Mapping E-culture
Mapping E-culture
Virtueel Platform Damrak 70-6.54 1012 LM Amsterdam The Netherlands + 31 (0)20 627 37 58
[email protected] www.virtueelplatform.nl ISBN 978-94-90108-01-4
VIRTUEEL PLATFORM
CATHY BRICKWOOD, EDITOR
Contents
5 INTRODUCTION Floor van Spaendonck 10 MAPPING ECulture, eCultuur, E-Cultuur, or e-culture Richard Rogers in converation with Annet Dekker 16 E-CULTURE IN A TRANSFORMING MEDIA LANDSCAPE: TOWARDS A FUNCTIONAL APPROACH TO NEW MEDIA CULTURE Eric Kluitenberg 30 BETWEEN HEAVEN AND EARTH: ON THE IMPACT OF TECHNOLOGY ON CULTURE AND THE ARTS Caroline Nevejan
134 BEYOND THE MEDIA MYSTIQUE: ADRESSING MEDIA AND E-CULTURE IN EGYPT, LEBANON AND PALESTINE Nat Muller
Introduction:
145 TRACING THE TRACE Bronac Ferran 153 DUTCH SUMMARIES / NEDERLANDSE SAMENVATTINGEN
Assumptions and questions relating to e-culture were the trigger for publishing a book about the state of the art. These questions include: what is e-culture? Can we talk of a new, stand-alone arts discipline that touches upon all the other disciplines? Or is the implementation of new media culture, digital and electronic arts a temporary phenomenon and will we understand it in ten years’ time? Is e-culture the driving force behind technological innovation in the broader arts sector and does e-culture serve social innovation? What does eculture include? Games? What about science, industry, the health sector? In short, there is clearly a need to examine the importance of e-culture, who is taking part in it and what the state of play is. We asked four ‘hands-on experts’ to write about some of these issues. E-culture spans several arts disciplines, overlaps with various social sectors and also has its own sector. To map the current situation we chose four areas to focus upon: education, culture, industry and media culture.
158 CREDITS
44 TEN YEARS OF NEW MEDIA EDUCATION IN THE NETHERLANDS Emilie Randoe 57 5X E-CULTURE AND COMMERCE Antoinette Hoes 65 DUTCH TRANSLATIONS NEDERLANDSE VERTALINGEN Eric Kluitenberg, Caroline Nevejan, Emilie Randoe, Antoinette Hoes
E-culture in relation to cultural policy and funding has long been a focus of Virtueel Platform. Eric Kluitenberg, a media theorist with a long track record of programming projects, festivals and debates about media culture in De Balie, writes about media labs in the changing media landscape and makes a plea for more production funding.
97 PRACTICE-BASED RESEARCH IN THE ARTS Henk Borgdorff, based on an interview with Anne Helmond 104 PATCHING ZONE: COLLABORATIVE PRACTICE AND PRACTICE-BASED RESEARCH Anne Nigten, by Anne Helmond 111 EMBODYING RESEARCH Dick Rijken, Kristina Andersen
Emilie Randoe, an expert on higher education in the new media sector, and until recently director of the Institute for Informatics, the Institute for Interactive Media and the Media Lab at the Hogeschool van Amsterdam, University of Applied Sciences, maps the education field. What role does education see itself playing and to what extent is a Communication and Multimedia Design training related to e-culture? There is a clear need for the education system to meet the needs of the professional media sector and recently the dialogue between the two has taken on
116 OPEN CULTURAL ECONOMY? Klaas Kuitenbrouwer 126 THE CHINESE DREAM Alex Adriaansens, based on an interview with Anne Helmond
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MAPPING E-CULTURE
In 2008 the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science officially designated a sector for e-culture and selected and institution to take on the role of supporting this sector. The task fell to Virtueel Platform. In the meantime Virtueel Platform is laying the basis for the sector institute and this publication can be seen as part of this process. The articles are a first attempt to contextualise a number of developments in the field and make them more visible.
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
FLOOR VAN SPAENDONCK
5
a more structured, official form. Steps and developments that contribute to the professionalisation of the sector.
researching new tools, services, formats, rights issues, social contexts, and so on. In some fields the recognition of this work is growing, and the relationship between research carried out in the cultural or media sector with academic research is growing gradually closer: social sciences, computer studies, communication and media, are but a few of the fields in which research links can be made. The recognition of new media as a key economic sector has grown over the past years, but rhetoric about creative industries often fails to look at how different actors in the sector are actually working in practice. In the section on new business models Klaas Kuitenbrouwer examines issues of open content and e-culture.
Other developments that indicate professionalisation are to be found in the game industry. This industry is now recognised as a new industry on its own terms. As well as game companies, studies, consultative bodies, the first steps have been taken to organise the profession, with the Dutch Games Association (DGA). The DGA was set up in 2008 to represent the interests of the industry at large. Games and e-culture overlap and developments in the game industry contribute towards the development of e-culture, both on a technical level and in terms of professionalisation. Antoinette Hoes, an expert on online media and communication, and founder of Leylines bv, is in a good position to observe these links and analyse their potential.
There is still a lack of quantitative and qualitative data about the Dutch e-culture sector. Whilst Virtueel Platform is at the beginning of mapping activities in the Netherlands, it has also been involved in a number of recent mapping projects of other countries. Countries that have been singled out by the government as key centres for cooperation in the future, including China, Brazil and the Middle East. This book closes with stories of how these countries are developing their own e-culture and in some cases the ways in which Dutch cultural organisations can work with or learn from them.
In a broader perspective is the link between e-culture and the ‘creative industry’ as a whole. This link offers many opportunities for developing innovation in the broader cultural sector. The non-profit mentality of artists and arts institututions is often at odds with the commercial approach of industry but in terms of content there are many commonalities. Experiments, content and research from the arts field is extremely valuable for industry, while industry offers large numbers of high standard applications which reach a wide audience, and this is also very valuable.
V2_ has worked in China with the academic sector on a grand scale and in a very centralised way, very much in contrast to the practical, open and decentralised Dutch approach, which is based on small-scale projects and flexibility. Nat Muller’s tour of the Middle East, where she works as an independent curator, emphasizes the value of media culture on a political and social level, mentioning for example the way in which new media circumvent problems of mobility. Bronac Ferran was commissioned by SICA in 2008 to map the digital media sector there. Ferran’s overview of this mapping project explains a great deal about the country, its needs and the way it is developing. Her analysis will be instrumental in bringing about further cooperation. One of the people she writes about is renowned singer and former Minister of Culture Gilberto Gil. He sees the country as a laboratory for the future. An attractive prospect for cooperation.
What of the term ‘e-culture’ itself? Is e-culture merely a fashionable term for policy makers to bandy about? Is it used in practice and what does it mean? Govcom was given the task of researching the extent to which this term is used, and by whom. This book opens with the results. The broad context of e-culture is at the same time a challenge: the number of issues to cover is too vast to do justice to the theme. In selecting a number of issues to examine we came up with two areas that are currently developing in the Netherlands: practicebased research and new business models. In themselves these are broad issues. Practice-based research in relation to the cultural sector is another way of raising the issue of what research is and where it can be carried out. The new media sector is constantly 6
MAPPING E-CULTURE
The foreign surveys that have been carried out, and are referred to in this section, are useful to various INTRODUCTION
FLOOR VAN SPAENDONCK
7
audiences. The context, specific information and indexes of certain regions will offer the e-culture sector a better overview as well as link up activities. In addition they are useful to policy makers in search of arguments to support future activities, as well as finding links between plans and examining the added value of financial support. For foreign partners the surveys offer an opportunity to put on paper and collate their experiences, rendering their activities more visible and defining the issues they would like to deal with.
Floor van Spaendonck is director of Virtueel Platform, the Dutch sectoral institute for media, arts and digital culture. Virtueel Platform stimulates innovation and supports knowledge exchange in the field of e-culture in the Netherlands and abroad. Floor studied history. Her professional expertise lies in the field of digital culture and media art, arts administration and funding. Her focus in the field of arts is on shaping conditions and creating a platform for crossovers, research, experiment and debate in the field of arts. Previously she worked as staff member for the Amsterdam Arts Foundation and was programme manager at media lab Waag Society.
Mapping E-culture
The importance of working at an international level, exchange and cooperation forms the basis of this section and would appear self-evident. The international surveys do not so much provide a legitimation of such exchange but rather seek depth, continuity and sustainability in relation to these activities. Their value is clear and they will be continued.
Floor van Spaendonck
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Virtueel Platform
MAPPING E-CULTURE
MAPPING E-CULTURE
Mapping ECulture, eCultuur, E-cultuur, or e-culture Richard Rogers
http://www.govcom.org
in conversation with Annet Dekker
http://www.virtueelplatform.nl
What is e-culture what was e-culture? 1996: e-culture is the end of the divide between high culture and low culture 1999: e-culture is the opposite of e-commerce 2002: e-culture comes after visual culture and print culture 2003: e-culture is not digitisation, e-culture is online culture 2007: e-culture is an engine of innovation 2008: e-culture is a fully accepted e-word, like e-mail Google shows: e-cultuur - 51.500 results eCultuur - 6.410 results
a social science way, that consisted of keywords in terms of activities as well as type of organisation. With this data we started counting to get an overall characterisation of the field and to see if a particular organisation type dominates the field. We also queried each organisation website for the term e-culture. We found that funders, for example, were the ones that used that word e-culture very often, which then gives this sense that e-culture is more or less accepted in funding circles. Whereas the actual organisations use the word far less frequently. Instead they use other terms.
Richard Rogers holds the Chair in New Media & Digital Culture at the University of Amsterdam. He is also Director of the Govcom.org Foundation, Amsterdam, the group responsible for the Issue Crawler and other info-political tools, and Director of the Digital Methods Initiative, reworking method for Internet research. He is author of Information Politics on the Web, awarded the best 2005 book by the American Society for Information Science and Technology (ASIS&T). Current research interests include Internet censorship, googlization & Google art, the Palestinian-Israeli conflict on the Web as well as the technicity of content.
1 The interactor module is built into the issue crawler, and extends the uses of the network location software. The issue crawler now has three crawling options: co-link analysis, snowball and interactor. 2 In co-link analysis, the issue crawler crawls the seed URLs, captures their outlinks and retains those that have received at least two links from the seeds. In the snowball approach, the issue crawler captures all out-links from the seeds as well as the out-links’ out-links, retaining every page found. In the interactor module, the issue crawler crawls and maps the links between the seed URLs.
For more information on the Mapping project see the fold-out sheet enclosed with this book.
ANNET DEKKER
In order to get to grips with the term ‘e-culture’ Virtueel Platform asked Govcom.org to map the term. The result is now mapped and clouded. How did you go about it and what did you find?
Richard rogers
Recently, we defined clouding as a particular analytical technique. This doesn’t mean merely visualising the results of analysis in a cloud, but that you start your analysis by thinking that you’re going to cloud it. This in turn means that you do the analysis in a particular way because you’re clouding. In the clouding we tried to characterise what e-culture is about. In all, the analysis had three components; What is e-culture about, who does it, and, who recognises the term?
MAPPING E-CULTURE
AD
You just said that you consider clouding an official method of analysis. Could you describe the differences between regular methods and the advantage of clouding?
RR
Traditionally there are two ways of thinking of information visualisation. The first one is that you have an analytical output, and then you visualise it. In some sense visualisation becomes the finished product. That is a traditional way of thinking about it. And there are also specific ways of visualising that have to do with a particular analytical method. IBM’s Many Eyes project lists visualisation types depending on data outputs. For example, a line graph is good for things that rise and fall
We started with a set of organisations, in our case about 250 organisations that were selected and coded by Virtueel Platform. That is to say, we made up a coding scheme, coded in
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For the mapping we built the ‘interactor module’ 1. This software finds links between entered urls. Within our source set we watched over a longer period of time to see a general composition of actors surfacing in a field; this gives a sense of who’s receiving a lot of attention and whether that attention is rising or falling according to in-link counts. We also used a different mapping approach that looked for links in between organisations, so-called co-link analysis 2. This brings in other organisations that are not on the initial list. The analysis showed for example that according to the links from the Dutch e-culture sites YouTube is seen as an extremely important e-culture actor, or platform. This mapping analysis shows the significance of some of the things e-culture has, in this case the many dependencies of e-culture on other organisations or platforms outside of the Netherlands.
INTERVIEW
MAPPING ECulture, eCultuur, E-cultuur, or e-culture
RICHARD ROGERS
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over time like stock prices. But what we are putting forward is that the visualisation is at the beginning of the analysis. This happens in two ways; first of all you start by thinking in visual terms in such a way that the analysis fits the visualisation. And secondly the clouding drives your questions. Given all the issues on the global human rights agendas, which issues are the ones that have the most campaigns? You look at things that are cloud-able. This form of analysis tries to stay close to its origins: digital online data. The tag cloud is a natively digital format that doesn’t have a precedent; in some sense it stems from the new kind of information culture and therefore could be considered a new way of thinking about data online, and also made into an approach and method of analysis.
AD
What is ‘Govcom.org’, and who are you?
RR
The name relates to several projects we did (myself, Noortje Marres and some students at the University of Amsterdam in the department of Science Dynamics, and the Royal College of Art in London) in 1998 and 1999. The first project started because I was asked by the International Herald Tribune to write a newspaper article on climate change. This was 1997. I, like many people do, went to a search engine, typed in ‘climate change’ and hit return. I was going through the various returns, ‘surfing’ if you will, and I noticed that a lot of the organisations that I came across made hyperlinks to other organisations, but not all organisations linked to all other organisations. The hyperlinking was in some sense selective. What I ultimately noticed is that some organisations received more links than other organisations. We started manually, with a chalk board and coloured chalk, drawing little circles signifying the sites of the organisations involved in climate change and lines between them signifying hyperlinks. What we noticed was that there was something that we eventually called ‘the politics of association’ on display. That is, some organisations linked to others for particular reasons. We thought that hyperlinks at the time, if you take a large sample of them, might signify 12
the reputation of an organisation. The organisations that get the most links from other organisations working in the same area, one would imagine could have more authority or a higher reputation than the other organisations. In fact the hyperlinks, we thought, displayed some kind of reputation distribution. First of all they showed a politics of association, and on the other hand a sort of reputation distribution. Where the politics of association is concerned, we made a film in 1999 that was our next larger project whilst we were research fellows of the Jan van Eyck media and design fellowship. I was the research fellow and I brought with me a number of colleagues both from Amsterdam (including Noortje Marres) and some people from the Royal College of Art – largely students. We sat at the Jan van Eyck Academy for about five months. We made a video as well as some other things, and one of the things we were looking to find out was why organisations link to one another. So we interviewed the webmasters of Shell, Greenpeace as well as RTMark which is the famous organisation which pioneered ‘rogue’ websites – or ‘fake sites’. The three of them were all in the same issue-space with regard to climate change, and when we interviewed them we found out that they all are, in some ways, competing for attention in the same space. What we noticed when we were mapping was that when you map an issue, the types of organisations that are on the map most prominently are .govs, .coms and .orgs. So, that is where the name comes from: Govcom.org.
AD
RR
The work is something that can be presented in a variety of discourses. It has the scientific to it. It has the design to it. We are always very conscious about the narrative. What is the story? What are we telling here? In that sense the presentation is always important. We feel the things we do can be presented, shown and talked about in any of the discourses that we have people from on our team. We are at a point where people can cross over quite well. I am very comfortable working with designers, artists and programmers. I can speak their languages.
RR
INTERVIEW
AD
How do you see your work yourself? In what context would it be most beneficial?
We are known for issue analysis, or issue mapping. This came out of the Jan van Eyck period where we made a piece of software called the NetLocator, and later the Issue Crawler, which is web network location and visualisation software. That was one of the first major achievements on our part in terms of software making, and we have been working on it since about 2000/2001. The designed version came online in 2004 and it is doing quite well. I mean, it has a mind of its own and breaks a lot and we never know exactly why. It maps issues networks.
MAPPING E-CULTURE
RR
Well, it goes back to a particular tradition in the academic area that I studied, that I got my PhD in, which is Science and Technology Studies. One of the areas is Science and Technology Controversy Studies, and it was our contribution to that field to look into particular social issues. I think all of the projects we have done are conceptual, but the conceptual is always backed up by the analytical. We are constantly doing analysis, because we like to think that we can make claims. Once we think we are able to make claims, then from there we try to figure out the best form in which to make them. But there are a number of ways of answering this question. One of the things, for me personally, is to put on display that issues are everyday concerns. If you read the news or watch the TV news, you’ll see that some issues have more attention than other issues. So a project that we did after the Issue Crawler was to look at the difference between news attention cycles for issues, versus civil society, or NGO, attention cycles to issues. We made a piece called infoid.org, which is an issue tracker, and it shows issue attention according to civil society’s campaigning behaviours. We found the good news is that civil societies have a much longer attention span to social issues than the news. We used the web in order to find this out…
What are you known for?
AD
What is your interest in these subjects?
MAPPING ECulture, eCultuur, E-cultuur, or e-culture
RICHARD ROGERS
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AD
AD
What is the role of the public for you? Do they have a say in the thing? Is there an open forum? Can they only be listeners, lurkers or also participants?
Can you tell me a little bit about the software you are using?
Can you see that changing in the future, with the arrival and popularity of the Web2.0?
political statements, or are you more interested in showing what is happening with different issues?
remember what is happening on the ground. Whether or not, depending on participation in these summits, they abandon certain issues in favour of other ones. We are always, in some sense, making statements generally about attention to social issues. Whether or not you should watch the news at all, but also other ideas such as whether organisations leave certain issues unexpectedly because their issues aren’t in the news, for example. Also another term that we use is ‘issue hybridisation’. That is the coupling of two or more issues together. One of the things we have been asking critical questions about is what happens to an issue when the organisations doing the issue suddenly enter the human rights discourse, thereby framing issues in terms of rights, coupling the issues with rights. We have noticed on a couple of occasions that when the rights language comes into a certain issue space, the sub-issues that were in that space previously begin to go into decline. For example on a study we did on the Narmada Dams controversy in India, much of the local concern was about people being displaced because of the construction of the dam. They have to move and they would like compensation. When large organisations, or NGOs, started getting involved, they changed the discourse from compensation, displacement and land loss to rights. Human rights, which has its own dynamics. In that sense we are making statements by the kinds of analysis we do.
