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F2F: New Media Art from Finland exhibiting in Brussels
Press Release: F2F in Brussels
September 25, 2003
F2F is an acronym used in Internet lingo for non-electronic
face to face communication taking place outside the computer
medium.
FFVA (New York) and iMAL (Brussels) present F2F Bruxel: New
Media Art from Finland, an exhibition exploring various ways
of interaction between machines and human beings. The displayed
art works allow us to play and throw ourselves into a world
of fantasy, but they also provoke us to ponder upon future
scenarios related to the computerized tomorrow. Also, some
of the major dilemmas we face in our everyday lives today
are reflected in the exhibition. These socio-psychological
aspects of the contemporary information society include social
interaction and personal needs, the possibilities of human-machine
communication, as well as consumption and branding.
The works of art featured in F2F have been realized using
innovative and advanced technical solutions such as computers
with custom sensors and video tracking systems. Interaction
between exhibition visitor and computer occurs via devices
other than the traditional mouse and keyboard. The exhibition
visitor communicates with the computer using, for example,
his body movements or a toy bow and arrows. The art works
of F2F represent Finland, a country of pioneering performance
in the field of wireless communication.
F2F Bruxel presents works from six prominent Finnish new media
artists: Hanna Haaslahti (White
Square), Juha Huuskonen (mirror++), Teijo Pellinen (Aquarium),
Kristian Simolin (hit2Morrow), Tuomo Tammenpää (Brandbody)
and Heidi Tikka (Mother, Child). F2F Bruxel has been updated
with premiering works from Haaslahti and Tammenpää.
The exhibition in Brussels concludes the nearly two-year-long
journey of F2F through the North American Continent. The success
of F2F in its previous sites, Los Angeles, Washington DC,
Toronto, Montreal and New York, exceeded all expectations.
F2F gained such positive and enthusiastic attention in the
public and media, that it was invited to exhibit also in Brussels,
Belgium.
The F2F catalogue contains commentaries by North American
and Finnish scholars and critics. The writers reflect on the
challenges and potentials of the contemporary information
society, and ponder the role of new media art in it.
F2F Bruxel: New Media Art from Finland exhibition is organized
and produced by Finnish Foundation for the Visual Arts (FFVA)
in New York and Interactive
Media Art Lab (iMal) in Brussels. F2F Bruxel is based
on FFVA's initial North American touring exhibition originally
realized in partnership with the Embassy of Finland, Washington
DC.
F2F Bruxel has been supported by AVEK, City of Brussels, Communauté
français and Ministry of Education in Finland, and organized
in cooperation with City of Brussels as part of festival MaïS
and the Finnish Cultural Institute for Benelux.
The original North American tour of F2F: New Media Art from
Finland was made possible by Sonera, Unisys and William and
Gloria Jackson. Additional funding was provided by Apple Finland,
the Arts Council of Finland, DPS Inc. and Ministry for Foreign
Affairs in Finland.
For more information about F2F Bruxel, please contact Yves
Bernard, Director, iMAL,
tel: +32 2 213 37 10, yb@imal.org
Irma Hjelt, Director, Finnish Cultural Institute for Benelux,
tel: +32 3 231 87 51, irma.hjelt@finncult.be
or Juulia Kauste, Executive Director, Finnish Foundation for
the Visual Arts, tel. +1-212-674 5570, ffvanyc@aol.com.
Visit also the exhibition website at www.f2fmedia.net
and www.imal.org/f2f.
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