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1990 - 1999
Media-Scape International Exhibition and Symposium on Arts, Media and Culture Museum of Contemporary Art, Zagreb/Croatia
It has always been the driving spindle and elixir of avant-garde art to condense intellectual trends, social developments and technical innovations into an up-to-date interpretation of reality. Media-Scape focuses critically on these developments, their pre-history and their future perspectives. The concept of current trends, historical passage and future visions are presented through lectures, film video screenings, exhibitions and performances. Held in reference to the historically pivotal symposia "Dialogue with the Machine" (Zagreb 1969) and "Television Today" (Zagreb 1972) in coalescence with the important contributory role Zagreb has made to the visual arts and design in general, Media-Scape marks the necessity of a human-shaped media-landscape to present concepts, ideas and artistic reflections in the new and emerging discipline of media art. In May 1991, during the international CAD forum, (symposium for architecture and design), media-artists and theoreticians came together for the first time to discuss the role of new media in their artistic work and the need for a continuing dialogue out of this came the idea of what is today called Media-Scape. Due to the war situation in Croatia, it took two years to organise the first Media-Scape. In 1993 the first symposium was held under the title of "Integration of New Technologies" comprising of video screenings and an exhibition of holography and computer-photo-collage. Hosted by the Museum Mimara, the symposium focused on virtual reality, holography, political influence on media, new streams in video art and computer animation. In 1994 Media-Scape 2 hosted the symposium under the title "Open Traditions". The differing experience of new media from east European countries where contrasted against those of their western neighbours. Symposium and screenings took place in the building of Zagreb Multimedia Centre. Simultaneously in an old printing factory, Croatian video artists realised a number of video installations. In 1995 Media-Scape3 took place in the beautiful building constructed in 1936 by the Croatian sculptor Ivan Mestrovic. The exhibition pointed on the relations between new and old media. Within the framework of the symposium under the theme "Turbulence of Tradition", concerts of computer music, creative CD-ROM and Internet projects where also included. An Internet Cafe was opened for the duration of the symposium, being the first of its kind in Croatia. In 1996 Media-Scape 4 retained the framework of previous Media-Scape events, with the inclusion to performance art. The exhibition, which took place in the Museum of Contemporary Art made strong reference to the past war situation in Croatia and future visions of art and its technological influence. Symposium and video screenings took place in the house of the Society of Croatian Architects. Under the theme "Conditions and Inventions", symposium was oriented more on artists presentation than scientific discourses. Media-Scape 5 was again guest in the Museum of Contemporary Art in Zagreb. The exhibition with the title "Control.Shift.Escape" dealed with the problematic of variety of perception through extended technical means. Artists such as Akiko Hada, Franz John, Marko Kosnik, Darko Fritz, Ina-Abuschenko-Matwejewa, Lawrence Wallen and others presented media objects, video installations, copy-art, photography, computergraphics as well as Internet and CD-ROM projects. The symposium was organised as a round table, where artists explained their ideas, aesthetic and intentional backgrounds in an open discussion with the public.
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