RR
We make open source software, but we do not make SourceForge projects because that is a RR whole world which requires constant attention. What we have found is that there is much We share code… a lot. But, when one says to critique in various projects (especially web ‘open source software’ there is often the ones) that have great assumptions about the impression that everything we do is put into empowerment of publics. The secret of the open source community, when in fact it publicity is that there is no public (see Publicis not. With the Issue Crawler, in particular, ity’s Secret by Jodi Dean). Noortje Marres, says in her dissertation: ‘no issues – no publics’. we have extensive documentation. But we do not have the actual code bundle online. That Often times the question a lot of people work is not to say that we have a problem sharing. on is: how do publics form? Are there freeWe make it in the spirit of open source, we use floating ones, or do they form around someopen source licenses but as of yet we haven’t thing? Noortje’s answer is that they form around issues, and that they are not just there. done the SourceForge project for it. The consequence is that with the Issue When we do issue mappings, what we notice is that you basically have quite powerful profes- Crawler we do not have the community of programmers, which is something that occasional organisations at work. There is no man sionally hurts us because the Issue Crawler is on the street involved, nor being recognised user supported. Every year or so we realise we by these actors. When you study issue power, you find that public participation is something do not have any money, so I write to my institutional supporters, which are quite important that is more of an ideal than a reality. On the basis of those sorts of perspectives, universities. There is a list of about 15 or 20. We suffer, in some sense, from not having based on some findings, I think the short taken the time or made the extra effort to answer to the question about public particicreate a SourceForge project. pation is that they participate when they do, and when they form. We do not engage in AD work that forms everyday publics. Would you say that with your projects you make AD
RR
Every once in a while we do a piece of work that has some kind of public dimension in mind. For example, one of the proposals that accompanied the Issue Tracker (a piece of software which monitors whether social issues are rising or falling) was to have it as an augmented space project. Initially it was inspired by the protests in the streets of Genoa during the G8 meeting in 2001. There was a red zone, and green zone: where the protestors were on one side, and conference on the other. We thought an issue ticker would make a nice interface between those two zones. It has a public dimension to it, but it is more of a showing, a form of presentation of our findings.
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RR
We have made a lot of different statements, and some are summarised in the different terms we use. We are concerned about ‘issue abandonment’. We are concerned about ‘issue drift’. We are concerned about the life that issues lead and are continually, in some sense, making statements about issues through those sorts of terms. For example, in ‘issue drift’ one notices that international NGOs and inter-governmental organisations go from summit to summit, and conference to conference. At each of these different venues, there are different agendas and if you look at it over time you’ll notice how particular issues rise and fall in these agendas. We always ask ourselves the question of whether or not these organisations
MAPPING E-CULTURE
INTERVIEW
Part of this interview is based on an earlier interview with Govcom. org, ‘The politics of association on display. Interview with Govcom.org (Richard Rogers)’, by Annet Dekker for Netherlands Media Art Institute, Amsterdam, http://www.nimk.nl – March 2007.
MAPPING ECulture, eCultuur, E-cultuur, or e-culture
RICHARD ROGERS
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E-Culture in a Transforming Media Landscape: Towards a Functional Approach to New Media Culture Eric Kluitenberg
http://ww.debalie.nl
Eric Kluitenberg is a theorist, writer, and organiser on culture and technology. He is currently based at De Balie – Centre for Culture and Politics in Amsterdam, and teaches a course on ‘Culture and New Media’ at the University of Amsterdam. He taught media theory for the post-graduate education programmes in art & design and new media at Media-GN and Academy Minerva in Groningen, the Netherlands, and worked on the scientific staff of the Academy of Media Arts, Cologne. Since 1988 he has been involved as an organiser in numerous important media culture events.
The arts have been at the forefront of a productive discourse with the latest technological developments since the first decades of the twentieth century. In the pre-war period, the technological beast was the prey of various European avantgarde groups. Such movements were always highly diverse, varying from the animated nihilism of Dada, the ecstatic adoration of the Futurists to the more pragmatic utopian approach of Bauhaus and the Constructivists. After the war, the gauntlet passed to the American Art and Technology movement, which centred on artists like Robert Rauschenberg and scientists like Billy Klüver, who refigured thinking on art and technology.
Where the machines of the 1980s were cumbersome, by the early 1990s they had become fully-fledged multi-media tools able to connect image, sound, text, data and interaction in an MAPPING E-CULTURE
The interaction between the various fields (in random order: science, art, commerce, technology and everyday life) sparked off something that can be called a ‘new media culture’. The hybrid character of its origins is its signature. New media culture is not limited to any one of these areas but covers or cross-cuts all of them, making it a phenomenon that is difficult for relative outsiders to comprehend and use. The new media culture underwent a definitive breakthrough in the mid 1990s with the advent of Internet. This initially began as a primarily text-communication oriented medium with strong roots in the scientific laboratory culture from which it emerged. But Internet became a comprehensive and almost all-encompassing multi-media network at a pace that astonished even those involved. All other media forms and modalities were increasingly swallowed up by this multi-media network (radio, television, telephone, photography, audio-visual archives, e-mails, newsgroups and interactive media forms that, fifteen years ago, were only conceivable on CD-ROM). This process is generally referred to as ‘media convergence’. In a nutshell, it refers to the fact that almost all media channels, driven by technical and economic advantages, have since gone digital: audio and video production, radio and television, news and press photography, the layout and printing of print productions, and telecommunications connections. This has enormous implications for the position of art and culture in the new media landscape and for the public functions of media in general. The development also has its downsides. Convergence of the media has exponentially boosted the consolidation trend in the media market. The increased international dimension of electronic media had been ongoing for some time, referred to by economists as ‘horizontal integration in the media industry’: media companies merged or were taken over by their own branch, creating media conglomerates that increasingly neutralise competition. (Economists are unanimous in seeing the perils this holds for the market). The trend for digitising all media channels and forms has also caused an explosive proliferation of ‘vertical integration’ in the media and telecommunications industry: the confluence of distribution, content production (programmes, editorial content, media formats, services) and the provision of access for final users, even into the very homes of individual consumers. (Which economists deem utterly disastrous).
In hindsight, we realise that the real ‘explosion’ of activity accompanied the miniaturisation of computer technology (and corresponding declining costs) and the tide that came into its own in the 1980s. The market ‘democratised’ technology on a previously unseen scale. The instruments of scientists and IT specialists suddenly became that of the bookkeeper, grocer, chemist, hobbyist, designer and artist.
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entirely new way (the era of the CD-ROM). For artists, this was the dawning of the age of new, limitlessly flexible synthetic art forms. A symphony of image, sound and movement of which Scriabin could only dream, was now within reach of almost every artist.
ESSAY
E-CULTURE IN A TRANSFORMING MEDIA LANDSCAPE: Towards a Functional Approach to New Media Culture
ERIC KLUITENBERG
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The combination of massive horizontal and vertical integration in the media and telecommunications industry has led to a catastrophic decimation of the range of public information and communication on offer. This seems paradoxical in a situation in which almost everyone has access to online publication – which is indeed the only lifebuoy for public culture currently at hand. But when professionally produced media products and services are primarily considered, the landscape that unfolds is one in which, apart from public broadcasting companies, the lion’s share of the available media and access to information channels is provided – and therefore controlled – by a swiftly shrinking number of globally active media conglomerates. This is not only extremely adverse from an economic perspective, resulting as it does in the worldwide failure of markets on an unheard-of scale, but also from a cultural one, where the law of numbers reigns supreme. From a political vantage point, the phenomenon is also dreaded because it seriously hampers the diversity of opinion forming – consider the bravura in the headline of British tabloid The Sun after the first election of New Labour leader Tony Blair: ‘It’s The Sun that’s won it!’.1 In the light of the convergence of media and the concentration in international media markets it should be clear that the ‘wisdom of the crowds’, the DIY media culture and the various public media are mutually complementary and badly need of each other to effectively counterbalance 2 the consolidating market forces in the media landscape. Only safeguards of public access combined with pronounced public functions in media production and supply can guarantee the diversity and quality of the public range of information and communication in the long term. This is also the context within which the new media culture functions and within which clear functions and accountabilities can be identified. New media culture In the field of e-culture, both aspects (the creative, producing functions and the joint co-creation of content) play a crucial role. In a stricter sense, the public sector (cultural institutions, the role of the government, public media providers) primarily play a part in creative e-culture or new media culture. Since the mid 1990s, this new media culture has, in a rather more confined sense, been the subject of active international debate in which the Netherlands and the Dutch culture sector were clearly pioneers. One of the first policy documents drafted by the sector in a European context was the so-called Amsterdam Agenda, presented on 1 November 1997 during the Practice to Policy Conference in Amsterdam. The paper identified three elements of apparently crucial importance for Europe’s rapidly developing new media culture: innovation, education and social quality. 3 18
MAPPING E-CULTURE
At the time, innovation was spoken of with specific reference to the frequent collaborations between artists and cultural producers, and technology developers and academic researchers concerning both the application of new instruments and the development of new methods and formulation of problems. Secondly, with the development of new areas of application for new media technologies, a productive relationship was perceived between culture and industry. Artists in particular were pushing the boundaries of new media into new areas, while industry made the instruments available to ever-increasing groups of producers and customers. In the education area, partnerships with schools and educational institutions with the objective of developing educational projects and new (multi-medial) teaching methods, was also considered. The educational effect of new media culture was also underlined, in which the public is tempted to play with new media forms and effortlessly becomes familiar with technology and how it works; informal learning or learning by doing. 1 The suggestion was that, in switching political allegiance from the Conservatives to New Labour, Rupert Murdoch’s tabloid had managed to secure the election outcome. After the Conservative victory in 1992, The Sun had run the headline: ‘It’s The Sun that’s won it!’. 2 Counterveiling power.
3 The Amsterdam Agenda: Fostering emergent practices in Europe’s media culture, 1 November 1997. Conference Towards a New Media Culture in Europe: From Practice to Policy, organised by the Virtueel Platform, the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, and the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, under the auspices of the Council of Europe, 29 October – 1 November 1997, in Rotterdam and Amsterdam.
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Front and back cover of New Media Culture in Europe
Additionally, art and culture were allocated a critical position a priori as regards the social consequences and implications of new technology. And, through precisely this critically inquiring mentality, it was deemed capable of making an important contribution to a socially sound integration of new media and new technology. New media cultures were also expected to go a long way towards strengthening the social quality of the new media applications. This was because many cultural projects were developed as joint initiatives (in a real, tangible context where new media is used by a far more diverse group of users than in a technical laboratory). E-CULTURE IN A TRANSFORMING MEDIA LANDSCAPE: Towards a Functional Approach to New Media Culture
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Creative Industry The association of new media culture and the fast-developing market for new media applications in general has proved extremely fruitful. This far broader context opened up fertile ground, predominantly for designers and cultural producers of a range of media for a broader demographic (entertainment, edutainment, infotainment and related areas). The United Kingdom led the way by spotting the potential, at an early stage, of these ‘creative industries’ as an engine for innovation and new and highly diversified markets. Designers had always worked on the interface of culture and industry but the new digital instruments and distribution channels meant that they occupied a decisive niche, designing a completely new industry where information, communication, encounter and entertainment seamlessly converge. The result is a thriving sector that is also fully embraced by policymakers.
Cultural competence In the book New Media Culture in Europe (Virtueel Platform 1999) Portuguese policymaker Luis Soares wrote, ‘At ground level, things happen at a speed which is often incompatible with the speed of Europe’s public and political institutions’. However, in subsequent years, thinking and policy frameworks containing new media culture developments happened in rapid succession. At the end of the 1990s, there was a pronounced shift in emphasis to increasing cultural competence in public and technological policy frameworks. The assumption was that the developments were not visible at grassroots level and were not sufficiently understood by the people and institutions that took the decisions in the public and technological sector. The groundbreaking nature of artistic and cultural experiments made it particularly difficult for policymakers to determine their value, and a clearer grasp of such experiments was required. The highly interdisciplinary nature of the new media culture made this even more complex.
Culture 2.0 Because new media culture has always encompassed the cultural producers and, less rigidly, the production of cultural expression by individuals and non-professional communities, investigating opportunities for interconnecting and cross-pollinating the two appeared an obvious step. This was suggested by the development of the Internet into a broad multimedial medium, and by the emergence of a new generation of electronic consumer products from digital photo and video cameras, imaging software programmes for home computers to DIY Web design programmes. New Web services from photo galleries to video sites (YouTube and others) and the explosion of blogging (online diary entries with sound and image) have entirely changed the playing field for cultural participation. This phenomenon is generally referred to as Web 2.0. The active aspect (talking with, and talking back to, the media) is deemed the most innovative. Internet veterans may mumble that talking back is the Internet’s core principle, so should be categorised under Web 0.1.
Public domain 2.0 Around the millennium, a different dialogue emerged, one that primarily pondered ways that new media can contribute towards revitalising the public domain. This could partially be promoted by offering DIY new media initiatives greater scope. Joint projects in particular, in which groups of people used new media tools for the benefit of a shared interest, for opinion-sharing and organisational purposes, offered ideal opportunities for this. In the Netherlands, De Digitale Stad (Digital City, DDS), a network community founded in 1994 which boomed in the late 1990s, was pivotal in all this. Although DDS also won immense international admiration, it never enjoyed more than incidental support from Dutch public funding bodies, not even after political institutions used the network to circulate information to the – in the meantime huge – list of users. DDS was ultimately the victim of its own success; without a more commercially-honed revenue-generating model which, in those days, was not available, the facilitating structure had become unfeasible.
As a concept, Culture 2.0 was suggested as means of investigating how the professional cultural sector could encourage the active participation of a wider public, also in professional cultural production and cultural heritage. The latter is given considerable stimulation by the rapid digitalisation of cultural heritage and its increasing accessibility on the Internet. This involves issues such as a more interactive exploration of the culture available, the co-creation of works by artists with individual culture consumers or communities, and the joint critique of expressions of culture, discussions about this (in groups and on the Internet, among others) and the creative reuse of existing works and materials.
E-culture Hard on the heels of the e-commerce boom and the popularity of e-trading, the new media culture was re-christened e-culture. After the notorious dotcom crash of spring 2000, however, this association became tarnished and vanished into the background. The ‘e’ mainly referred to the electronic media that were the carriers of the new cultural forms that evolved around the new media. In policy circles, e-culture has remained a popular nomenclature but is rarely recognised or used as such in practice. 20
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The latter is especially complicated. The creative reuse of ESSAY
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existing materials (images, music, software) actually promotes active participation in culture in the broadest sense. Copyright provisions and protecting the integrity of artistic productions explicitly discourage creative reuse, and not always without justification. An initiative like Creative Commons 4 therefore developed an alternative licensing system which makers and right-holders can use to freely give their materials for reuse (partially or wholly) for educational and non-profit purposes. However, the problem with this is that it only offers an answer for works the right-holder is aware of, and for which it is prepared to give freely for specific or all forms of reuse. With this, the bulk of the materials for this form of active cultural participation fall outside the scope of this paper.
4 See http://www. creativecommons.nl
Logo Economies of the Commons
E-participation E-participation is a policy framework closely related to the concept of culture 2.0 but which transcends the bounds of the cultural sector. In a strict sense, e-participation can be deemed the ways in which citizens can be more closely involved in government functioning at various levels, both local and national. More broadly, this context can be seen as the activities that can involve citizens in developing their own environment and society as a whole, naturally by using new media applications. It is in concept 5, introduced relatively recently, that the presumed productive role that new media culture might play in reinforcing the social quality of a highly technological society, will find a niche. In a sense, culture 2.0, ‘community arts’ and e-participation are contiguous, and harmonisation and crosspollination are within arm’s length. The gist of it From this confined panorama we can deduce that, in less than a decade, at least five successive policy contexts have evolved, setting out the new media culture.6 In other words policy is renewed, astonishingly enough, every two years. Luis Soares would be scratching his head. One wonders whether ground level is able to keep pace with developments at policy level. 22
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Based on concrete practical experiences with new media culture, it is clear that innovation is being fully explored in new forms of collaboration in the arts sector between science and research, and also in the intimate interlacing with the media industry in the creative industries sector. The educational dimension has found form in numerous projects and, in the meantime, has its own expertise centres and various practical projects. In a broad popular culture surrounding new media, an active kind of cultural participation and non-professional cultural production seem to have sprung up. In blogs and video, this has reached exponential heights, at least in terms of scale – the number of registered blog-sites, worldwide, has now reached some 1 billion, far outstripping all expectations. However, as regards professional cultural production and the professional public media offer, the opposite is happening. Where the explosive growth in the new media culture (including blogs, photo and video portals) may have been expected to have gone hand in hand with a wave of productions boasting high artistic and production values, the opposite seems to be the case; compared to the mid 1990s we are seeing a gradual decrease in innovative projects. Many of the artist-related new media productions are also occurring in an area that seems closely related to or that entirely overlap with dominant trends in the contemporary art world. With which the promise of a vital new art discipline seems, curiously enough, to have fizzled out while everything implied that, precisely because of the explosive growth in media culture across the board, this new art discipline was destined for great things. At the same time, the offer of professional public productions on the Internet is limited. This is partly restricted to incidental and sometimes large-scale but autonomous projects or is closely connected or even executed by traditional broadcasting authorities that originally stem from the public mass media landscape (broadcasting corporations and other public broadcasting companies).
5 See: http://www. eparticipatie.nl.
6 For the sake of clarity, I won’t include the discussion about Public Domain 2.0 here, given that it was not the subject of a policy discussion, but was a discourse triggered at grassroots level.
