With Go Public! the UNESCO City of Media Arts Karlsruhe presents experimental media art projects in public spaces. From February 11 to 16, 2023, ten students of the Karlsruhe University of Arts and Design (HfG) will show excerpts from their current work in the context of a temporary exhibition.
The different approaches of the young artists reflect their very different personal experiences and refer to complex social processes, such as the relationship between analogue and virtual space, the loss of natural spaces, and the necessary production of new materials such as bioplastics. Everyday situations are also depicted in the video works with humour, which reflect on the students’ encounters and experiences in the city of Karlsruhe due to their international background.
“Art must go public!” demands the renowned artist and HfG professor Michael Bielicky and emphasises that “In order to promote the values of art and culture, art needs to be far more present in urban spaces. This also offers a good opportunity for young artists to gain experience with regard to exhibitions and presentations.” To combine these aspects, the seminar series Go Public! began back in 2007 under Bielicky’s direction at the HfG. He challenges his digital art students to take their ideas into public spaces under the motto “Get out of the HfG.” Since then, various exhibitions have taken place, such as Riding a Train at Karlsruhe’s main train station in 2007, in the Frauenalb monastery ruins in 2009, Forest: A Multimedia Black Forest Idyll in a snow-covered forest hut near Schöllbronn in 2010, and on Karlsruhe’s Marktplatz in 2022 with projections on the facades of well-known buildings such as the Karlsruhe City Church.
UNESCO City of Media Arts Karlsruhe has supported this ambitious media art project since 2021. “For the next generation of artists, we are glad to make common cause with Karlsruhe. Go Public! is a format that makes it possible to enjoy art spontaneously, provides creative inspiration, and opens up new art spaces in the middle of the city that are accessible to everyone,” says Anastasia Ziegler, head of the UNESCO City of Media Arts office at the City of Karlsruhe’s Department of Cultural Affairs. A total of nine video works will be on view daily from 6 p.m. on the outdoor screen and in the new foyer of the Badisches Staatstheater. Chief dramaturge Sonja Walter is enthusiastic, “Media art — particularly in public spaces — is often temporary and transient. That goes perfectly with theatre! We are pleased about this collaboration with the city’s UNESCO City of Media Arts office and the HfG, which allows current productions of young artists to illuminate the city and our foyer.”
The art event will start on Saturday, February 11, 2023 at 6 p.m. on Theaterplatz at the Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe.
Participating artists: Éva B. Csonka and Hugo Almeida Pinho, Fedor/Becky, Anna-Lina Helsen, László Kőrösi, Pavel Polenz, Alicia Luna Ripp, Anastasia Wick, NJ Eunchae Won, and Rui Zhang.
For more information visit: www.cityofmediaarts.de and www.hfg-karlsruhe.de.
Press contact
City of Karlsruhe
Cultural Affairs Department
Blanca Giménez
Phone +49 (0) 721 133-4003
blanca.gimenez@kultur.karlsruhe.de
Karlsruhe University of Arts and Design (HfG)
Head of Public Relations
Isabel Lionello
Phone +49 (0) 721 8203 2313
presse@hfg-karlsruhe.de