[aha] Fw: LX 2.0 launches new project by Carlos Katastrofsky

[T_Bazz]

Oggetto: TODAY: LX 2.0 launches new project by Carlos Katastrofsky
Da: Luis Silva <silva.luis at netcabo.pt>
Data: Thu, 8 Nov 2007 10:26:15 +0000
A: undisclosed-recipients:;

For immediate release:


Lisboa 20 Arte Contemporânea is launching on November 8th (next 
Thursday) LX 2.0 Project's new comission, the project lastwishes by 
Vienna-based media artist Carlos Katastrofsky (http://www.lisboa20.pt/lx20).

Carlos Katastrofsky (1975) has been creating net art pieces that 
question both the notion of what an art work is and the notion of 
ownership of these processual projects, not defined by physical 
properties. Projects such as internet art for poor people (2006), free 
interactive readymade (2005) or the original (2005) are just a few 
examples of Katastrofsky's interest in exploring alternative ways of 
distributing and owning net art, always within the institutional art 
world logic and always through a critical, yet playful approach. His 
projects are mostly conceptual, not defined by fancy visual effects or 
sophisticated programming. There is no "beautiful" or "poetic" things to 
be seen on the screen, just the critical use of massified online tools 
that he masters in order to achieve his own agenda.

lastwishes, the project the artist created specially for LX 2.0, is a 
great example of the lack of any visual aesthetics in his work. In a 
simplistic (yet pretty accurate) way, there is nothing to be seen in his 
new project. lastwishes deals solely with the principles of 
communication. Mailing lists are popular tools for the exchange of 
thoughts and opinions: they make multiple (written) dialogues possible 
as well as the archiving for future references. In this work the 
mailinglist-software "mailman" is modified to allow only one single 
posting from a sender. The user is able to subscribe and to receive 
messages endlessly but post only once and by this immediately get 
unsubscribed. The idea of "exchange" is thereby turned into something 
absurd: one can listen but only talk once. Sending a message thus 
requires meaningful content, "chatting" becomes impossible.

The ephemeral quality of this sending-process reminds of zen-qualities: 
be quiet and learn to listen but if you really have to say something 
meaningful then talk. Above that, the question arises: how is 
communication possible when there is a quiet, listening mass and no one 
dares to stand up and speak? According to an Austrian  proverb, "talking 
is silver and being quiet is gold", but being quiet only makes sense 
within the process of communication.

Luis Silva
LX 2.0 Project (http://www.lisboa20.pt/lx20)
Lisboa 20 Arte Contemporânea

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