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And the question here is, of course: why? It has certainly nothing to do with a dearth of ideas on the part of a young generation of artists, designers and media makers. And there is no question about the professionalism of standard public media producers. Nonetheless, there seems no sign of the emergence of a large-scale, innovative public new media culture, for which there seems no apparent answer. The problem may be one of economics rather than anything else. Despite five successive policy frameworks for new media culture and fast-paced developments, there is still no effective support, either in the Netherlands or abroad. In contrast to photography or film, new media culture does not have its ‘own’ E-CULTURE IN A TRANSFORMING MEDIA LANDSCAPE: Towards a Functional Approach to New Media Culture
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production, distribution and financing structure that makes the structural development of a professional new media culture feasible. For young artists and designers graduating from the (highly diverse) training programmes, the choice is simple: a challenging journey reliant on many different sources of funding from temporary grants, project subsidies generally allocated for reasons of artistic content, national and international residencies and working in the industry to carve out a new media practice and oeuvre of their own. The alternative is a lucrative, potential-filled, high-paying career in the dynamic new media industry in a broad sense, or a safe haven in the established order of the contemporary arts.
system. For the government, the essence of the task of public broadcasting is to guarantee sufficient multiformity and quality of the range of information and communication offered to the public. The routes leading to this are many. The government does not need to set up or manage media infrastructures and production facilities itself. It can also step in to regulate and intervene in the event of market failure, as part of this task. However, as suggested earlier, the developments in the market that relate closely to the convergence process (increased horizontal and vertical integration in the media industry) are responsible for the grave disregard of this public broadcasting mandate if developments are left to the market. As a player, the government is largely absent from the arena of new media development and mostly leaves this task to the traditional broadcasting companies, which assign it low priority.
It is hardly surprising that almost none of the new generation opts for the nomadic existence of the new media culture-maker. For those wishing to undertake this daunting challenge, the lack of a clear financing structure for their own projects greatly hampers the development of a long-term personal practice. The innovative and idiosyncratic nature of their projects creates difficulties in connecting with the market and existing institutional arrangements. The subsequent frenetic activity that is part and parcel of this ‘bricolage’ way of working compromises the quality of the work. Traditional broadcasting companies and media producers give new media little priority. Their work process, institutional structure and vested interests (in the form of advertising revenues for mass media distribution, which are the life blood of public broadcasting companies) remain founded in the long-established practice of the mass media (radio, television and print media). This practice will not change of its own volition but developments in the environment of the public (and commercial) media organisation compel change and shall do so increasingly in the near future. Focus on Functions In December 2004 the Scientific Council for Government Policy (WRR) published the report Focus on Functions: Challenges for a future-proof media policy.7 The Council expands on a future vision for the Dutch media, based on rapid technological changes in the media landscape and, in specific, the process and effects of media convergence discussed earlier. In this report, the Council concludes that the media policy’s traditional focus on ‘channels’, on established media forms like radio and television, is not sufficient to formulate an adequate response to the challenges posed by rapid technological advances. In the report, the Council argues that this media policy should be based on media functions as more ‘stable categories’ 8 for a future media policy.
E-participatie site, http://www.eparticipatie.nl
7 Focus op Functies: uitdagingen voor een toekomstbestendig mediabeleid. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press/ WRR, 2005.
8 Ibid., p. 77. 10 Ibid., p. 77.
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9 Ibid., p. 76.
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The need for a shift of focus in the media policy from channels to functions is dealt with in depth by the Council in the report. Below, I quote the principal arguments they advance for this: – Future-proof: as a result of convergence and competition, infrastructures and media are less ‘instrumental’ in market failure and analysing market failure more on the level of the functions of media services and media producers seems logical. This does not mean that there is longer attention for the (market failure) of specific media and infrastructures. However, it does mean that, from the perspective of the desired functioning of the media landscape, important other forms and levels for the failure of media markets are a point of concern.9 – Relevance of values: a second point is that the validity of normative elements of media policy – the values and public interests and objectives that spring from them – are also increasingly unrelated to the type of infrastructure or medium. The normative elements and values that underpin media policy are primarily relevant to the functions the media landscape must fulfil and less to the functioning of infrastructures and media.10
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The values of independence, accessibility and multiformity are relevant, in principal, to all functions; however, the way they shape the weighing of the various interests, will differ depending on, for instance, news or entertainment programmes are at issue. – Hybridisation: Thirdly, the developments of hybridisation and virtualisation which are explored in detail in paragraph 2.5, are vital in supporting a functions-directed approach. Advancing technological potential for reproducing and modifying forms of information have sparked off all kinds of new ‘hybrid content’ (such as infotainment). Developments in journalism, consumer feedback, competition among providers, technological and socio-cultural developments, have given rise to motives and opportunities for a disorderly blend of functions and related content, which is not immediately apparent to the consumer.11
However, the production fund model must not be written off for the future and be deemed politically infeasible a priori because of its incompatibility with established financial and political interests. The production funds model seems far and away the most ‘future proof ’. Moreover, this model presents considerable potential for the further development of a vital and high calibre public new media culture.
11 Ibid., p. 77.
In the light of the developments it has perceived, the Council considers the current media system and corresponding media policy no longer tenable or workable in future. The place, function and form of the public media system are particularly at issue here. After all, legislation is the most effective tool in managing the private media sector. Active government intervention is required where public media functions not necessarily shaped by the market, are involved. The Council’s analysis also leads to a fundamental reassessment of the form and function of public broadcasting in the Netherlands in particular. In the last chapter, the Council formulates a number of possible modalities for the future structure of public media functions. The four modalities that it highlights vary from a minimal variant in which the government takes a solely regulatory role; a production fund model in which the government provides for news provision and guarantees funding for public media functions that can be given substance by civil society organisations that are not, in principle, part of the media system; a slimmed-down version of the ‘BBC model’ adapted to the Dutch context in which the government facilitates one editorially independent central public media provider able to offer a programme on all current and future media channels; and, finally, a mixed and open system where the bedrock of broadcasting corporations remains largely intact, but the system is opened up to dialogues and partnerships with civil society organisations.12 Based on the Council’s analysis of the environment, it is a strong supporter of the production fund model but ultimately selects the fourth proposal of a mixed and open system that most closely reflects the current structure of the Dutch public media system.
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The production funds model and a public content creation regulation As I observed earlier, the Netherlands currently has no adequate financing scheme for the creation of artistically highquality productions and socially relevant initiatives in the field of new media, while it is clear that a sizeable number of these productions and initiatives are not supported or, enabled by the market. In the last few years, the ‘Interregeling’, a funding scheme linking a number of the larger cultural funds, was involved in financing artistic productions, although the scheme was set to end in 2008, and its future is uncertain at the time of writing. The Interregeling appears to have received a huge number of funding applications for relevant projects, less than 25 percent of which were granted. This percentage and the trend towards a mounting number of project proposals underline just how large social need for such a scheme is. In Spring 2008, the Virtueel Platform also commented on the disappearance of the Interregeling and lack of an appropriate provision for the creation of public content in a letter to the Council for Culture and the Minister of Education, Culture and Science. In the letter, the Virtueel Platform proposes setting up a provision that focuses on a number of vital functions for the further development of the public new media culture in the Netherlands.
12 See: Focus op Functies, 6.5.5 enkele denkbare modaliteiten voor de vormgeving van de toekomstige publieke omroep, pp. 171-179.
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The specific focus of the scheme would be on projects which: – Have social, technological (hardware and software) and scientific pretentions and applications (such as new interface design, developing open source software); – Are inter-disciplinary and cross-medial (projects that simultaneously work with different media and channels); – Integrate a wide (commercial) public function (similar to projects supported by the Netherlands Film Fund’s scheme to finance Dutch feature films). – Are relatively small and/or short-term and not neces sarily innovative but of significance to e-culture and new media. These focal points again highlight the interdisciplinary nature of new media culture and its interfaces with broader social and societal functions. Consequently, it would appear that this issue can no longer, and exclusively, be resolved within the cultural E-CULTURE IN A TRANSFORMING MEDIA LANDSCAPE: Towards a Functional Approach to New Media Culture
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sector in the narrow sense (the ‘arts arena’) and its inherently curtailed resources.
develop a critical understanding of the economic principles and mechanisms operating in the new media sector in a broad sense. Such a critical perspective enables making strategic and policy choices that enable these organisations to mobilise these economic mechanisms in achieving their original objective or recognising the limitations of these economic principles and pursing a realistic policy reflecting this. This works to realise the ultimate aim of continually enhancing the capacity and sustainability of these online initiatives.
The production fund model identified by the WRR presents an obvious and very apt solution to this issue. This model separates public media functions from the specific media channels that distribute them and regards their intrinsic social and cultural value. The WRR feels that this presents great opportunities for involving civil society organisations, nongovernmental organisations, citizen initiatives and art and cultural organisations in the creation of the public media in the Netherlands. This not only democratises the structure and functioning of the public media system but creates a framework for direct social and cultural participation for many broad layers in Dutch society with which it also boosts social cohesion by directly involving people in these crucial forms of public communication. The WRR’s model also affords the desired and requisite scale for the fertile development of a Dutch new media culture: one that combines social relevance and social commitment with high artistic value. And which, therefore, should be implemented as soon as possible.
Flickr Commons Nationaal Archief, http://www.flickr.com/photos/ nationaalarchief/
Economic competence for the public and cultural sector Setting up a production fund for public and creative content creation in and around new media does not, however, resolve all the issues faced by current new media culture in the Netherlands. The players in the rapidly evolving professional arena must also take responsibility for giving this innovative form. If this is to be realised effectively, the economic competence of the public and cultural sector must be strengthened. This explicitly does not mean that cultural and social organisations have to adjust their working method and ‘product’ to an abstract market logic or a (corporate) economic model borrowed from the commercial sector. Quite the opposite; social and cultural organisations active in the new media sector must 28
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Between Heaven and Earth: On the Impact of Technology on Culture and the Arts Caroline Nevejan
http://www.being-here.net http://www.nevejan.org
Quiet Now, Just Wait, All Will Be New (Stil maar, wacht maar, alles wordt nieuw)
The ‘heaven and earth’ in which culture exists and develops has changed dramatically over the last decade. Music, dance, theatre, art, libraries, the media, archives, literature, film and architecture come about and exist in an environment that is rapidly altered by digitisation. These changes influence every discipline and sector in its own way. Children come into contact with and are affected by the culture around them in ways that have radically changed. Here I will discuss a number of trends that are consequences of these developments: shifts in views of identity, changes to the roles of the amateur and the professional, shifts from management and control to guidance and inspiration, and changes to cultural participation. I will then briefly sketch out current trends in a number of arts disciplines and parts of the cultural sector.
Caroline Nevejan is a researcher and designer with a focus on the implications of technology on society. She is a member of the Dutch National Council for Culture and the Arts. Currently Nevejan pursues this research with the Intelligent Interactive Distributed Systems group of the Free University in Amsterdam. She is also research fellow with PrimaVera, which is part of the Amsterdam Business School. Nevejan was the producer of numerous international conferences, member of staff of the musical venue Paradiso, co-founder of the Waag Society, director of research and development of the Hogeschool van Amsterdam, research associate of Performing Arts Labs (UK). And was deeply involved with the Doors of Perception network.
New views of identity The world’s population has doubled in the years since my birth and more than half of these people live in cities. Information from around the globe can be collected on a vast scale and used by people all over the world. Millions of people travel by air, sea and land at great speed. We can see and talk to people ‘live’ in other parts of the world. We can even see our planet ‘live’ from outer space. Microscopes, scans and other medical technologies have given us an internal view of our bodies, we can see babies before they are born. Above all, the technologies that make this knowledge and these images of the world possible are accessible to millions of people. Old tales and new stories merge together disseminating a new imagination around the world. And this has changed us.
Heaven and Earth Quiet Now, Just Wait, All Will Be New Heaven and Earth (De hemel en de aarde, stil maar, wacht maar, alles wordt nieuw de hemel en de aarde)
If you have ever been in the mountains and looked down into the valley where you are staying, you will never forget that new perspective. Equally, humankind has created new views of its existence which have changed ideas of identity. How much and which history do people need? How many streams of information can a person cope with at any one time? How much time can a person mentally spend somewhere else while still continuing to function normally in his or her own environment? How much interaction is healthy? Where and how do people want to act and when should we let a machine take over? What dramatic developments are recognised by new people and what speed and rhythm are necessary for this to happen? Will a new aesthetic accompany each new phase of technological progress and what will it look like? If everyone has access to everything, will everyone become the same? How do we recognise difference and how do we deal with difference? Or am I exaggerating: Are people today the same as people used to be? They’re born, grow up, fall in love, work, accumulate all kinds of material and immaterial stuff, have children, die.
Huub Oosterhuis
We sang this song in church in the 1960s. It was a song that always made me feel happy, gave me confidence and a sense of space. This song told me I should wait patiently, that renewal would come of its own accord. Renewal sung to that tune sounded like spring approaching, not yet visible in the cold of winter. When Virtueel Platform asked me to describe the current situation in the wider cultural sector from the perspective of e-culture, I was reminded of this song and its message of faith in the future. And I realised that developments in digital culture, global capitalism and the climate of crisis have made such lyrics almost impossible. Do children still sing this song? And how can we make it possible for children to sing such songs of faith in the future? 30
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become a centre for knowledge production by facilitating a network of amateurs and professionals. The museum in Gouda (known as museumgoudA) for instance, has an exceptional collection of Gouds Plateel (painted earthenware that looks like porcelain). Because the people of Gouda worked in the factories that produced this earthenware at the beginning of the last century, many pieces have remained in local families. The museum has started documenting a network around this collection, which has deepened the knowledge about the earthenware and has actually increased the size of the collection. Through this project the museum has become the director of a structural collaboration between a number of social institutions in Gouda, including the library.
Digital technology changes very quickly and at the same time has a profound effect on our daily lives. Whether in terms of maintaining an archive, designing a game, or developing new journalistic formulas there is confusion about the current state of affairs because even the near future presents enormous uncertainty. What would happen, for instance, if the music industry were to be more influenced by intuitive emotions than rational arguments? And the same voices were always heard through this intuitive feeling. An almost unbridled interest in new possibilities is at odds with the profound understanding that that which exists now should be protected. We can put everything on the Internet and learn all we want to there. But, says another voice, although you can find a lot on the Internet, you cannot find wisdom. In many scientific forums the question is being asked as to whether the cognitive development of people growing up in this new media landscape is different from before. Some stress that children growing up in an urban media environment today are able to handle rapid and complex situations. But, says another voice, new children also need a context in which they can blossom through love and trust, where they can develop the resilience to experience ‘processes’ and learn to read and concentrate. New views of identity generate great opportunities and new tensions: between generations, between different communities living in the same place. The relationship with people who live elsewhere has also changed. The confusion between how people experience each other in the ‘real’ world, how this resonates with images from the media, and how this is understood when viewed from different religious and historical contexts, is in many situations both tangible and a major source of conflict. At the same time, millions of people are in everyday contact with people who are very different from them and/or who live far away. This has never before been possible. In the ‘heaven and earth’ of today a new human identity is emerging. How we experience time and place has changed, the way in which people interact has changed, and their relationships with people they know and people they don’t know has changed.
Decorative vase with thistles. Gouda pottery (‘plateel’) factory Zuid-Holland plc, circa 1903-1904, model no. 5013 (Model from Gouda pottery factory Rozenburg plc, model 136) inv.no. 18760.
The professional and the amateur Another great change is underway that relates to how we view our identity. A tension has arisen between the amateur and the professional because (the role of intermediaries in) the professional environment, in particular, has changed. Record companies occupy a different position, now that professional musicians and amateurs are able to sell their own work worldwide and find each other on the many Internet platforms. The museum, which was where knowledge was exhibited, can now 32
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The word amateur is derived directly from the Latin amator ‘lover’, from the Latin amare ‘to love’. Professional comes from the Latin for profession professio(n-), which comes from the Latin profiteri (‘declare publicly’). The difference between amateur and professional therefore appears historically to lie in the different domains in which people act: the amateur in the private domain and the professional in the public. With the arrival of large Internet platforms and the many Web 2.0 applications it would seem that the realms of action for both professionals and the amateurs are shifting. While amateurs now publish in public en masse, professional life is increasingly being played out within protected intranet environments. People’s keenness to share information and knowledge in the public domain means the distinction between the amateur and CAROLINE NEVEJAN
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Managing and guidance Whenever the question is asked about how a person’s identity develops, the question also arises about the environment the person needs. A complex question, especially when one takes into account that developments in our time have no clear intention. There is no ‘masterplan’, rather, a dynamic has arisen that is fed by what many people do and for which no one is ultimately responsible. Moreover, major commercial interests play a part in this dynamic. These interests, which focus on short-term financial profit, are far from always visible, but they do profoundly alter the social structure of global society in the long term. Consequently, the question of the essence of the quality of society becomes more imperative. How should the market for the commercial production of culture be organised to enable global diversity to survive? How can we ensure that when people share their information and knowledge it isn’t abused? What culture will the people of tomorrow need in order to live together? What knowledge and creativity can people share and when is it necessary to earn money? How much culture can we effortlessly bear? How large and expensive may an artwork be? And how can the Dutch government stimulate and protect Dutch culture and its local cultures within this dynamic?
professional contribution can no longer be made on the basis of public claims to knowledge or information. With the help of the Internet, amateurs have entered the realm of the professional in huge numbers and the distinction between the one and the other appears, in public, to be primarily determined by context. An important side-effect of this new field of tension is that the question of how something came about and how one may identify quality has become imperative. ‘Samples’ of work by other people are used in digital montages of images and sound. In these montages the originals and the context in which they appear are changed. Here, too, different voices can be heard. Some argue that the montage is a new work, while others argue that the quality is in fact derived from the work of the makers of the original material. However, it appears that millions of people, including many artists, consider it normal to want to use someone else’s material without feeling they are stealing from them. It feels just like learning to sing a song. Someone sings a song and if I also learn to sing it we can sing together and have a lot of fun. People grow up in an environment in which culture plays a major role and, as in nature, people have a natural sense of being allowed to use elements from this environment. The ‘sharing economy’, as Lawrence Lessig has described this phenomenon, seems to be much larger and more powerful than expected. However, the sharing economy is at odds with the current economy where property, including intellectual property, is the driving force behind economic and judicial dynamics. Yet it would also seem that copyright does not get in the way of people downloading music. It also seems that millions of authors now publish in the public domain without claiming copyright. An important aspect of this is that certain conditions of trust are met, even though such trust usually arises because a platform is used by many rather than because a legally documented copyright protects it. However, this does not detract from the fact that an author, whether amateur or professional, feels the need to provide his or her work with a signature, while at the same time freely using the work of others. After all, culture has become a major part of urban nature for more than half the world’s population. People like to be able to touch and use their own environments. However, the enormous scale and scope of the Internet means the visibility and usability of the products changes at such a fast rate that we are looking for a new feeling, view and conclusion of what the rights of the author are and what right someone else has who want to use the same material, because it is in their environment.1 The question of quality in the work of the professional and the work of the amateur is also up for discussion. This social dynamic leads to complex situations that need to be resolved on a daily basis. 34
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Traces of our history do not necessarily need to be preserved at great cost, but if the monuments and archives cannot be visited, people cannot develop a sense of history. Libraries that are prevented from making sources and resources accessible, because they are increasingly being confronted with copyright obstacles or costly thresholds, see the ground beneath them being eroded. And then, the view that what is no longer used no longer has value conflicts with the view that an exceptional archive should be preserved because one day someone will take pleasure from it. The Dutch film sector needs to be protected because it is has value for Dutch culture, but if that sector does not make it commercially, where does the limit lie for how much public money s/he may receive? From this perspective, art and culture as an instrument is diametrically opposed to art and culture as a value in itself, even though both perspectives of art and culture are perfectly able to supplement each other and while respecting both the artist and art-lover.
