8 April 2003
Opening World Wide Video Festival on 8 May
On 8 May the World Wide Video Festival, the annual media art event, will kick off once again. The main location of this 20th anniversary jubilee will be the modern PTA - Passenger Terminal Amsterdam - a large, transparent building at the IJ waterfront. The exhibitions in this dynamic festival centre, as well as those at several other magnificent locations in Amsterdam, will be open from 8 May through 25 May.
Twenty years of media art
The heart of this year's festival is the exhibition of an intriguing selection of installations that were either presented at previous editions or that were initiated, developed or co-produced by World Wide over the years. The exhibition provides a survey of the development of media art over the past 20 years. The programme was compiled by Tom van Vliet, director and founder of the festival, in collaboration with curator Remco Vlaanderen and guest curators. Included are installations by Juan Downey (Chili/USA), Gustzáv Hámos (Hungary/Germany), Tony Oursler (USA), Komiko Kushiyama (Japan), Jiangwei Wang (China), Minnette Vári (South Africa), Nalini Malani (India), Francesc Torres (Spain/USA), Rita Myers (USA), Keith Piper (GB), Anne Quirijnen, An-Marie Lambrechts & Peter Missotten (Belgium), Francisco Ruiz de Infante (Spain/France) and Jem Cohen (USA).
The festival also presents the world premičre of Vumbuludéo, by Marie-France Giraudon & Emmanuel Avenel (France/Canada). The intoxicating and poetic images in this installation refer to the permanent darkness of the polar winter.
Special attention is paid to new productions by young artists from Latin America. In collaboration with Hivos, World Wide has offered these artists a chance to develop new work and present it at the festival.
Three large solo exhibitions by renowned artists Éder Santos (Brazil), Marina Abramovic (Netherlands) and Walid Raad (Lebanon/USA)
Éder Santos: video essay about Amsterdam
At the invitation of the World Wide Video Festival, Brazilian artist Éder Santos has produced two new works. In his hometown Belo Horizonte he has worked on The Encyclopedia of Ignorance, an installation about the experience of 'mortal' sins - vanity, jealousy, vice, remorse, laziness and sloppiness - and the intense emotions they evoke.
As 'artist in residence' Santos has been working in Amsterdam between March and May of this year to produce the poetic video essay Neptune's Choice. In this work Santos explores his experiences in cosmopolitan Amsterdam, analyzing the rhythm and the daily routine of the city from the point of view of a foreigner and outsider.
Marina Abramovic: pioneer of performance art
In collaboration with the Dutch Institute for Media Art (NIM) the festival organizes a solo exhibition by Marina Abramovic. Since the early 1970s she has been involved in performance art, using the human body as both subject and medium. Besides new work, a retrospective of older work will be shown.
Walid Raad: the Arab visual world
In The Atlas Group Project by Lebanese artist Walid Raad, documents and photographs from the war in Lebanon (1975-1990) play a crucial part. Raad will also give a performance, as he considers this form of artistic expression an important element in his work.
A most singular look at Arab visual culture is presented in the exhibition Mapping Sitting, which Raad compiled together with visual artist Akram Zaatari. It consists of a large collection of portrait photographs that were taken in the Arab world from the early 20th century until 1950.
Willie Doherty
Irish artist Willie Doherty will exhibit his work in De Appel. Doherty's work is closely linked to his native town Derry, a town that - since the events of Bloody Sunday in 1972 - has for over 30 years been in the throes of a religious-political conflict that has created a permanent state of war in the country.
More information: www.deappel.nl
Madelon Hooykaas & Elsa Stansfield
At night, in a tree standing across the Filmmuseum in the Vondelpark, a large circular screen shows a video projection. During the day a soundtrack can be heard of film extracts from the history of cinema that are related to the tree's age. Day For Night III (2003) only on 10 May in the Vondelpark.
World Wide Media Lounge
In the World Wide Media Lounge a large selection of recent, international single-screen works (videotapes, net-art, CD-ROMs) is available, alongside works by some of the artists in the retrospective exhibition. In the Media Lounge visitors can make their own choice from the works on offer and enjoy them in comfortable surroundings.
Meet the artist
In Meet the Artist the audience can come into closer contact with the artists in a series of lectures, interviews and introductions that discuss in more detail the works themselves, their context and the artists' motivations. Most of the single-screen works that are available in the Media Lounge will also be presented on the large screen in the PTA's auditorium, often with the artist present.
Closing Event RGB:
DJ/VJ Festival 22, 23 and 24 May
In collaboration with the Melkweg, Electronation and the Dutch Institute for Media Art this DJ/VJ festival will take place on 22, 23 and 24 May, with many live performances by national and international acts.
Locations in Amsterdam
Passenger Terminal Amsterdam (PTA) / Piet Heinkade 27
Dutch Institute for Media Art, Keizersgracht 264
De Appel, Nieuwe Spiegelstraat 10
Melkweg, Lijnbaansgracht 234a / 22, 23 en 24 May
PTA: open daily: Mon, Tue, Wed 11.00 - 20.00 hrs, Thu thru Sun 11.00 - 22.00 hrs (25 May until 18.00 hrs)
Festival brochure
On 14 April the complete programme will be published in the free festival brochure, and online.
P R E S S R E L E A S E S 
