Summary of Activities
>> CityWalk // Friday 2 July 2010
The project started with a walk. The CityWalk Initiative is an ongoing dala initiative focused on walking as a methodology for exploring, experiencing and theorizing the city. It is a socio-spatial and philosophical performance with the city. Ultimately it is a critical engagement with how people live, work, play and move in and through the city. Tapping into a pedestrian network between an informal settlement (Cato Manor) and the inner city transport hub (Warwick Junction), the CityWalk is a catalyst discussing a myriad of urban issues. Around 500 000 people move through these kinds of spaces on a daily basis, yet they are often perceived as invisible or no-go zones by the middle classes. For the purpose of TIME_FRAME Durban / 2010, the CityWalk became an entry point into the intersection of space, place, people, art and technology. In the interest of more democratic processes, the purpose was to locate the project in the public realm of the streets as opposed to in formal studio spaces or galleries. Too often digital / new media artists spend a great deal of their time in doors and behind computers. The CityWalk not only introduced the visiting artists to Durban (and specifically spaces they may not have otherwise explored), it also opened up the possibilities of exploring new and existing media practices in public space.
>> Artist Presentations // Saturday 3 & Sunday 4 July 2010
These two sessions revolved around the artists presenting their practice, focusing specifically on projects relevant to TIME_FRAME Durban / 2010. The presentation sessions also involved a reflection on the CityWalk, as well as brainstorming and discussing possible collaborations and interventions. A number of key themes that emerged out of the CityWalk experience were identified as starting points. This process kick started the week’s working.
>> Artist Lectures // Wednesday 7 July 2010
One of the partnering organisations of TIME_FRAME Durban / 2010 was Vega (http://vegaschool.com), a local private brand communications university. As part of the relationship, the visiting artists gave a half day seminar on their work. The attendees included interested members of the public, students and a number of prominent professionals working in related fields. This was most relevant for students studying in the field of Multimedia Design. The feedback from these students was very positive, and has opened up their possibility to imagine new forms of working.
>> Public presentation at KZNSA // Saturday 10 July 2010
The KwaZulu-Natal Society for the Arts (KZNSA) is a prominent commercial gallery in Durban. The KZNSA hosted an evening of artist presentations at their premises. The event started with the presentation of the first part of Zen Marie’s work in collaboration with a local mini bus taxi operator. Following this, Heiner Holtappels presented on the work of NIMk and played some examples of their collection. Finally, the artists presented the work they had been doing in lieu of the exhibition opening on Tuesday.
>> Exhibition at DAG // Tuesday 13 July 2010
The exhibition at the Durban Art Gallery (DAG) showcased the final work that had been compiled during the course of the project. The work was installed in the Red Room in the gallery providing an interesting and critical counterpoint to and dialogue with the other exhibitions on at the time. The exhibition was opened by Jenny Stretton (Acting Director of DAG), Heiner Holtappels (NIMk) and Doung Jahangeer & Rike Sitas (dala). The next section details what was exhibited.