1 Fair use, copyright, copyleft and creative commons aim to protect the intellectual copyright of the author and to organise transactions between authors. The question remains as to whether this is possible and/or desirable. European research is currently being carried out at the London School of Economics into transferring the burden of proof: everyone may use everything, except another person’s name. So, I may quote Michael Jackson but, without his explicit permission, I may not state that it is he I am quoting. Author’s rights in this example are minimised up to the point of being able to defend one’s reputation.
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It should be clear by now that these questions are complex and that there are no straightforward answers. In addition to this, the technologies, which are only understood by a few, are constantly changing, dominated by frequently invisible financial interests, and even large projects frequently go belly-up. Nonetheless, the question of quality arises at all levels, including in daily management situations and policy-making environments where there is seldom time to go into things in more depth. Every sector and every industry has to conBETWEEN HEAVEN AND EARTH: On the Impact of Technology on Culture and the Arts
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the news are dependent on the potential viewers. In this shift from product to service design, people have become the products. This is why people are counted, followed and made quantifiable.
stantly make decisions about what is necessary, where investment should be made, what should be legally protected, how much space amateurs and professionals get to make their own contribution, and how desirable pre-agreed compliance and action is.
Bold direction is needed; there are major opportunities, but hard-won freedoms are at stake. Major commercial and political interests with a structural lack of transparency are currently at liberty to do almost whatever they want to. Yet few people understand the implications of current technological developments. Bold direction needs the support of a strong organisational structre supported by an adequate judicial and financial infrastructure to which technological platforms also commit themselves. Now and in the coming years, great alertness and vigour is needed because a reliable global environment could be built in the next few decades. It has become apparent over the last ten years what is possible, and perhaps impossible, with current technologies. The so-called ‘innovation space’ has filled itself up. It is now time to dare to find out what is happening, with all the rationality and intuition available to us. Only then will it be possible for children in 2058 to sing together
In our rapidly mediatising society it is difficult in some sectors to predict where developments are leading, and the relationship between policy and decision is comparable to that of a farmer sowing seeds and hoping for good weather. Daring to take responsibility in complex situations that one has no control over is difficult, but also unavoidable. The question of how personal responsibility relates to the dynamic of the collective is in many situations unclear. That the issues of the day hold sway is born out by the many news reports which put the responsibility of administrators up for discussion. True leadership, a major theme in management circles, requires a personal integrity and responsibility which is formed and develops independently of the issues of the day. This rapidly changing landscape requires new forms of governance and organisation models to guide both the market, the public domain and the arts in and towards good a relationship. Management and control create reliability and responsibility, but can also lead to fossilisation and a lack of insight into what is actually going on. Good guidance and a healthy dose of inspiration nurture healthy, enterprising cultures, but they become vulnerable and short-lived when they lack a solid judicial and financial infrastructure. In terms of management style, a huge difference has begun to arise between the ‘old’ and the ‘new’ styles of management. The new style balances between the dynamic sketched out above – moving from control to guidance – making mistakes, but also booking successes. The old style consolidates and tries primarily to rescue whatever can be rescued, is amazed by what is going on in the world, and shuts itself off. More and more people are realising that information and communication technologies not only increase profit and efficiency, but can also make a very real contribution to the quality of the daily lives of many users and non-users. It is amazing that we can be in contact with people on the other side of the world, that we can hear music from all corners of the globe without ever going there, that we can share images and compose together, that archives are available online and that we can order library books from home, that artists can publish their own work, that the public can find it with three clicks of the mouse, that we can look up information and check facts as we have never been able to before.
Heaven and Earth Quiet Now, Just Wait, All Will Be New Heaven and Earth (Stil maar, wacht maar, alles wordt nieuw de hemel en de aarde, stil maar, wacht maar, alles wordt nieuw de hemel en de aarde) without first having to pay royalties to Huub Oosterhuis, or perhaps being banned from visiting Indonesia because it can be digitally proven that they once sung a Christian song. (In fact I would like to finish this first section with a Peanuts cartoon that I saw in the International Herald Tribune on Monday 20 October, 2008. But, because this is going to be published, I can’t for reasons of copyright. In this cartoon Charlie Brown lies in bed with Snoopy lying on his tummy. He mumbles a bit before falling asleep ‘Sometimes I lie awake at night and ask, “Can my generation look to the future with hope?”’ In the next image he turns over, while Snoopy looks at him and says: ‘Then, out of the dark, a voice comes to me that says: “Why sure...well, I mean...that is...it sort of depends...I mean ...if...when... who...we...and...”’)
Fundamental processes in the different value chains are now shifting from ‘product’ to ‘service’ design. The museum directs a network in order to be able to exhibit things. The musician publishes online in order to be able to play live. The filters of 36
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Brief Impression of E-culture Trends in Art and Culture
Flyer Images for the Future, http://www.imagesforthefuture.org
Music:
Technological changes have had a major impact on the music industry. Recording and editing equipment have become much cheaper and better quality. The entire value chain in the popmusic industry has been turned on its head: consumers download music and artists have become their own producers with the help of the Internet and, interestingly, it has been proven that more people go to live concerts in this digital age. Apparently the experience of attending a live concert is of a completely different order. On the Internet, amateurs and professional seem to mix effortlessly; both have access to the public domain. However, the record companies had their heads in the sand for a long time. Consequently they have lost a lot of ground which they are now trying to regain through initiatives like iTunes. Classical and modern music would seem to be becoming increasingly vulnerable due to the ubiquitous presence of pop music. In fact, the number of visitors has stabilised over the last ten years. That this is primarily an older public may be just as much an advantage as a disadvantage. The decline in interest for music education – both in regular schools and music schools – is a major problem. Learning an instrument takes time. Developing talent, therefore, starts at a young age. Talent that is not spotted at a young age cannot catch up later. A good music education is vital for introducing young people to all kinds of music so that they also know what a symphony orchestra sounds like, as well as pop. Luckily there are more and more initiatives aimed at bringing young people into contact with less well-known music, such as the New Year’s Concert by the Netherlands Wind Ensemble (Nederlands Blazers Ensemble), which is broadcast every year on Dutch television.
Film:
In film, digital technology has greatly affected the production process and distribution, as well as the filming process. In terms of filming and editing equipment, and in the areas of animation and special effects animation, digital technology has vastly expanded the possibilities available. Equipment has become extremely accessible to amateurs and films shot by amateurs at the site of major disasters often hit the world’s TV news programmes. Despite the millions of home
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videos (on YouTube, for instance), there are still film producers who make ‘big’ films possible. This is not easy for the Dutch film industry: the Netherlands is a wealthy, but small country with a limited language base. In Europe alone, where the most obvious co-productions may be found, more than 40 languages are spoken. Dutch filmand documentary-makers repeatedly run into the same production limitations. Within the dynamism of inspiration and control, the issue here is the safeguarding of a space for expression. Through investment regulations, tax agreements and subsidies, the Dutch government tries to continue to stimulate the Dutch film industry and to make a range of productions possible. Without such efforts the Dutch film climate would look very different.
Art and design:
Because equipment has become so simple and sampling material so easy, one might have expected the distinction between amateur and professional artists to have changed. But just as a child’s drawing is very different from a drawing by Joan Miro, the efforts of a professional artist are of a very different order to those of an amateur. Whether an artwork is produced in two dimensions (graphically), three dimensions (sculpturally), four dimensions (time-based) or five dimensions (influencing relations between people), the artwork places itself within the tradition of art and aims to contribute to it.1 On the other hand, interactions between popular culture and professional artists have profoundly influenced each other: from branding to fashion, from blog to interior architecture. However, the fact that artists and designers have begun to use digital technology in their work also has implications. The tradition of art and technology has established itself as its own domain, with its own museums, production houses, conferences, magazines and scientific publications. A number of things have radically changed in this tradition: the way the process of making an artwork is executed, modes of presentation, the ways in which art is bought and sold, and conservation and preservation methods. Because the possibilities and implications of technology are highlighted by artists in this tradition, the relationship between art and
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not, to my knowledge, monitored electronically. In this sense the theatre is ‘luckily’ still a digitalfree zone. The Internet is primarily used as an information and sales channel. Yet it is unavoidable that the changing media environment will have a dramatic effect on stage arts, even if only because the audiences have become accustomed to other dramatic forms. After so any years of television and daily computer use, a new value is now attached to being ‘live’ at an event, making a visit to the theatre attractive to many people once more. Games and environments such as Second Life, in which people make ‘digital theatre’ en masse, mean it is not improbable that new relations between stage artists and their audiences might also take on an Internet form before long. In the same way film and television have done, these new forms will influence how an audience understands dramatic narrative.
science is closer. The nature of the technologies have also made other kinds of interaction with the public possible. Just as stone is different from paint, so technology as a medium presents specific possibilities. Interaction and public participation in the making of an artwork especially are completely different from in the past as consequence of new technologies.2
Theatre and dance:
Although digital technology obviously plays an important part in the technical side of theatre, theatre itself has hardly been touched by new technologies. Even though performances are produced which integrate new media and which experiment with holding the performance at different locations simultaneously, for example, or interacting with the audience, or employing ingenious mise-en-scène, in which the image plays a more important part than the actor, the nature of theatre has remained fundamentally untouched. No radical changes have taken place for either the actors, audiences or intermediaries. In dance, digital notation systems have been developed; technology is used to analyse and optimise dancers’ movements. But the fundamental nature of dance for the dancer and the audience has remained unaltered by these developments. However, what has emerged, is that work by Dutch choreographers cannot be danced at dance schools because of the copyright on these ballets. Although this is not a direct consequence of technological developments, in terms of current thinking on the accessibility of cultural heritage in the public domain, which has resulted from technological developments, it is significant. As far as the world of theatrical arts is concerned, one could argue that the omnipresence of audio-visual technologies means many more people are playing and dancing: at home, at friends’, at parties, on the Internet, at a concert, or in nightclubs. On the other hand, the amount of attention and concentration people are able to commit to playing an instrument, performing a poem, singing a Dutch song, has declined.
Barbara Visser, TL/Tijdlamp
The Internet has so far played a marginal role in theatre production and marketing. Audiences are
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Literature:
Never before in history have so many people written in the public domain. In thousands of blogs, wikis, websites and communities people describe their opinions, experiences and share their information and knowledge. Amateurs and professionals express themselves in all kinds of ways in difference environments and together, as if it were quite natural. More is being read than ever before and at the same time the market for literature published in book form is shrinking. Small publishers find it hard to keep their heads above water, the range offered by major publishers is narrowing. Knowledge about classical literature and its techniques is becoming more scant. However, the productive collaboration between players in the market and the government means this sector is thriving nonetheless. The works of many new authors lie in the bookshops, Dutch authors are translated into many languages, and the work of foreign authors is accessible in the Netherlands. The literature funding bodies, working closely with publishers, seem to be able to bring the professional sphere of literature to a high level through a deliberate and varied policy. Digitisation in the book branch is moving fast. The sector is bending its brains over the issue of copyright for digital products and publishers are developing new business models.
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Yet many are very concerned about literary education and there is an concern that if children do not learn to enjoy reading, literature will die. At the same time it can be proven that as new forms and styles develop in popular culture, such as music and the Internet, that young people learn to be literate in many terrains in a way that older people do not understand and/or cannot experience. In other words: the last word has not been spoken on this matter. The collaboration between market and government, the alternation between inspiration and control, between freedom and responsibility, works well in this sector.
At the same time, digitisation also presents the possibility of enormously widening the range and expansion of use and participation. Digitisation makes a much broader, national collection possible through audiovisual documents, which can be distributed through the Internet. Libraries increasingly provide access to information that is located elsewhere: in other libraries, in archives, broadcasting companies or museums, but also with users. This increases libraries’ potential to reach a wider audience.
1 I formulated the difference between 2, 3, 4 and 5 dimensions for the first time in an interview with Geert Lovink about the ‘Politics of Presence Design’. See www.nevejan.org.
Endnotes:
2 An example of a five-dimensional artwork from the art and technology tradition: Because the concept of time – both objective (the time on the clock) and subjective (subjective) – is so strongly present at school, Barbara Visser developed an artwork that says something about the way we measure and represent time and how that can provide the impetus for the development ideas or activities around the conceptof time. The ‘TL/Tijdlamp’ (TL/ Timelight), which she developed with inventor/programmer Stijn Buis and artist Koert van Mensvoort is shaped like a fluorescent tube light (TL) which gradually fills up with coloured light. The light represents time. The longer the light hangs or stands in a certain place, the more it adjusts itself to the division of time in that space. It does this using sensors (‘eyes’ and ‘ears’) which measure sounds and movements. The ‘TL/Tijdlamp’ arrives at the school colourless, but learns to recognise a pattern of activities, for instance, the rhythm of the lesson timetable in a certain classroom. At the end of every lesson it will show a registration of how busy the class was in the form of a pattern of coloured stripes: increases in noise levels change the colour of the light.
All this, of course, has major consequences for established institutions like libraries and archives. They are being forced to think about Archives and libraries: their own organisations (buildings, staff, compoIf libraries still exist in 20 years’ time, what will sition of collections, accessibility). The public will they look like? A beautiful, silent book museum, increasingly come to occupy a central position, a a lively public reading room-cum-cafe-cumpublic that will (want to) participate more actively debating centre, or will libraries be in our homes in determining how information is given meaning in our computers? and who will want to be served faster and better. Developments in the area of new media and Citizens are increasingly organising their own ICT and the mediatisation of society are moving activities and do not want to be told what to do, so fast that it’s almost impossible to predict what but to be given support. This demands a different not only libraries, but also archives, will look like approach from libraries and archives, one less and what purposes they will fulfil. What is certain geared towards distribution and supply, and more is that the developments named above will put towards actively facilitating expression, exchange the intermediary role of institutions like libraries and the laying of connections between people, and archives under pressure. Knowledge is seen ideas and sources. to be an increasingly important economic factor Within the library sector the developments and the complexity and scale of the information I have described have led to a fundamental disstream is growing. Information and communicacussion about the function and even the position tions technologies have brought about the entry of the public library. In the archive sector a simiof numerous new parties into the information lar discussion is underway about the existing domain: publishing concerns, telecom companies order and how long it can last. Libraries and arand (Internet) providers unlock information on a chives are becoming more and more involved in major scale and not infrequently occupy a posiglobal developments that stretch far beyond their tion of power in doing so. Internet is now consid- grasp, and sometimes even beyond the grasp ered a ‘main library’ by many people, somewhere of national governments. At the same time they where you can get information 24/7. have to deal with a public that is changing, that Yet, digitisation also makes us vulnerable. takes ever less notice of established reputations Our immediate past slips out of our grasp as or institutional borders. In order to respond they we watch: information in the digital era is fleeting will have to push their own institutional interests and intangible, presenting archives with a new to one side and work and think more in network problem. The memory of the digital government structures and cooperative partnerships. is revealing gaps and what has not already disappeared is difficult or impossible render productive due to poor technical and/or intellectual management.
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Ten Years of New Media Education in The Netherlands Emilie Randoe
http://www.randoeverandermanagement.nl
Emile Randoe was the first Director of the new Institute of Interactive Media at Hogeschool van Amsterdam, University of Applied Sciences, and set up the Communication and Multimedia Design department there in 2002. Randoe is also Secretary of the Board of Virtueel Platform, a member of the Advisory Board of the ICT Innovation Platform and was from 2004-2008 Chair of the national CMD Platform.
The end of 2009 marks the passing of a decade since the first wave of new media education at HBO level (Higher Vocational Education) in the Netherlands. Emilie Randoe, until recently Director of the Institute for Interactive Media at the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences (HvA) from 2001, reflects on the pioneering years of new media education in the Netherlands and identifies strategic issues for the future.
(Left) Website HKU – Game Design and Development, http://www.hku.nl/
The first of October 2008 was a historic date for new media education at HBO level in the Netherlands, or at least for those courses known as Communication & Multimedia Design (CMD): the Advisory Council for CMD courses gave the goahead for a standardised national occupational profile. Their approval concluded a lengthy process, during which the seven different CMD courses developed their own identities and, on the basis of these, reached a consensus on their commonalities.
(Right) Website NHTV International Game Architecture and Design, http://www.nhtv.nl/
The development of innovative concepts for new media applications is key to the national occupational profile. This means that an important role is assigned in the courses for the development of concepts in line with the strategic aims of businesses and organisations. To do this effectively, a CMD student has to have a broad perspective. The occupational profile of the CMD courses therefore offers plenty of opportunities for ingenious combinations of knowledge and proficiency in media theory and technological culture, marketing and communications, design, interactive design, project management, scripting, and design and development methodology. Another important characteristic of a CMD education is that it focuses on three crucial levels: the operational (the ability to make something), the tactical (a capacity to organise) and the strategic (the ability to design something new that contributes to the strategic aims of the client). 44
This combination of disciplines resulted in the CMD courses frequently having to defend themselves on their own turf from the existing Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and Communications courses. And at the beginning of 2000, external forces justly took the CMD courses to task in the debate about ‘trendy’ courses that, although successful in attracting students, would probably only result in more unemployment. Fortunately, ten years later the converse appears to be true: there are plenty of employment opportunities for HBO [applied sciences degree] graduates with a new media education and they appear to be performing well in the industry.
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1 Saxion is among the largest universities of applied sciences in the Netherlands. (Link: http://www. saxion.edu/).
