[spectre] HOST: Johannes Auer - Paid Leave

[Chris Byrne]

New Media Scotland presents a new project for HOST:

Johannes Auer - Paid Leave

http://www.mediascot.org/host

An online archive of Johannes Auer's investigations into his and other 
people's experiences and perceptions of 'free time'.

At the beginning of the 1990s an art strike was proclaimed by the 
Neoists (Stuart Home et al). The aim of this art strike was to 
"demolish serious culture". Perhaps such a notion was a product of its 
time. Still relevant is the need to reflect upon the artist's function 
and situation in society. The biggest unknown is the influence of free 
time on the artistic process.

The aim of this project is to explore the impact of the artist's free 
time on his creativity. Therefore it is very important that the free 
time given is paid and not only 'blank' time.

Extract from 'Manifesto for the Art of Doing Nothing'

"Art is no question of technology.
Art is indifferent to the means of producing art.
Art is concept.
Art is doing nothing.

All past centuries knew an active and a passive state of being - a vita 
activa and a vita contemplativa  - pottering around and contemplation. 
Warrior and monk, politician and philosopher. Indeed, the whole digital 
revolution owes everything to acting and resting, off and on, the one 
and the zero. But we exploited this antagonism, printed it on circuit 
boards and, in a state of permanent global-capital-restlessness, forgot 
what our mobile phone and PDA are really based upon."

Johannes Auer (aka Frieder Rusmann), net artist and curator, lives in 
Stuttgart, Germany. He started creating net literature and art projects 
in 1996, for example: Wertschoepfung / Creation of Value, 2002; 
Log-Book of a Common Journey, 2002; concrete_maschine (TM), 2003; The 
Famous Sound of Absolute Wreaders, ORF Kunstradio Wien, 2003.

'Paid Leave' was made possible by a residency during April and May 2004 
at the Visual Research Centre, Dundee Contemporary Arts, part of the 
European Media Artist-in-residence Exchange (EMARE). Supported by the 
School of Television & Imaging, University of Dundee; Dundee 
Contemporary Arts; New Media Scotland.

HOST is a space on the New Media Scotland web site dedicated to 
projects by artists. 21 projects have been presented since 2000. 
Earlier projects also available to view on HOST feature a range of 
Scottish and international artists including Beverley Hood, Beagles & 
Ramsay, Mike Stubbs, slateford, Katrina McPherson & Simon Fildes, 
*candy factory, Luci Eyers, Dane, Torsten Lauschmann, Lindsay Perth, 
Claude Closky and Roshini Kempadoo.

For further information contact:

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New Media Scotland
P.O. Box 23434, Edinburgh EH7 5SZ
Tel. +44 131 477 3774
info at mediascot.org
http://www.mediascot.org
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