“THE FIREFLIES MEMORIAL” WORKSHOP BY FRANCESCO MARIOTTI AT ISEA 2018
The Fireflies Memorial is a Long-Term-Project. It is a homage to Environmentalists. The project consists of documents, objects, photography, video, installations, sculptures, conferences, paintings and other forms of audiovisual information and communication. This Workshop is organized by ATA with the support of the Prince Claus Fund and Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia, and is going to take place at ISEA 2018, the 24th International Symposium on Electronic Art, in June 23-30, 2018, Durban South Africa.
Participants:
Environmentalists and human rights supporters, artists, artisans, activists, members of indigenous communities, migrants and the general public.
What the expected outcomes are?
We don’t seek for finished artworks nor an exhibition, but the result will be shown evaluating the process, the collaborative and transdisciplinary work. We will be working on a small scale “hybrid garden” in by using local recycled materials as well as with some materials brought from Peru to develop a light and sound installation using recycled materials (such as PET bottles or similar plastic elements), LEDs and sound chips, combining technological elements in a natural space with the objective of raising awareness about nature, the environment and the recycling of industrial products.
Similar works from Francesco Mariotti can be found at:
http://mariotti.ch/en/expositions/2017/fireflies-memorial/
http://mariotti.ch/en/expositions/2013/matamilagros-en-punta-sal/
http://mariotti.ch/en/expositions/2013/milagros-y-flores-cuanticas/
SCHEDULE
SATURDAY, JUNE 23
10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Venue: KZNSA GALLERY & PARK (for the first day- thereafter TBC)
Visit to local markets and artisan’s shops to buy the necessary material. Visit to sites: Bulwer Park, Port and Beach.
SUNDAY, JUNE 24
10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Place: KZNSA GALLERY & PARK (for the first day- thereafter TBC)
Mariotti will present his previous works, such as Fireflies Factory and Fireflies Memorial and discuss with the participants on the possible exchanges that we can do between local cultures based in Perú and South Africa (in particular Durban) and the main emphasis of the idea behind Fireflies Memorial.
2 p.m. – 4 p.m.
Place: KZNSA GALLERY & PARK (for the first day- thereafter TBC)
Setting up the material and starting to build the necessary pieces.
MONDAY, JUNE 25
10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Place: KZNSA GALLERY & PARK (for the first day- thereafter TBC)
Workshop continues.
TUESDAY, JUNE 26
Place: KZNSA GALLERY & PARK (for the first day- thereafter TBC)
10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Workshop continues (if necessary)
THURSDAY, JUNE 28
Installation on the beach of the Hybrid gardens and renaturalization results.
About ISEA: http://www.isea-international.org/isea2018/
About Francesco Mariotti:
Mariotti is an artist of Swiss-Peruvian origin born in Bern in 1943 and lived since 1952 in Peru. In 1968, being only 25 years old, he was selected for the 4th Documenta in Kassel with the «Project Geldmacher-Mariotti», one of the first interactive installations in the history of media art. He returned to Peru in the early 70s and was based between Lima and Cuzco where he developed several social and participatory projects returning to Switzerland in 1981. Mariotti’s works are linked with nature, both oral traditions and Andean and Amazonian myths. In an intent to relate his work towards developing social processes that may impact a community, he started building “hybrid gardens”, in which in collaboration with scientists, intent to renaturalise dump areas. The project aims to create an artificial habitat in a contaminated space that can accommodate a population of fireflies and demonstrate the link between inert matter and living matter, which not only generate a hybrid bond, but establish a dialogue and participation within a community. Mariotti can be regarded as one of the most influential figures in the initial history of media art in Latin America and internationally, more importantly, his work linked both Europe and Latin America in a dialogue and exchange. Furthermore, his current work on the renaturalization of dump areas works around a biotechnical process in which it takes into criteria specific biological ecosystems, allows the coexistence of the species that are locally nested, in this particular case, the larvae of fireflies. Thus, the current work of Mariotti intends to postulate to a new form of hybrid by reengineering biological ecosystems that are built from both the relation between the artificial (e.g.,LED lighting) and the natural (e.g., fireflies), leading to a novel stage to participatory and collaboratory work pursued by local residents and scientists.
Artist’s web: http://www.mariotti.ch/