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Although the enrolment statistics compiled by the Netherlands Association of Universities of Applied Sciences (HBO-raad) and the Association of Universities in the Netherlands (VSNU) were consulted for this essay, it remains difficult to make an accurate assessment of the number of students following an education in new media. This is because of the complexity involved in finding out how much new media is included in the curricula of some of the courses. This essay focuses on HBO and university (Wetenschapelijke Onderwijs) courses, within which we differentiate between Bachelor and Master courses. The CMD courses are not the only ones at HBO level that enable students to qualify in new media studies. Of the 123 study choices available, an impressive 67 courses (at both Bachelor and Master level) were identified as foundation-based courses with a significant portion of new media in the curriculum. The oldest new media course in Holland is Art and Technology at the Utrecht School of the Arts (HKU), which can now also be followed at Saxion.1 According to enrolment figures, most students interested in new media opt for a CMD education (approximately 1100 first-year students), with the Communication Systems course ranking a respectable second (550 new students in 2007). A relatively new player in the field is the game course offered by the Breda University of Applied Sciences (NHTV), which drew 127 first-year students in 2007. The Art and Technology course (HKU and Saxion) attracted 331 first-year students. The intake for all new media courses has increased significantly in the last ten years. Moreover, EMILIE RANDOE
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traditional ICT courses are rapidly gaining ground by offering major and minor honours degrees in the areas of new media, human–computer interaction and game design. Each year, approximately 3000 students in the Netherlands embark on a new course focusing on new media. Shortly before the turn of the century it was de rigueur in the Netherlands to complain about the inadequate dovetailing of the knowledge and competencies of recently graduated young professionals on the one hand, and the labour market on the other. The HBO raad responded to this by introducing so-called competency-oriented education. Professional skills, an ability to cope with critical situations in professional life and to implement knowledge in a practical way thus became paramount. During the development of the occupational profile for Amsterdam, we therefore sought to create a robust foundation for formulating competencies. We held discussions with 40 large and small companies, but were none the wiser at the end of them. Each new media company had its own descriptions for tasks and functions and there appear to be significant disparities between consultancies and the producers of technology and media. The requirements of the clients and customers of these companies were another consideration. When examining employment opportunities we were struck time and again by the combination of activities in the then new field. For example, webmasters were expected to ensure that the website worked flawlessly, that all questions submitted were handled efficiently, that external editors, designers or technicians kept to their schedules and that management was properly informed about developments in this new medium – all in just three days a week. Common catchphrases at the time included ‘innovation’, ‘thinking out-of-the-box’ and ‘creativity’. Meanwhile, results of ongoing research were published, including that conducted by the Gartner group,2 which indicated that ICT and new media projects frequently took twice as long to complete, cost double the budget and were only half as functional as anticipated. While trawling through the literature, we chanced upon Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital, a book written by the Argentinean economist Carlota Perez.3 In it, Perez presents the results of her research into the five technological revolutions that have taken place in our society since 1771. Her findings indicate that these revolutions, despite occurring in different time periods, have an identical dynamic that is inextricably linked to the economy. Such revolutions start with the interruption or suspension of normal activity or progress caused by the invention of new technology, such as steam, oil, electricity, steel or ICT. Its disruptive character attracts investors hungry for quick profits, resulting in a stock market surge. Inevitably, the new technology cannot satisfy the 46
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The Blob (Ronimo Games)
2 Gartner, Inc. is a leading global information technology research and advisory company (http://www. gartner.com).
3 Perez, C., Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital: The Dynamics of Bubbles and Golden Ages, Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing, 2003, p. 52.
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overblown expectations and, predictably, a stock market crash follows. The fortune hunters are left licking their wounds and the new technology gradually trickles down to general use. This is followed by a period of roughly 50 years, during which the new technology produces meaningful applications and reaches maturity. During the 2001 dotcom crash, Perez’s conclusions proved invaluable when plotting the path for the sustainable organisation of communication and multimedia design courses. We tried to identify the organising principle behind the relatively stable period after the crash, not a simple task because the field of study and the sector was still in its infancy (the concept of a ‘creative industry’ had not yet gained ground in the Netherlands). Despite the crash, the idea that companies would create new products and services by incorporating interactive media still flourished. In retrospect it can be said that this approach actually succeeded in a number of cases. Museums, for example, no longer limit their exhibitions to physical spaces. Large numbers of Asian students attend lectures at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). And thanks to the Internet, new services like the car-share companies Autodate and Greenwheels got off to a flying start, as did vanity publishing and the online ordering and printing out of airline tickets. And we no longer leave the house to go to the bank to transfer money or post our remittance slips. However, innovating with new media appears to be more problematic than originally thought, because improving, overhauling or even brainstorming about the underlying industrial processes is more complicated, frequently takes much longer and is more costly to realise than expected.
4th year students HKU
local and national governments, as well as the educational and commercial sectors, to rethink the way they organise information both downstream and upstream. This 2.0 discourse is driven by demand (not supply) and users are expected to take control and manage the information these organisations require from them. The expectation is that these self-service concepts will simplify our lives, but most Internet users know how frustrating they can be because of their many design flaws. In the slipstream of this discourse, civil servants, teachers, customer care employees and so forth are reinventing themselves as operators in a 2.0 world governed by demand rather than supply.
Although the flurry of discussions about trendy courses has subsided and new media is a long way from fulfilling all the promises relating to its innovative qualities, it is now commonly accepted that new media can connect the various components in the value chain, and that interweaving these value chains can create ‘value webs’. Doing this correctly results in added value for the client. It is now common practice to book a holiday apartment or hotel and hire a car at the same time as buying an airline ticket, or, when buying a ticket for a performance online, to be offered suggestions of other performances that may be of interest. Museums and cultural institutions have invested substantial amounts of money in the last few years to make their collections available on the Internet. Pupils and students can explore the cultural heritage of their neighbourhood or town using mobile telephone games. That this can occur is doubtless also due to the fact that the World Wide Web 2.0 has allowed ‘users’ (customers, clients, etc.) to take control of the interface and become producers and publishers of their own information on the Internet. This development has triggered 48
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The current state of new media education Applying Perez’s model, it is understandable that upscaling (the use of applications) and economic growth (by producing companies and organisations) are the profession’s two key issues – even during a credit crisis. Furthermore, sustainability, as well as aspects such as eco-design (the ICT sector is among the most polluting industries in the world because it runs on electricity and because of the rapid turnover of equipment) and innovation strategy (nobody wants applications that have to be replaced every 18 months) have become important criteria. In addition, the discussion about globalisation plays a role in terms of both division of labour and in terms of diversity: societies are anything but culturally homogeneous and geographical boundaries do not exist in the world of interactive media. Outsourcing and offshoring is not an option for all design and development programmes, but large companies ESSAY
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Final exam exhibition 2007, Ice Magnet game (Ronimo Games)
do outsource work to places where it can be done efficiently, cheaply and quickly. This is, of course, a trend not limited to our times, but it has accelerated due to the ease of communication offered by the Internet. Another important trend is service design: making the requirements and the conduct of users of new media the core issue. When we reach the point when all our computer-driven devices have similar capabilities, and bandwidth and Internet access are problem-free, the most important area for competition will be accessibility, i.e., the ability to customise applications to one’s own requirements and surf the Internet without impediment. It is impossible to gauge how the rapid economic growth currently underway in Asia and parts of Africa and the economic crisis in the West will affect Dutch students and graduates in the long run. For a long time we were able to rest on the laurels of Dutch design’s fabulous reputation. But anybody who has recently visited India or Southeast Africa, cannot help but notice that something very interesting is taking place: the rapid emergence of new economic superpowers with strong domestic markets. Given the number of ICT students and designers being trained in these regions, the question is whether Europeans and Americans will be able to maintain their position as shapers of the new media discourse in the long term. Personally, I doubt it: as I see it, Africans and Asians possess three qualities that combine to form an exceptional basis for 21stcentury leadership: traditional knowledge, a deep understanding of the need to work together to achieve any goal, and a basic understanding that each individual also needs to work for the benefit of the community, because their governments simply do not have the financial means to solve all the social and economical challenges. These cultures are fuelled by the credo ‘We are, therefore I am’, whereas the Western equivalent is ‘I think, therefore I am’, or even ‘I possess, therefore I am’.
Project market 2008, 4th year projects
In new media education there is a broadly developing demand for specialisation. When the Internet truly started making inroads ten years ago, employment opportunities were created piecemeal for new functions such as webmasters and interaction designers, and recruitment advertisements frequently requested jacks-of-all-trades. Now that the medium has matured, specialists are more in demand. There is also a relationship with economic cycles: a growing economy provides more opportunities for generalists; only champions survive when the going gets tough. Nonetheless, everyone working in this sector should be able to function in multidisciplinary teams, and to do this effectively requires an understanding of the roles and professional ethics of other disciplines. In this context, we can speak of ‘T-shaped people’ (a concept formulated by Ideo Design): the vertical leg of the T represents their 52
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students who feel the course does not meet their intellectual requirements or students who become involved in developing their own companies while in the final stages of the course. – The increase in the number of providers of new media education, many of which cast doubt on the quality of courses offered by the other providers. This could result in courses that detrimentally affect the market. – Keeping abreast of developments in the field and the developments in the mindset about good education and combining these to create an educational institution that leads the way, instead of following market trends. – Offering and maintaining sufficient quality in the funding system. Regular colleges in the Netherlands maintain a lecturer/student ratio of 1 to 30. Although this ratio is more favourable in the arts education sector, the Netherlands is a poor cousin when compared to many other countries in this respect.
principal skill, while the horizontal line represents the empathy they need to work in a team, think out-of-the box, recognise patterns of behaviour, and so on. The CMD’s advisory council rightly asks whether recently qualified students at HBO Bachelor level possess all these qualities; after all, they are young graduates who have yet to acquire practical experience. There is consensus regarding the fact that performing effectively in this sector requires a combination of expertise and all-round proficiency. In the main, new media education is in pretty good shape, but the expectation is that after a period of lateral expansion, people will require a deepening of expertise. The CMD courses take these developments into consideration and incorporate them in the available courses. The curricula of all the courses are organised so as to ensure a wide selection of opportunities that enable students to orientate on their future careers. But there are concerns, too. – The quality of the intake is of great concern. Applicants to courses in the arts education sector are subject to a selection process. Other courses do not implement any such procedure. Professional education at HBO level must introduce improvements to the quality of education in basic abilities such as languages (Dutch as well as English) and learning skills. – There are also concerns for the economic position of graduating students, who frequently have to persevere in small companies in the creative industry. Lecturers who supervise students during internships or who have spoken to them after they have graduated are concerned about the rapidity with which young talent burns out. – Art students study to become new media designers able to frame new rules and therefore act as process designers, but they frequently get started, and then stuck, as designers who have to follow the rules and standards set by others. – Upscaling higher education. Almost all Dutch colleges are (again) busy clustering courses in Academies, Domains or Faculties. These are generally government-initiated programmes that should result in greater efficiency. But do courses that focus on structures and control still have the time to ensure the commitment of lecturers who are frequently also active in the industry? – Safeguarding the profile of the course, which involves the further enhancement of its identity and visibility in society; in other words, how to make ‘technology’ user-centred and accessible in a creative way and thereby create surplus value. Furthermore, what is the appropriate approach to overlaps with other courses and what steps should be taken to preserve the innovative character (namely a predominantly competence-driven and student-driven curriculum)? – Loss of talented students. On average, half the students do not finish their courses. Approximately half of these are 54
MAPPING E-CULTURE
4 The Hot100 are the most talented, newly introduced, most impassioned and promising up-andcoming creative media talent (http://www. virtueel platform.nl/ page/ 11934).
ESSAY
TEN YEARS OF NEW MEDIA EDUCATION in The Netherlands
There are not only concerns, but dreams too. We asked participants in our survey about their visions for the future and the measures they thought Virtueel Platform could take to improve new media education. – Creating opportunities for encounters between academies and training institutes, as well as between training institutes and companies or organisations working with new media, on the theme of e-culture and developments in the public domain. And preferably not only in Amsterdam, but throughout the country. This would result not only in the dissemination of knowledge, but also in opportunities for teacher training on the one hand, and the provision of interesting educational opportunities for professionals on the other; – The professionalisation of new and small creative industry companies with respect to issues such as entrepreneurship and career development and stimulating companies’ interest in encouraging staff members to take up a teaching post for one or two days a week, preferably in cooperation with a training institute; – Improving the current situation, such as ranking talent in the Hot100,4 as well as inviting students to conduct a case study in a Virtueel Platform framework that is relevant for the sector, so that students are challenged to think about exciting new media issues; – Contributing to a high-quality knowledge centre dedicated to e-culture and new media, a place where, for example, relevant (Masters) theses can be accessed or where participatory discussions are held that include students and lecturers and professionals from the field with practical experience. – Compiling a national database of supply of and demand for young talent. EMILIE RANDOE
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How did this essay come into being?
Twelve education managers and course coordinators participated in an electronic survey on Surveymonkey.5 The intention of the survey was to discover the burning issues for education managers. Interviews were also conducted by telephone, and I incorporated my own experiences and ideas, accumulated in the seven years since I became director of the Institute for Interactive Media for the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences. The selection of courses included in the survey is based on earlier research undertaken by the GOC Knowledge Centre as part of the ‘Mediacompetenties’ (Media Competencies) project.6 This overview is supplemented with a summary of the courses attended or completed by participants in the Hot100. These lists were then compared with the overview of courses at both the Bachelor and the Master levels at www.123studiekeuze.nl. Student numbers
At HBO level, most new media students attend the Communication & Multimedia Design course. This course is taught at eight colleges throughout the Netherlands (including Utrecht, since September 2008). In 2007, 1143 students enrolled, of whom 219 were women (slightly less than 20%). The Communication Systems courses ranked second, attracting a combined total of 588 students in 2007, 244 of whom were women (almost 40%). In 2007, 266 students enrolled in the Art & Technology course, almost 35% of whom were women. There are also courses available at only a single location, including Grafimediatechnology (Rotterdam, 63 students, 13% women) and Game Architecture and Design (NHTV, Breda, 129 students, 5% women).7 HBO students attending information technology courses with a new media orientation were not included in this overview. An estimated quarter of information technology students are involved with new media. A total of 2400 new ICT students enrolled in the Netherlands in 2007, of whom 4% were women. Adding up these figures, we arrive at roughly 3000 new students studying new media in the Netherlands in 2007, 18% of whom were women. Education in the sciences does not explicitly include new media education. Those that come closest to doing so are the Media and Culture and Communication Sciences courses with a total intake of almost 1400 students, 50% of whom were women. The University of Amsterdam offers an international Master programme in New Media and Digital Culture, for example.
5 Intelligent survey software that enables anyone to create professional online surveys quickly and easily (http://www. survey monkey.com).
5x E-culture and Commerce Stephan Fellinger
Antoinette Hoes is an expert on interactive media and communication. She is managing director and founder of Leylines BV. Leylines advises on interactive media strategies, e-business development and the uses of online media buying & PR. Antoinette also teaches new media management at the Centre for communications and Journalism of Hogeschool Utrecht. Antoinette’s past work experience includes working as business unit manager at Randstad and at an IT Consultancy. She also worked as interactive strategist for MediaMonks. Until recently Antoinette was programme manager for creative industry at Virtueel Platform. She also blogs for DutchCowgirls and Marketingfacts.
http://www.fellinger.nl
Dagan Cohen 6 The GOC Knowledge Centre (Kenniscentrum GOC) focuses on education, the labour market, training and advice in grafimediatechnology. (http://www.goc.nl).
http://www.uploadcinema.nl
Guido van Nispen
htttp://gnispen.blogspot.com
Jeroen de Bakker
http://www.qi-ideas.com
Walter Amerika
http://www.walteramerika.blogs.com
in conversation with Antoinette Hoes
http://www.leylines.nl
1 Stephan Fellinger is co-founder and chairman of the board of the SpinAwards foundation, which presents awards for creativity and effectiveness in interactive communication. He is also a regular columnist for Tijdschrift voor Marketing (Marketing Magazine) and writes for MolBlog, the Tijdschrift voor Marketing weblog that he initiated. In 2006 Stephan was selected as Online Media Man of the Year. In 2007 he was awarded the Coq d’Honneur by the Advertisers’ Federation (Bond van Adverteerders, BVA), the Society of Advertising (Genootschap van Reclame, GVR) and the Association of Communication Consultancies (Vereniging van Communicatie-Adviesbureaus, VEA). In 2008, Tijdschrift voor Marketing selected him as one of the 40 best marketeers in the Netherlands.
7 Grafimediatechnology is a study aimed at a combination of multimedia and information and communication technology.
His experience in interactive media and marketing stretches back to 1990. After some years working in public broadcasting and advertising he became an Internet entrepreneur in 2001. He advises organisations on the changing interactive media landscape with particular attention to changes in human behaviour. Stephan is a member of the advisory board for the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences (Hogeschool van Amsterdam) and Generation Next. He is also a member of the jury for the category ‘Innovation’ at this year’s Home Shopping Awards.
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ESSAY
5X E-CULTURE AND COMMERCE
ANTOINETTE HOES STEPHAN FELLINGER
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ANTOINETTE HOES
SF
What does the term ‘e-culture’ mean to you? STEPHAN FELLINGER
First, I’ll go back to the definition of culture according to Wikipedia: In its broad sense, the word ‘culture’ is synonymous with ‘everything society produces’. In this sense, culture is placed in opposition to nature. In a narrower sense, ‘culture’ is used to describe artistic expressions. I prefer the first definition, and for me it connects with the influence of technology on everything society produces. And it’s also important to me that they talk about culture influencing our life. That’s exactly what fascinates me about interactive media: the way it influences our life; how we communicate with each other, for example, rather than all the technical possibilities.
AH
Can you name any examples of ‘e-art’ that have inspired you? SF
What’s special about interactive media is that there is an iceberg effect. Only a small portion of the landscape is visible above the water. Most of what’s going on happens under the surface; I call it the underworld. So it’s entirely possible that the most amazing developments are occurring entirely out of my field of vision. I have that same feeling with e-art. I’m a great fan of Micha Klein. He won a SpinAwards prize several years ago for a Coca-Cola project where young people could combine elements of Micha with elements of themselves. Nowadays, this sort of thing is very common, but Micha was way ahead of his time. He also developed a character for the game Spore. What’s great about Micha is that he mixes up different worlds and inspires people with the results.
