01-02-2018

Storytek & B3 Biennal launch digital art showcase

    Carlos Aires, Sweet Dreams are Made of This (video, 2016) Carlos Aires, Sweet Dreams are Made of This (video, 2016)

    Storytek_ the first accelerator that brings together content creatives with world class technology competence in a specialized program in Tallinn, Estonia;  and the B3 Biennal B3 Biennial of the Moving Image, Frankfurt, Germany, launch digital art showcase.Storytek_ the first accelerator that brings together content creatives with world class technology competence in a specialized program in Tallinn, Estonia;  and the B3 Biennal B3 Biennial of the Moving Image, Frankfurt, Germany, launch digital art showcase.
    Until 11 February, the Storytek x B3 Salon will turn Storytek's Creative hub into a popup gallery showcasing a selection of works of media artists of international stardom curated from the B3 Biennal's program.
     The program will feature three works from globally exhibited artists Federico Solmi (Italy, US),  Ann Oren (Israel, Germany) and Carlos Aires (Spain) exploring through digital arts the contemporary politics in the US, police, and surveillance of society, and idols and fandom in present-day Japan. The pop up gallery is open daily at Storytek's Creative Hub, Parda 6, 4th floor, Tallinn. 

    On February 8th, Storytek will host a dedicated discussion and networking  Salon with B3’s Festival Director and renown German media arts curator, prof. Berndt Kracke, the managing director, Anna Katherina Gerson, and the B3 BEN 2017 Award winner, media artist Ann Oren.  Participants will be able to hear from the wide curatorial experience of B3 Biennal as well as get an in-depth look into the current themes and developments in the field of digital art, content, technology and new platforms.
    “I am extremely delighted to bring and introduce the best of the last year's selection of B3 Estonian audiences. Both B3 and Storytek are committed to the idea and action of strengthening the dialogue between all industries of the moving image and the Salon in Tallinn will be the first step in developing future collaborations and events between in Frankfurt and Tallinn”, says Anna Katherina Gerson, managing director of the B3 Biennal.
    Federico Solmi's The Great Farce (2017, VR experience) imagines reality has become an eternal amusement theme park.  It has become a place where the world's leaders can rewrite, fabricate, or travel to any event of the past, present, or future. They entertain, distract, and misdirect the world's population through spectacle. The virtual reality experience is a snapshot from Solmi's multiscreen installation presented at the  Schauspiel Frankfurt at B3 Biennal 2017.

    Ann Oren’s “The World Is Ours” (2017, multiscreen video) is a 5 channel video installation mixing sampled animation with live documentary scenes shot in Tokyo. It revolves around Hatsune Miku, the feminine manga personification of a synthesizer software created for promotional purposes and to enhance user engagement.  The project explores the merger of fantasy into everyday reality by a cosplay enactment of the figure, performed by the artist herself along hardcore Miku fans in Japan and excerpts from an abundance of fan-made music and animation.

    Carlos Aires’ “Sweet Dreams are made of this” (2016, video) shows two policemen dancing a tango version of the famous song performed by The Eurhythmics. In its origins, tango was mainly a dance between two men. They danced in harbor brothels. It was the result of the cultural mix of locals with immigrants. It was originally forbidden by the church and rejected by high society, which resulted in its development in poor suburbs and working-class slums.

    The Storytek x B3 Biennal Salon is kindly supported by the Goethe Institut Tallinn.
     Artist and artwork photos and logos available at:
    https://www.dropbox.com/sh/sx6nyf2ll1y1w42/AACBbm_ZHQ0JPpJ5Fvfm0_kda?dl=0

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     ***
    ABOUT B3 BIENNAL
    Since 2013 the B3 Biennial of the Moving Image in Frankfurt, Germany has shaped the genre- and cross-nation debate, has addressed new trends and developments in the field of the moving image. Since then within the context of the large national and international film and media festivals, art biennials, technology congresses and fairs it has acquired a special position as it has very successfully initiated a broadly-based dialog crossing sectors and genres.
    With its modules Festival, Parcours and Campus/Market, the B3 Biennial of the Moving Image offers a comprehensive range of events, which propels the debate and networking of experts and young talents from film, TV, virtual and augmented reality, art, technology, and science.
    The University of Art and Design Offenbach (HfG) is the organizer of the B3 Biennial of the Moving Image. B3 is supported by the Hessen Ministry of Higher Education, Research and the Arts (HMWK), Hessische Landesanstalt für privaten Rundfunk und neue Medien (LPR Hessen) and the City of Frankfurt/Main.
    www.b3biennal.org
    ABOUT STORYTEK
    Storytek_ brings together deep audiovisual sector knowledge, technology and funding with a selection of hand-picked tech entrepreneurs and content creators in Tallinn, Estonia. The purpose of Storytek_ is to help creatives, producers, and early-stage companies to develop business, fast-track their content, products and services to the global markets and access finances. Besides its dedicated accelerator program, Storytek organizes the annual #futureofcontent conference Storytek Forum, monthly digital content and technology meetups and workshops, as well as showcases, exhibitions and special events. 
    The strategic partners of Storytek are Elisa Estonia, the Black Nights Film Festival, and Price Waterhouse Coopers Baltics.
    www.storytek.eu
    **CARLOS AIRES**
    Born in Ronda, Spain in 1974, Aires earned a Bachelor in Fine Arts from the University of Granada. He completed his studies at Fontys Academy Tilburg, HISK Antwerp and Ohio State University. His work can be found in public collections. Noteworthy examples include ARTIUM, Spain; MACBA, Spain; Fondation Francès, France; ARTER, Turkey; Maison Particulière, Belgium; Museum Biedermann, Germany; 21c Museum USA; MAK, Austria; Frans Masereel Centrum, Belgium.
    **ANN OREN**
    Ann Oren, born in Tel-Aviv, is a visual artist and filmmaker. She studied Film (BA) and Fine Arts (MA) at The School of Visual Arts, NY. Her works were screened at the Anthology Film Archives, Apexart, The Hammer Museum, the Moscow Biennial for Young Art, Tel Aviv Museum, Videoformes, WRO Media Art Biennial, Künstlerhaus Bethanien, DokLeipzig, New Horizons Film Festival, and Ann Arbor Film Festival.
    **FEDERICO SOLMI**
    Socio-political satire seethes in the edgy works of Federico Solmi (b. 1973, Italy. Based in Brooklyn). Exhibited throughout the world‎, and this spring in a solo museum presentation at MACZUL in Venezuela, the expressionist is also a B3 award-winner and accompanied the B3 team to Beijing and Shanghai. Fame and power, legacy and status, hypocrisy and injustice are among the issues the notorious animator will bring to bear on his B3 commission, a multi-channel work, to be projected on to the façade of the Frankfurt Opera house.
    **End**
    The project “Storytek Creative Hub”, a Tallinn, Estonia based content and media tech incubator executed by Storytek Ltd on July 1, 2017 – June 30, 2019, is co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund. The total grant is up to 222 063,90 Euros.