In the mix between the different worlds. Creatives often have the conservative tendency to primarily look around in their own world. But it is in the unusual combination of different worlds that true inspiration lies. For example, we want the SpinAwards to bring worlds such as Internet, television, film, advertising, music, telecom, games, art and education into contact with one another, and so create new things. The modern creative and artist is a perfect mixer who is unafraid of technology.
and enthusiasts curate and edit all the films into an evening-long programme.
AH
Can you suggest ways in which e-culture and e-art (policy) could contribute to your professional practice?
AH
Where do you see the renewal/innovation taking place in your practice/field?
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Another way of looking. Even though I teach people to look at the world in different ways, I also regularly need people to provide me with new insights. Before you know it, you become what you have always fought against. That’s what gives me my drive to keep on changing. I call it the ‘Veronica effect’: Veronica TV used to be a pirate broadcaster that confronted the establishment; now it is the establishment. That’s not what you want, is it?
INTERVIEW
DC
Yes, I’ve got plenty of examples of e-art. Jonathan Harris, for example, who keeps on developing new visualisations and interfaces using Internet data, and Graffiti Research Lab, which makes graffiti on buildings with lasers.
AH
Do e-art and e-culture have a renewing influence on your practice or that of other people in your field?
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AH
Can you name any examples of ‘e-art’ that have inspired you?
SF
In 2008 he founded Upload Cinema a monthly event in De Uitkijk cinema where films from the web are taken to the big screen.1 Every month has a theme and visitors can submit web films for inclusion. Dagan and a small group of experts
DAGAN COHEN
I think it’s a rather old-fashioned concept, and as far as I can see it’s not really a hot issue in society, either. Current (youth) culture is saturated with electronic and digital means of communication and expression. We’ve left e-culture behind. Culture is already digital. But that doesn’t alter the fact that insufficient attention is given in education, specifically art education, to the principles of digital media and the opportunities it can provide.
DC
Yes, I keep up to date with the work of students and artists who are active in the digital domain. And I try to integrate the experimental spirit of autonomous artistic work in my company by, for example, engaging in projects with academies or individual students.
Dagan Cohen is the creative director of Draftfcb Amsterdam, an integrated marketing communications agency that utilizes and combines all available communication channels (old and new) to reach and engage consumers. Besides his AH work at the agency, Dagan teaches at the Do e-art and e-culture have a renewing Rietveld Academy and is juror for the Dutch influence on your practice or that of other people Design Awards. For The Next Web he selected in your field? the most innovative ‘pre-start-up’ companies in SF the digital field.
Of course they do. Good artists show the world in a different light, and we all need that to progress as humanity.
ANTOINETTE HOES
What does the term ‘e-culture’ mean to you?
AH
Where do you see the renewal/innovation taking place in your practice/field?
DC
Renewal happens at the boundaries: the boundaries of old and new, of familiar and unexpected, and of physical and virtual – and in collaborations between seasoned professionals and open-minded young people.
1 http://www.upload cinema.nl.
5X E-CULTURE AND COMMERCE
AH
Can you suggest ways in which e-culture and e-art (policy) could contribute to your professional practice?
ANTOINETTE HOES DAGAN COHEN
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DC
I would like to see the government and e-culture organisations creating a policy-level stimulus for co-operation between commercial companies and artists, between designers and arts courses. This would be an aid to ensuring that good, rejuvenating ideas reach the market.
3
sector that has any real influence on what the rest of the digital/Internet world is developing. But then, I’m rarely in situations where I’m confronted with that type of artistic expression.
HDTV, news rights, sports rights: it would be interesting to do something about these issues from the culture and policy side and take the necessary measures to help everyone progress.
AH
Can you suggest ways in which e-culture and e-art (policy) could contribute to your professional practice?
GVN
The commercial and subsidised paths are really two separate worlds. On the more commercial side, I see a lot of start-ups that pride themselves on their entrepreneurship. This is a perspective that can occasionally lead to an Guido van Nispen is managing director of inflexible fixation on the kind of company, or Veronica Holding, a Dutch media organisation service, or platform they have in mind. I don’t that has always been at the frontier of the media see the Digital Pioneers (Digitale Pioniers) landscape. Cross-media operations include radio, initiative or the Media Guild (Media Gilde) as Internet, events and video. the most obvious place for projects starting up again. There may be plenty of ideas, but there Veronica encourages young talent through its needs to be more emphasis on scalability or in-house cross-media V-Academy, as media ongoing development. These approaches are producers in media companies, and by investing separated off and fragmented and are very in media and entertainment start-ups. focused on their own scene. Success lies in people being able to use things. As well as being MD at Veronica, Guido is fund manager of the Dutch Creative Industry Fund (DCIF), a seed capital private equity fund belonging to Telegraaf Media Group, Sanoma, IDG and Veronica. DCIF specialises in funding Dutch media and technology start-ups and has built up a good portfolio of promising companies. Guido is chairman of IPAN, the association that brings together professionals in the interactive and online field. Finally, Guido is an advisory member of the Lift Conference board and an active blogger and avid photographer who is never seen without his camera; his latest project being a portrait series entitled Dutch Digital Pioneers.
ANTOINETTE HOES
What does the term ‘e-culture’ mean to you?
GUIDO VAN NISPEN
Well, first try and explain what it is; the term has no real connotation or meaning for me.
AH
Can you name any examples of ‘e-art’ that have inspired you?
GVN
I don’t see anything emanating from the arts 60
AH
Do e-art and e-culture have a renewing influence on your practice or that of other people in your field?
The cultural sector could help by realising volume. The Hot100 initiative is fantastic, for example, but it needs a robust follow-up. It’s about getting people from different fields together and allowing new things, new collaborations, to come into being. If you plant enough seeds, good things are bound to grow.
4
AH
Where do you see the renewal/innovation taking place in your practice/field?
2 http://www.qi-ideas. com.
GVN
You could put the talent from the Hot100 into a competition in this context. That would work. If you’re young and starting a business and you only stay within your own area of interest while online, you keep coming across the same things. And that stands in the way of renewal. If you put entrepreneurs and people from the cultural sector together, it creates new contexts. Young digital entrepreneurs are sometimes burdened by their own rock-star behaviour. They see themselves as the standard and shut out other people’s ideas. What’s more, the entire global rights issue is a disaster that slows down a lot of initiatives. Music rights,
MAPPING E-CULTURE
INTERVIEW
GVN
People on the commercial side would appreciate it if they could carry forward those things that have been developed with public funds. If a project is subsidised the applications or platforms that are built should be released into the public domain. Take, for example, the Fabchannel platform. They are commercialising it themselves, but why not make the platform (without the Indie music content/ direction) available to others so they can develop new concepts with it? But things often aren’t produced in that way – or can’t be transferred. Releasing applications into the public domain establishes their requirements for quality of design, scalability and documentation.
Jeroen de Bakker co-founded Qi in the last quarter of 1997. 2 Qi developed numerous award-winning interactive marketing and brand concepts for clients such as Heineken Netherlands, Heineken International, Bols Distilleries, Amster-dam Airport Schiphol, Air Miles, Essent, Bacardi, Philips Europe and Unilever. Qi also developed its own digital media products, including the virtual advertising agency Qineboko.com, and the mobile content platforms Fanplay and Notones. Jeroen later worked for TBWA/Company Group, where brand activation and new media were combined. Here he was responsible for the roll-out of Brand Gossip. At the moment, Jeroen is focusing on starting new innovative media ventures, consulting with clients on how to deal with online media, and
5X E-CULTURE AND COMMERCE
ANTOINETTE HOES GUIDO VAN NISPEN
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working as the strategy director at Creative Shop 2009 (which started last year, as Creative Shop 2008). Together with Rembrandt Smids, he also started a new company called BrandWebbing, a new and unique brand strategic approach for online media.
ANTOINETTE HOES
What does the term ‘e-culture’ mean to you?
JEROEN DE BAKKER
I think I understand what is meant by e-culture, but I never use the term. I assume it’s that area of culture that is influenced by technological, electronic and digital developments.
AH
Can you name any examples of ‘e-art’ that have inspired you? JDB Off the top of my head, no – I don’t have much direct contact with new media arts or e-arts. My colleagues do – the people with the truly creative functions in the company. They often go to exhibitions or gatherings at places like Mediamatic or De Zwijger. Myself, I go to Picnic and I visited the DEAF electronic arts festival and I saw some good stuff there – last time mostly around the subject of augmented reality. There were interesting approaches to the combination of the physical and the virtual. It’s not so much that people in the arts have progressed further; the arts and the commercial world are focusing on the same developments. I’ll go back to DEAF next time.
AH
Do e-art and e-culture have a renewing influence on your practice or that of other people in your field? JDB The people working on the creative and conceptual aspects put a lot of the things they see and experience into the work they develop. As far as my function is concerned, I look primarily at what the advertiser needs. I sometimes filter out (innovative) things if they don’t serve the brand or the advertiser sufficiently. It’s all well and good if things are attractive, smart and innovative, but in our business it’s got to have a function. That’s the area I have to safeguard.
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AH
5
Where do you see the renewal/innovation taking place in your practice/field?
JDB
It’s surprising how long the distinction between the ‘old’ world and the digital world has managed to survive. Depending on the original discipline, a single starting point, such as ‘technology’, is often used. I expect it’s not much different in the arts than it is in the advertising world. At some point, the ‘e’ prefix will be redundant, but we aren’t there yet. Innovation occurs when talents are combined; they amplify one another. It’s important to have creative hot beds, places where people from the arts and other sectors can get to know each other and apply themselves, where bordering territories come together. And I personally love to work with teams in which we bring various disciplines together.
Walter Amerika is an independent boardroom consultant, creative entrepreneur and speaker on creativity and innovation. His newest project is the Creative Industry SOFA, which seeks new ways to finance creative industry initiatives. He is also: – Head of the Market Faculty at Eindhoven Design Academy – Chairman of the Doors of Perception Foundation (international ICT/Design conference/think tank) – Member of the Dutch National Education Forum (cross-discipline group concerned with the future design of the Dutch educational system) – Board member of States of Humanity (international cultural brand/work of art), Advisor to the Dutch National Committee for International Cooperation and Sustainable Development on Dutch Design in Development (exchange platform between the Dutch creative industries and exporting companies in developing countries) – Member of the advisory board of Custom Fit (an EU project concerned with rapid prototyping/manufacturing) – Advisor to Dutch management centre DeBaak on the creative industries, Ambassador of the Dutch Design Awards.
AH
Can you suggest ways in which e-culture and e-art (policy) could contribute to your professional practice?
JDB
It seems to me that the most important thing is to invest in new forms of education. It’s remarkable, don’t you think, that Eckart Wintzen set up his new type of school in America and not here. Now that we have all established that creativity is one of the cornerstones of our Western economy, there should be more emphasis on it in education. We are heading towards a completely different economy, it’s entirely new and will require different skills – beyond reading and writing. There’s a lot to be done in this area. How we deal with intellectual property already is and will continue to be a very important factor. The existing policy for stimulating traditional arts should be duplicated for new technological forms and arts.
MAPPING E-CULTURE
ANTOINETTE HOES
What does the term ‘e-culture’ mean to you?
WALTER AMERIKA
Culture is such a broad notion. It is definitely true that culture comes into being under the influence of all manner of new technological developments, but is it also high culture? As in the physical world, there is far too little ‘high culture’ in the digital domain. Far too much is developed on the basis of a technology push, but that is very different from people actually needing it, from it truly enriching our world.
AH
Can you name any examples of ‘e-art’ that have inspired you?
INTERVIEW
5X E-CULTURE AND COMMERCE
ANTOINETTE HOES JEROEN DE BAKKER
63
WA
Yes, I see a lot of different work. The first to come to mind is Montevideo and their interactive art. And Danielle Kwaaitaal and Micha Klein, for example, who engage in video culture.
AH
Do e-art and e-culture have a renewing influence on your practice or that of other people in your field?
WA
Innovation comes from the amateurs in the [banking] sector. Those who work in the banking sector prefer to keep their cards close to their chest and are conservative. The current legislation doesn’t help, because it nips innovation in the bud; you only get licences if you adhere to the traditional model.
AH
Where do you see the renewal/innovation taking place in your practice/field?
WA
Certain sectors are moving quickly and some companies have gone a long way in incorporating new developments in their work processes and concepts. Take, for example, AMO, Rem Koolhaas’ bureau, where architecture is seamlessly integrated with other disciplines of the creative industry. And then there’s the banking sector… they all share the same backbone; there’s nothing to distinguish them. The banks focus on the standardisation of processes instead of deploying technological developments. There should be a willingness in such sectors to think in form and image – not just in technical interfaces. We are presently engaged in renewing the banking sector with technologies such as peer-to-peer banking and cooperative banking. It’s no longer top-down; with the help of technological developments, among other things, it also bottom-up. If things change in these areas, it results in a cultural shift throughout society. Work should be more demand-led, but that’s not going to come from the technology.
WA
You can implement industrial policy if there is sufficient political support for those choices. If the Netherlands now relies – or is going to rely – on the trade in ideas and creativity, then it is appropriate to apply policy to it, but that doesn’t mean you have to subsidise everything: you can achieve the same effect through investment. Make investment attractive through changes to taxation; raise the underwriting of investment. At present, these kinds of regulations are too focused on technological innovation. ‘Softer’ forms of innovation should be eligible too. And if you provide the stimulus, you have the right to set fairly substantial requirements as far as the results are concerned. At the moment, subsidies sometimes go to niches of niches. Fabchannel is a wonderful project, but as a platform it could be used on a far broader scale than in the niche (contentwise) it presently occupies. And I believe that if you provide a stimulus to innovation using public funds, the public should benefit from the results. Besides the supply side, some attention should be paid to the demand side. How do you make it clear to the different sectors what e-culture and creativity and innovation have to offer?
The interviews above were carried out in January 2009.
Dutch Translations/ Nederlandse Vertalingen
AH
Can you suggest ways in which e-culture and e-art (policy) could contribute to your professional practice?
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MAPPING E-CULTURE
INTERVIEW
NEDERLANDSE VERTALING
DUTCH TRANSLATIONS
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E-cultuur in een transformerend landschap: Naar een functionele benadering van mediacultuur
Eric Kluitenberg
De kunsten voeren al sinds de eerste decennia van de vorige eeuw een productieve dialoog met actuele technologische ontwikkelingen. In de vooroorlogse periode waren het de diverse Europese avant-garde bewegingen die op verschillende wijzen het technologische beest te lijf gingen. De variatie was altijd groot: van het opgewekte nihilisme van Dada, de extatische adoratie door de Futuristen tot de meer pragmatisch utopische benadering van Bauhaus en het constructivisme. Na de oorlog was het vooral de Amerikaanse Art and Technology beweging rond kunstenaars als Robert Rauschenberg en wetenschappers als Billy Klüver die de gedachtevorming over kunst en technologie nieuw leven in bliezen. Terugkijkend kunnen we echter constateren dat de echte ‘explosie’ van activiteit hand in hand ging met de miniaturisering van computertechnologie (en dus dalende kosten) en de personal computer revolutie die in de jaren tachtig goed op gang was gekomen. De markt ‘democratiseerde’ technologie op een schaal die nooit eerder was waargenomen. Het instrumentarium van wetenschappers en informatici werd plotseling ook dat van boekhouders, kruideniers, apothekers, hobbyisten, ontwerpers en kunstenaars. Waren de machines in de jaren tachtig nog onhandzame apparaten, in de vroege jaren negentig ontwikkelden ze zich tot volwaardige multimediamachines die op een geheel nieuwe manier beeld, geluid, tekst, data en interactie aan elkaar wisten te koppelen (het tijdperk van de CD ROM). Voor kunstenaars opende zich een perspectief op een nieuwe synesthetische kunstvorm van oneindige flexibiliteit. Een symfonie van beeld, geluid en beweging waar Skrijabin alleen maar van kon dromen lag nu binnen handbereik van vrijwel iedere kunstenaar. Uit de wisselwerking van al die terreinen (in willekeurige volgorde: wetenschap, kunst, markt, technologie en het alledaagse leven) ontstond iets wat een ‘nieuwe mediacultuur’ kan worden genoemd. Het hybride karakter van haar oorsprong is haar handelsmerk geworden. Nieuwe mediacultuur beperkt zich niet tot één van deze terreinen maar omvat of doorsnijdt ze allemaal. Dat maakt het fenomeen moeilijk te begrijpen en hanteren voor de relatieve buitenstaander. Met de opkomst van het Internet volgde de definitieve doorbraak van
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de nieuwe mediacultuur in het midden van de jaren negentig. In eerste instantie was het Internet een tekst gebaseerd medium dat sterk verankerd was in de wetenschappelijke laboratoriumcultuur waar het uitgekomen was. Maar het Internet heeft zich, zelfs voor betrokkenen, in een onvoorstelbaar snel tempo ontwikkeld tot een volwaardig en vrijwel allesomvattend multimedianetwerk. Alle andere mediavormen en -modaliteiten worden in toenemende mate door dit multimedianetwerk opgeslokt (radio, televisie, telefoon, fotografie, audiovisuele archieven, e-mail, nieuwsgroepen en interactieve mediavormen die amper 15 jaar gelden alleen op CD ROM denkbaar waren). Dit proces wordt doorgaans aangeduid als ‘convergentie’ van de media. In een notendop verwijst dit naar het feit dat vrijwel alle media kanalen, voortgedreven door technische en economische voordelen, inmiddels digitaal zijn geworden: audio- en videoproductie, radio en televisie, nieuws- en persfotografie, opmaak en druk van papieren publicaties, telecommunicatieverbindingen. Dit heeft enorme consequenties voor de positie van kunst en cultuur in het nieuwe medialandschap en voor de publieke functies van media in het algemeen. 1 De suggestie was dat Rupert Murdochs tabloid, dat switchte van politieke steun aan New Labour in plaats van aan de conservatieven, de verkiezingsuitslag had bepaald. Na de conservatieve zege in 1992 kopte The Sun: ‘It’s The Sun that’s won it!’. 2 Counterveilling power.
De ontwikkeling is niet alleen in positieve termen te beschrijven. Convergentie van de media heeft de trend van consolidatie in de mediamarkt exponentieel versterkt. Al veel langer was met de toegenomen internationale dimensie van elektronische media een proces gaande van wat economen ‘horizontale integratie in de media industrie’ noemen: mediabedrijven die fuseren of worden overgenomen binnen de eigen branche, waardoor mediaconglomeraten ontstaan die in toenemende mate concurrentie neutraliseren. (Economen vinden dat doorgaans heel erg slecht voor marktwerking.) De trend naar digitalisering van alle mediakanalen en -vormen heeft echter ook een exponentiële toename veroorzaakt van ‘verticale integratie’ in de media en telecommunicatie-industrie: het samensmelten van distributie, productie van content (programma’s, redactionele inhoud, media formats, diensten) en de verschaffing van toegang voor de eindgebruikers tot binnen in het huis van de individuele consument. (Economen vinden dit doorgaans een absolute ramp.)
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Vooral de combinatie van massieve horizontale en verticale integratie in de media- en telecommunicatie-industrie heeft geleid tot een catastrofale verschraling van het openbare aanbod van informatie en communicatie. Dit lijkt paradoxaal in een situatie waar vrijwel iedereen toegang heeft tot publicatiemiddelen op Internet – en dit is inderdaad de enige reddingsboei voor publieke cultuur die momenteel nog voorhanden is. Maar wanneer primair de professioneel geproduceerde mediaproducten en -diensten in ogenschouw worden genomen, toont zich een landschap waarin buiten publieke aanbieders het overgrote aandeel van media-aanbod en toegang tot informatiekanalen door een snel afnemend aantal wereldwijd opererende mediaconglomeraten verzorgd en daarmee gecontroleerd wordt. Dit is niet alleen extreem slecht in economisch opzicht omdat het wereldwijd tot marktfalen op een ongekende schaal leidt, maar ook in cultureel opzicht waar de wet van de grote getallen oppermachtig heerst. En ook in politiek opzicht is deze ontwikkeling extreem slecht omdat het de diversiteit van opinievorming in zeer ernstige mate belemmert – denk bijvoorbeeld aan de bravoure in de headline in de Britse krant The Sun na de eerste verkiezing van New Labour leider Tony Blair: ‘It’s The Sun that’s won it!’.1 In het licht van de convergentie van media en de concentratie in internationale mediamarkten is het duidelijk dat de ‘wisdom of the crowds’, de doe-het-zelf mediacultuur en het publieke media-aanbod elkaar vooral aanvullen en elkaar bovendien dringend nodig hebben om een effectief tegenwicht 2 te bieden aan de steeds sterker consoliderende marktkrachten in het medialandschap. Alleen garanties voor publieke toegang gecombineerd met sterke publieke functies in mediaproductie en -aanbod kunnen op langere termijn de diversiteit en kwaliteit van het publieke aanbod van informatie en communicatie garanderen. Dit vormt de context waarin de nieuwe mediacultuur functioneert en waarin duidelijke functies en verantwoordelijkheden kunnen worden geïdentificeerd.
New Media Culture
Binnen het terrein van de e-cultuur spelen meerdere aspecten (de scheppende, producerende functies en de
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gemeenschappelijke co-creatie van content) een belangrijke rol. De publieke sector in engere zin (cultuurinstellingen, de rol van de overheid, publieke media-aanbieders) speelt primair een rol in de scheppende e-cultuur of nieuwe mediacultuur. Over deze nieuwe mediacultuur wordt sinds het midden van de jaren negentig een actieve internationale discussie gevoerd, waarin Nederland en de Nederlandse cultuursector een duidelijke voortrekkersrol speelt. Eén van de eerste Europese beleidsdocumenten uit de sector was de zogenaamde Amsterdam Agenda. Deze werd op 1 november 1997 tijdens de Practice to Policy Conferentie in Amsterdam gepresenteerd. Hierin werden drie elementen geïdentificeerd die in erg belangrijk waren voor de zich snel ontwikkelende nieuwe mediacultuur in Europa: innovatie, educatie en sociale kwaliteit.3 Op het gebied van innovatie werd verwezen naar de veel voorkomende samenwerking die ontstond tussen kunstenaars, cultuurproducenten, technologieontwikkelaars en wetenschappelijk onderzoekers. Deze samenwerking kwam voort uit de behoefte voor toepassing van een nieuw instrumentarium en de ontwikkeling van nieuwe probleemstellingen en methodieken. Tevens werd een productieve relatie gezien tussen cultuur en industrie waarbij het ging om het ontwikkelen van nieuwe toepassingsgebieden voor nieuwe mediatechnologie. Kunstenaars rekten de agenda van de nieuwe media op naar nieuwe terreinen, terwijl de industrie het instrumentarium bereikbaar maakte voor steeds grotere groepen producenten en afnemers. Op het vlak van educatie werd zowel gedacht aan concrete samenwerking met scholen en onderwijsinstellingen om educatieve projecten en nieuwe (multimediale) lesmethoden te ontwikkelen. Maar ook werd verwezen naar het educatieve effect van nieuwe mediacultuur waarbij het publiek wordt verleid tot een spel met nieuwe mediavormen en zo spelenderwijs vertrouwd wordt gemaakt met de technologie en haar werking; informeel leren of leren door te doen. Kunst en cultuur werd daarnaast een a priori kritische positie toegekend voor wat betreft de maatschappelijke gevolgen en implicaties van nieuwe technologie. Juist door deze kritisch onderzoekende houding werd zij in staat geacht een belangrijke bijdrage
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te leveren aan een maatschappelijk verantwoorde integratie van nieuwe media en nieuwe technologie. Doordat veel cultuurprojecten in gemeenschapsverband werden ontwikkeld (in een concrete doorleefde context waarin een veel grotere diversiteit van gebruikers met de nieuwe media werkt dan in een technisch laboratorium) zou nieuwe mediacultuur tevens een grote bijdrage leveren aan het versterken van de sociale kwaliteit van de nieuwe mediatoepassingen.
Culturele Competentie
In het boek New Media Culture in Europe (Virtueel Platform, 1999) schreef de Portugese beleidsmaker Luis Soares nog dat de ontwikkelingen in de praktijk zich met een zo grote snelheid voltrokken dat deze vaak niet overeenkwamen met de snelheid van de publieke en politieke instituties in Europa.4 In de jaren daarna heeft zich een snelle opeenvolging voltrokken van denk- en beleidskaders waarin de ontwikkelingen in de nieuwe mediacultuur zijn vervat. Eind jaren negentig werd de nadruk gelegd op de vergroting van de culturele competentie in publieke en technologische beleidskaders. De aanname was dat de ontwikkelingen in de praktijk niet zichtbaar waren en onvoldoende begrepen werden door de mensen en instituties die beslissingen namen over de ontwikkeling van de publieke en technologische sector. Juist door het vooruitstrevende karakter van artistieke en culturele experimenten was het moeilijk voor beleidsmakers om de waarde ervan vast te stellen en moest er meer begrip voor worden gekweekt. Het sterk interdisciplinaire karakter van de nieuwe mediacultuur maakte dat extra lastig.
1994 en tot grote wasdom gekomen in de late jaren negentig, hierin een zeer prominente rol. Hoewel DDS ook internationaal grote bewondering oogstte werd zij nooit meer dan incidenteel ondersteunt vanuit publieke middelen in Nederland, zelfs niet nadat ook politieke instituties het netwerk gebruikten om hun informatie te verspreiden aan de inmiddels zeer omvangrijke groep gebruikers. Uiteindelijk zou DDS bezwijken aan haar eigen succes, de facilitaire structuur was niet langer te handhaven zonder een sterker commercieel terugverdienmodel, dat in die tijd niet voorhanden was.
Publiek domein 2.0
Rond de millenniumwisseling kwam echter een ander discours tot ontwikkeling waarbij men zich vooral afvroeg hoe nieuwe media kunnen bijdragen aan een revitalisering van het publieke domein. Deels wilde men dit bevorderen door de ruimte voor doe-het-zelf initiatieven op het gebied van nieuwe media te vergroten. Vooral gemeenschapsprojecten boden hiervoor goede aanknopingspunten. Hier konden groepen mensen rondom een gedeeld interesse of belang de nieuwe media instrumenten gebruiken om meningen te delen en zich te organiseren. In Nederland speelde het gemeenschapsnetwerk De Digitale Stad (DDS), opgericht in
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E-cultuur
Creatieve industrie
In navolging van de e-commerce boom en de populariteit van e-trading werd de nieuwe mediacultuur omgedoopt tot e-cultuur. Na de beruchte dotcom crash in het voorjaar van 2000 verloor deze associatie echter veel van haar glans en verdween zij naar de achtergrond. De ‘e’ verwees vooral naar de elektronische media die de drager vormden van de nieuwe cultuurvormen die zich rond de nieuwe media ontwikkelden. E-cultuur is in beleidskringen een populaire aanduiding gebleven maar wordt in de praktijk zelden gebruikt of herkend.
3 The Amsterdam Agenda: Fostering emergent practices in Europe’s media culture, 1 november 1997, conferentie Towards a New Media Culture in Europe: From Practice to Policy, georganiseerd door het Virtueel Platform i.s.m. het Ministerie van Onderwijs, Cultuur en Wetenschap en het Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken, onder auspiciën van de Raad voor Europa, 29 oktober – 1 november 1997, in Rotterdam en Amsterdam.
Uitermate vruchtbaar is de associatie gebleken van nieuwe mediacultuur met de zich snel ontwikkelende markt voor nieuwe mediatoepassingen in het algemeen. Deze bredere context bood vooral aan ontwerpers en cultuurproducenten van media-aanbod voor een bredere doelgroep (entertainment, edutaintment, infotaintment en aanverwante gebieden) een zeer vruchtbare voedingsbodem. Het Verenigd Koninkrijk vervulde een belangrijke voortrekkersrol door deze creative industries vroegtijdig te herkennen als motor voor innovatie en nieuwe zeer gediversifieerde markten. Ontwerpers functioneerden altijd al op het snijvlak van cultuur en industrie, maar met de nieuwe digitale instrumenten en distributiekanalen kregen zij een centrale rol in het vormgeven van een compleet nieuwe industrie waar informatie, communicatie, ontmoeting en entertainment naadloos in elkaar overvloeden. Het heeft een bloeiende sector opgeleverd die ook door beleidsmakers innig is omarmd.
4 Luis Soares: ‘At the ground level, things happen at a speed which is often incomptabile with the speed of Europe’s public and political institutions.’ (New Media Culture in Europe, 1999).
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5 Zie ook: http://www. creative commons.nl.
Cultuur 2.0
Omdat de nieuwe mediacultuur altijd zowel de cultuurproducenten, als in
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minder strikte zin de productie van cultuuruitingen door individuen en nietprofessionele gemeenschappen heeft omsloten, lag de vraag voor de hand welke dwarsverbanden en kruisbestuivingen hier mogelijk zouden zijn. Hierin heeft niet alleen de ontwikkeling van het Internet tot een breed multimediaal medium een prominente rol gespeeld, er is ook een nieuwe generatie elektronische consumentenproducten ontstaan: van digitale foto- en videocamera’s, beeldbewerkingprogramma’s voor de thuiscomputer, tot doe-het-zelf programma’s om webpagina’s te ontwerpen. Nieuwe webdiensten als online fotogalerieën, videosites (YouTube en anderen) en de explosie van het fenomeen blog (dagboek notities met beeld en geluid op Internet) hebben het speelveld voor culturele participatie volkomen veranderd. Dit fenomeen wordt meestal aangeduid met de term Web 2.0. Het actieve aspect (terugpraten met en naar de media) wordt hierin als meest vernieuwend gezien. Internetveteranen mompelen doorgaans overigens dat terugpraten het wezensprincipe van Internet is en er dus eerder sprake is van Web 0.1. Cultuur 2.0 is als notie naar voren geschoven om de vraag te verkennen welke rol de professionele culturele sector zou kunnen spelen om een meer actieve participatie van het brede publiek te stimuleren, met name bij de professionele cultuurproductie en het cultureel erfgoed. Dat laatste wordt sterk gestimuleerd door de voortgaande digitalisering van het culturele erfgoed en de toenemende ontsluiting ervan op Internet. Het gaat hierbij over kwesties als een meer interactieve exploratie van cultuuraanbod, co-creatie van werken door kunstenaars met individuele cultuurconsumenten of met gemeenschappen, maar ook om gezamenlijke becommentariëring van cultuuruitingen, discussie daarover (ondermeer via Internet) en het creatieve hergebruik van bestaande werken en materialen. Het creatieve hergebruik van bestaande materialen (beelden, muziek, software) bevordert een actieve cultuurparticipatie in de meest letterlijke zin, maar auteursrechtelijke bepalingen en bescherming van de integriteit van artistieke producties werken creatief hergebruik expliciet tegen, en niet altijd ten onrechte. Een initiatief als de Creative Commons 5 heeft daarom een alternatief licentiesysteem ontwikkeld waarmee makers en rechthebbende
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materialen geheel of gedeeltelijk vrij kunnen geven voor hergebruik (bijvoorbeeld voor educatie en niet-commerciële doeleinden). Het probleem hierbij is echter dat dit alleen een oplossing biedt bij die werken waarvan de rechthebbende bekend is en deze bereid is het werk vrij te geven voor bepaalde of alle vormen van hergebruik. Veel van de meest interessante materialen voor deze vorm van actieve cultuurparticipatie blijven hiermee buiten beschouwing.
E-participatie
E-participatie is een beleidskader dat nauw verwant is aan de gedachte van een cultuur 2.0 maar dat de grenzen van de cultuursector overschrijdt. In engere zin kan e-participatie worden begrepen als de manieren waarop burgers nauwer betrokken kunnen worden bij het functioneren van de overheid op verschillende niveaus, zowel lokaal als landelijk. In ruimere zin kan dit kader worden begrepen als alle activiteiten waarmee burgers meer betrokken kunnen worden bij ontwikkelingen in hun omgeving en de samenleving als geheel, uiteraard door middel van nieuwe media toepassingen. Het is in dit tamelijk recent geïntroduceerde begrip 6 dat de veronderstelde productieve rol die nieuwe mediacultuur zou kunnen vervullen voor een versterking van de sociale kwaliteit van een hoog-technologische samenleving, een plek kan vinden. In zekere zin liggen cultuur 2.0, ‘community arts’ en e-participatie in elkaars verlengde en dus ligt afstemming en kruisbestuiving zeer voor de hand.
The gist of it
Wat we uit dit kleine panorama kunnen constateren is dat in een periode van amper tien jaar maar liefst vijf opeenvolgende beleidskaders zijn ontwikkeld waarbinnen de nieuwe media-cultuur is vervat.7 Dat geeft een duizelingwekkende gemiddelde omloopsnelheid van beleid van twee jaar. Luis Soares zou zich nog eens achter zijn oren mogen krabben. De vraag doemt zelfs op of de praktijk nog wel in staat is om de ontwikkelingen op beleidsniveau bij te benen! Verder is op basis van de concrete praktijk in de nieuwe mediacultuur te zien dat het aspect van innovatie steeds duidelijker haar weg vindt in nieuwe samenwerkingsvormen in de kunst- en cultuursector, tussen wetenschap en onderzoek, en in de innige verstrengeling met de media-industrie.
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De educatieve dimensie is in tal van projecten uitgewerkt en kent inmiddels haar eigen expertisecentra met tal van praktische projecten. In een brede volkscultuur rond de nieuwe media lijkt zich een actief soort cultuurparticipatie en niet-professionele cultuurproductie te ontwikkelen. Op het gebied van blogs en video is deze zelfs overweldigend te noemen, in ieder geval wat betreft haar omvang. Het aantal geregistreerde blog-sites beweegt zich wereldwijd gestaag richting de 1 biljoen, een getal dat elk voorstellingsvermogen te boven gaat. Maar juist waar het gaat om de professionele cultuurproductie en het professionele publieke media-aanbod doet zich een tegengestelde beweging voor. Waar verwacht had mogen worden dat de explosieve groei in de nieuwe mediacultuur in brede zin (inclusief blogs, foto- en videoportals) gepaard zou gaan met een vlucht aan artistieke en hoogwaardige producties, lijkt er eerder sprake te zijn van een gestage afname van vernieuwende initiatieven in vergelijking met midden jaren negentig. Veel van de artistieke nieuwe mediaproducties bevinden zich bovendien in een gebied dat nauw verwant lijkt aan dominante trends in de hedendaagse kunstwereld of daarmee zelfs geheel samenvallen. De belofte van een vitale nieuwe kunstdiscipline lijkt daarmee geen gestalte te krijgen, terwijl alle aanleiding bestond te verwachten dat juist in de context van een explosieve groei van de mediacultuur in brede zin deze nieuwe kunstdiscipline zich met grote kracht zou vestigen. Tegelijkertijd is het professionele publieke aanbod op Internet beperkt. Voor een deel blijft dit beperkt tot incidenten en, soms grootschalige, op zichzelf staande projecten. Aan de andere kant blijft het nauw gerelateerd, of zelfs uitgevoerd, door de traditionele zendgemachtigden. En de vraag hier is natuurlijk: waarom? Aan de ideeënrijkdom van een jonge generatie kunstenaars, ontwerpers en mediamakers ligt het niet. Ook de professionaliteit van de reguliere publieke mediaproducenten mag als gegarandeerd worden beschouwd. Toch lijkt er geen echte grote vernieuwende publieke nieuwe mediacultuur tot stand te komen en dat blijft in eerste instantie een raadsel. Het probleem lijkt eerder economisch van aard. Voor nieuwe media-
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8 Focus op Functies: uitdagingen voor een toekomstbestendig mediabeleid. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press/WWR, 2005.
9 Ibid., p. 77.
6 Zie ook: http://www. eparticipatie.nl.
7 Voor het gemak tel ik de discussie over Publiek Domein 2.0 hier even niet mee aangezien dit geen beleidsdiscussie is geweest, maar een discours dat uit de praktijk is voortgekomen.
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cultuur bestaat ondanks vijf opeenvolgende beleidskaders en stormachtige ontwikkelingen geen adequate ondersteuningsregeling. Niet in Nederland en ook niet in het buitenland. Anders dan binnen de fotografie of filmsector is er geen sprake van een ‘eigen’ productie-, distributie- en financieringsstructuur die een structurele ontwikkeling van een professionele nieuwe mediacultuur haalbaar maakt. Voor jonge ontwerpers en kunstenaars die de (overigens rijk gesorteerde) opleidingen verlaten dient zich een simpele keuze aan, een lastig parcours dat zich van veel verschillende ondersteungingsbronnen bedient. Voorbeelden van financiering om een eigen nieuwe mediapraktijk en oeuvre te kunnen ontwikkelen zijn: tijdeljke beurzen, projectsubsidies (die meestal om niet toegekend worden), residenties in binnen- en buitenland en opdrachten voor de industrie. Het alternatief is een lucratieve carrière vol mogelijkheden en met een hoog inkomen in de dynamische nieuwe media industrie, of een veilig onderkomen in de gevestigde echelons van de hedendaagse kunsten. Het is niet verwonderlijk dat vrijwel niemand van de jonge generatie kiest voor het nomadische bestaan van de nieuwe media cultuurmaker. Voor degenen die, desondanks, deze uitdaging aangaan, blijft het ontbreken van een duidelijke financieringsstructuur voor eigen projecten een grote belemmering voor het ontwikkelen van een duurzame eigen professionele praktijk. Juist vanwege het innovatieve en eigenzinnige karakter vinden dergelijke projecten moeilijk aansluiting bij de markt en bij bestaande institutionele arrangementen. De jachtigheid die noodzakelijkerwijs uit deze ‘bricoleur’ activiteit volgt is ook niet bevorderlijk voor de kwaliteit van het werk. Bij de traditionele zendgemachtigden en mediaproducenten behouden de nieuwe media een lage prioriteit. Het werkproces, de institutionele structuur en de gevestigde belangen (ondermeer in de vorm van advertentiegelden voor massamediale verspreiding, die van levensbelang zijn) blijven gegrondvest in de praktijk van de massamedia (radio, televisie en printmedia). Uit zichzelf zal deze praktijk niet veranderen, maar ontwikkelingen in de omgeving van deze publieke (en commerciële) mediaorganisaties dwingen wel veranderingen af en zullen dat in de nabije toekomst in toenemende mate blijven doen.
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Focus op Functies
In december 2004 bracht de Wetenschappelijke Raad voor het Regeringsbeleid het rapport Focus op Functies: Uitdagingen voor een toekomstbestendig mediabeleid 8 uit. De Raad bracht daarin een toekomstvisie voor het Nederlandse mediabestel naar voren. De snelle technologische veranderingen in het medialandschap en in het bijzonder het eerder besproken proces van convergentie van media en haar effecten vormden het uitgangspunt in dit rapport. De Raad constateert in dit rapport dat de traditionele focus in het mediabeleid op ‘kanalen’, op gevestigde mediavormen als radio en televisie, niet adequaat is om relevante antwoorden te vinden op de uitdagingen die de snelle technologische ontwikkelingen stellen. In plaats daarvan houdt de Raad een pleidooi om dit mediabeleid te baseren op de functies van media, als ‘stabiele categorieën’ 9 voor een toekomstige mediabeleid. De publieke functies van het mediabestel zijn daarmee in het geding. De overheid wil garanties bieden voor een adequate pluriformiteit en kwaliteit van het openbare aanbod van informatie en communicatie. De wegen hiertoe zijn veelvuldig. De overheid hoeft niet nadrukkelijk zelf media-infrastructuren en productiefaciliteiten in te richten of beheren. Ook in de vorm van regulatie en interventie bij marktfalen kan zij voorzien in deze opdracht. Wat ik echter al eerder heb aangevoerd is dat ontwikkelingen in de markt die nauw samenhangen met het convergentieproces (toegenomen horizontale en verticale integratie in de media-industrie) er juist toe leiden dat deze publieke opdracht ernstig in geding is als ontwikkelingen aan de markt worden overgelaten. Evenwel is op het gebied van nieuwe media-ontwikkeling de overheid als actieve speler grotendeels afwezig en laat zij deze taak over aan de traditionele zendgemachtigden waar het een lage prioriteit wordt toegekend. De noodzaak voor de verschuiving van de focus in het mediabeleid van kanalen naar functies wordt door de Raad uitvoerig toegelicht in het rapport. Ik citeer hieronder de belangrijkste argumenten die zij aanvoert: – Toekomstbestendigheid: Als gevolg van convergentie en concurrentie worden infrastructuren en media minder ‘bepalend’ voor marktfalen en ligt het voor de hand om marktfalen meer op het niveau van de functies
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van mediadiensten en -producten te analyseren. Dat betekent niet dat er geen aandacht meer is voor (marktfalen van) specifieke media en infrastructuren. Het betekent wel dat er vanuit het oogpunt van het gewenste functioneren van het medialandschap vooral aandacht is voor belangrijke andere vormen en niveaus van het falen van mediamarkten.10 – Relevantie van waarden: Een tweede punt is dat de geldingskracht van normatieve elementen van het mediabeleid, de waarden en de daarvan af te leiden publieke belangen en doelen, steeds meer los komt te staan van het type infrastructuur of medium. De normatieve elementen en waarden die aan het mediabeleid ten grondslag liggen, zijn immers vooral relevant voor de functies die het medialandschap moet vervullen, en veel minder voor het functioneren van infrastructuren en media. De waarden van onafhankelijkheid, toegankelijkheid en pluriformiteit zijn in beginsel voor alle functies relevant, maar in de uitwerking en belangenafweging zal er verschil zijn tussen bijvoorbeeld nieuwsvoorziening en amusement.11 – Hybridisering: Ten derde zijn de ontwikkelingen van hybridisering en virtualisering die in paragraaf 2.5 uitvoerig zijn besproken, een belangrijke ondersteuning voor een op functies gerichte benadering. Door de toenemende technologische mogelijkheden om vormen van informatie te reproduceren en te modificeren ontstaan er allerlei nieuwe ‘hybride inhouden’ (bijvoorbeeld infotainment). Als gevolg van ontwikkelingen in de journalistiek, consumentenvraag, concurrentieoverwegingen van aanbieders, technologische en sociaalculturele ontwikkelingen ontstaan motieven en mogelijkheden voor een onoverzichtelijke en voor de consument niet direct kenbare vermenging van functies en daarmee verbonden inhouden.12 Op basis van de door de Raad waargenomen ontwikkelingen acht zij het bestaande mediabestel en het daaraan gekoppelde mediabeleid niet langer houdbaar noch werkbaar voor de toekomst. De analyse van de Raad leidt tot een fundamentele heroverweging van de vorm en functie van met name de publieke omroepen in Nederland. Juist waar het publieke mediafuncties betreft die niet vanzelfsprekend door de markt worden ingevuld is een
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actieve interventie van de overheid gewenst. In het laatste hoofdstuk verkent de Raad daartoe een aantal mogelijke modaliteiten voor een toekomstige inrichting van de publieke mediafuncties. De vier modaliteiten die zij daar herkent variëren van een minimale variant waarin de overheid slechts regulerend optreedt; een productiefonds-model waarbij de overheid toeziet op nieuwsvoorziening en middelen garandeert voor publieke mediafuncties die inhoudelijk door maatschappelijke organisaties kunnen worden ingevuld, welke zich niet principieel binnen het mediabestel bevinden; een afgeslankt ‘BBC model’, toegesneden op de Nederlandse verhoudingen waarin de overheid één redactioneel onafhankelijke centrale publieke media-aanbieder faciliteert die op alle huidige en toekomstige mediakanalen een programma aanbod kan verzorgen; en tenslotte, een gemengd en open bestel waarbij het uitgangspunt van omroepverenigingen grotendeels wordt gehandhaafd maar wordt opengesteld voor convocaties en samenwerking met organisaties uit het maatschappelijke middenveld.13 Op basis van de omgevingsanalyse van de Raad stelt zij dat zij het productiefonds model een zeer warm hart toedraagt, maar toch kiest zij uiteindelijk voor het als vierde voorgestelde gemengde en open bestel dat het meest aansluit op de huidige inrichting van het Nederlandse publieke mediabestel. Het productiefondsmodel moet echter voor de toekomst niet worden afgeschreven. Het productiefonds model lijkt veruit het meest ‘toekomstbestendig’. Bovendien biedt dit model een zeer interessant perspectief voor de verdere ontwikkeling van een vitale en kwalitatief hoogwaardige publieke nieuwe mediacultuur.
10 Ibid., p. 76.
11 Ibid., p. 77.
12 Ibid., p. 77.
13 Zie: Focus op Functies, 6.5.5 enkele denkbare modaliteiten voor de vormgeving van de toekomstige publieke omroep, pp. 171-179.
Het productiefonds model en een publieke content-creatie regeling
Zoals ik eerder heb geconstateerd ontbreekt in Nederland op dit moment een adequate financieringsregeling voor de creatie van artistiek hoogwaardige producties en maatschappelijk belangwekkende initiatieven op het gebied van nieuwe media. Het is duidelijk dat een belangrijk aandeel van deze producties en initiatieven niet door de markt worden gedragen noch worden mogelijk gemaakt. Voor wat betreft de artistieke producties heeft in de afgelopen jaren de Interregeling, een
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dwarsverband tussen enkele grotere cultuurfondsen een rol gespeeld, maar deze regeling liep eind 2008 af, zonder een helder beeld van een vervangende regeling. Ook blijkt de Interregeling in hoge mate overvraagd door steunverzoeken voor relevante projecten waarvan minder dan 25% wordt toegekend. Uit dit percentage en de tendens naar een toenemend aantal projectvoorstellen blijkt een grote maatschappelijke behoefte aan een dergelijke regeling. Het verdwijnen van de Interregeling en het ontbreken van een deugdelijke regeling voor de creatie van publieke content is eveneens door het Virtueel Platform geconstateerd in een schrijven aan de Raad voor Cultuur en de Minister van Onderwijs, Cultuur en Wetenschappen in het voorjaar van 2008. In de brief stelt het Virtueel Platform voor om een regeling die zich richt op een aantal vitale functies die zorgen voor een verdere ontwikkeling van de publieke nieuwe mediacultuur in Nederland. De regeling zou zich in het bijzonder moeten richten op projecten die: – maatschappelijke, technologische (hard- en software) en wetenschappelijke pretenties en toepassingen hebben (zoals nieuw interface design, ontwikkeling van open source software); – interdisciplinair en crossmediaal van karakter zijn (projecten waarbij tegelijkertijd met verschillende media en kanalen gewerkt wordt); – een brede (commerciële) publieksfunctie betreffen (gelijk aan bijvoorbeeld projecten die het Filmfonds ondersteunt in haar regeling voor de Nederlandse lange speelfilm); – relatief klein en/of kortlopend zijn, niet direct innovatief zijn maar van groot belang zijn voor e-cultuur en nieuwe media. In deze aandachtspunten komt wederom het grensoverschrijdende karakter van de nieuwe mediacultuur en haar raakvlakken met bredere maatschappelijke en sociale functies sterk naar voren. Het lijkt daarom dat deze problematiek niet kan worden opgelost zonder meer en uitsluitend binnen het kader van de cultuursector in enge zin (het ‘kunstenveld’) en haar inherent beperkte middelen. Het eerder genoemde productiefonds model biedt hier een zeer voor de hand liggende oplossing. In dit model worden publieke mediafuncties los gekoppeld van de specifieke media-
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kanalen waardoor zij worden gedistribueerd en bezien op hun intrinsieke maatschappelijke en culturele waarde. De Raad ziet hier goede mogelijkheden om ook organisaties uit het maatschappelijke middenveld, non-gouvernementele organisaties, burgerinitiatieven alsmede kunst- en cultuurorganisaties bij de creatie van het publieke mediaaanbod in Nederland te betrekken. Niet alleen heeft dit belangrijke democratiserende effecten voor de inrichting en het functioneren van het publieke mediabestel maar het creëert ook een raamwerk voor directe maatschappelijke en culturele participatie voor veel brede lagen van de Nederlandse samenleving. Het bevordert daarmee in sterke mate de sociale samenhang omdat mensen direct bij deze cruciale vormen van publieke communicatie worden betrokken. Het model dat de Raad met veel sympathie bejegent creëert tevens de schaal die gewenst en noodzakelijk is om tot een vruchtbare ontwikkeling van een maatschappelijk belangwekkende, en betrokken en artistiek hoogwaardige nieuwe mediacultuur in Nederland te komen en zou daarom op zo kort mogelijke termijn moeten worden geëffectueerd. Economische competentie voor de publieke en culturele sector
Met de inrichting van een productiefonds voor publieke en creatieve content creatie in en rond de nieuwe media zijn echter nog niet alle vraagstukken beantwoord voor de actuele nieuwe mediacultuur in Nederland. Het is noodzakelijk dat ook de actoren in het zich snel ontwikkelende professionele veld hun eigen verantwoordelijkheid nemen om deze op innovatieve wijze vorm te geven. Om dit effectief te kunnen doen is het dringend gewenst om de economische competentie van de publieke en culturele sector te versterken. Dit houdt expliciet niet in dat culturele en maatschappelijke organisaties hun werkwijze en ‘product’ moeten aanpassen aan een abstracte marktlogica of aan een commerciële sector ontleend (bedrijfs)economisch model. Integendeel, wat hiermee bedoeld wordt is dat ook maatschappelijke en culturele organisaties die actief zijn op het terrein van de nieuwe media een kritisch begrip moeten ontwikkelen van de economische principes en mechanismen die werkzaam zijn in de nieuwe media sector in brede zin. Vanuit een dergelijk kritisch perspectief kunnen
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vervolgens strategische- en beleidskeuzes worden gemaakt die deze organisaties in staat stellen om deze economische mechanismen in te zetten voor het bereiken van hun oorspronkelijke doelstelling, of eerder de beperkingen van deze economische principes te herkennen en daar een realistisch beleid op af te stemmen. Het uiteindelijke doel is om de draagkracht en duurzaamheid van deze initiatieven blijvend te vergroten.
Tussen hemel en aarde: over de impact van de technologie op cultuur en de kunsten
‘Stil Maar, Wacht Maar, Alles wordt Nieuw, de Hemel en de Aarde Stil Maar, Wacht maar, Alles wordt Nieuw, de Hemel en de Aarde’
Caroline Nevejan
Huub Oosterhuis
In de jaren zestig van de vorige eeuw zongen wij dit liedje van Huub Oosterhuis in de kerk. Het was een liedje waar ik blij van werd, dat vertrouwen gaf en ruimte. Het liedje zei me dat als ik rustig zou wachten, de vernieuwing vanzelf zou komen. Vernieuwing klonk op die melodie als de lente die er aan komt, hoewel zij in de koude winter nog niet zichtbaar was. Virtueel Platform vraagt me de stand van zaken in de brede cultuursector te beschrijven vanuit het perspectief van de e-cultuur. Ik herinner me dit liedje vol vertrouwen in de toekomst en realiseer me dat de ontwikkeling van de digitale cultuur, het mondiale kapitalisme en de ontstane klimaatcrisis een dergelijke tekst inmiddels bijna onmogelijk heeft gemaakt. Zijn er nog kinderen die dit zingen? En hoe kunnen we de kinderen van de toekomst zulke liedjes vol vertrouwen laten zingen? De ‘hemel en aarde’ waarin de cultuur bestaat en zich ontwikkelt, is de afgelopen decennia ingrijpend aan het veranderen. Muziek, dans, theater, bibliotheken, media, archieven, literatuur, film en architectuur ontstaan en bestaan in een door digitalisering snel veranderende omgeving. Deze veranderingen beïnvloeden disciplines en sectoren ieder op eigen wijze. Ook de manier waarop kinderen in aanraking komen met de cultuur om hen heen en erdoor geraakt worden is ingrijpend veranderd. Hieronder bespreek ik een aantal trends die het gevolg zijn van deze grote veranderingen: verschuiving van perspectief op identiteit, verandering van rollen van amateurs en professionals, verschuiving van sturing en controle naar regie en inspiratie, en veranderingen in cultuurparticipatie. Vervolgens schets ik kort wat er speelt in een aantal kunst- en cultuursectoren. Nieuwe perspectieven op identiteit
Sinds mijn geboorte heeft de wereldbevolking zich verdubbeld en inmiddels woont meer dan de helft van de mensen in een stad. Informatie uit de hele wereld kan op grote schaal worden verzameld en wereldwijd door mensen worden gebruikt. Miljoenen mensen
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reizen door de lucht, over het water en (snel) over het land. We kunnen ‘live’ kijken en praten met mensen op andere plaatsen op de aarde en zelfs vanuit de ruimte naar onze planeet kijken. Door microscopen, scans en andere medische technologie hebben we een beeld gekregen van ons inwendige lichaam. We kunnen baby’s al zien voordat zij zijn geboren. Bovenal: de technologie die deze kennis en beelden van de wereld mogelijk maakt is voor miljoenen mensen bereikbaar. Oude sprookjes en nieuwe verhalen smelten ineen en een nieuwe verbeelding wordt wereldwijd verspreid. Lokale culturen onderscheiden zich van een zich ontwikkelende wereldcultuur. Via Internet en televisie kennen vele mensen over de hele wereld dezelfde beelden. Dit heeft ons veranderd. Als je eenmaal vanaf een berg hebt gekeken naar het dal waar je verblijft, kan je dit nieuwe perspectief niet meer vergeten. Evenzo heeft de mens nieuwe perspectieven op zijn bestaan gecreëerd, waardoor opvattingen over identiteit veranderen. Hoeveel en welke geschiedenis heeft de mens nodig? Hoeveel stromen van informatie kan een mens tegelijk aan? Hoeveel tijd kan een mens mentaal ergens anders zijn en toch nog goed functioneren in haar of zijn eigen omgeving? Hoeveel interactie is gezond? Waar en hoe wil een mens kunnen handelen en wanneer mag een machine dit doen? Welke dramatische ontwikkelingen worden door de nieuwe mens herkend en welk tempo en ritme is daarvoor noodzakelijk? En ontstaat er ook een nieuwe esthetiek in een volgende fase van technologische vooruitgang en hoe ziet deze er dan uit? En als iedereen toegang heeft tot alles wordt iedereen dan ook gelijk? Hoe herkennen we verschillen en hoe gaan we om met die verschillen? Of is dit allemaal overdreven en is de mens van nu dezelfde als de mens van vroeger, die geboren wordt, opgroeit, verliefd wordt, werkt, allerhande materiële en immateriële zaken verzamelt, kinderen krijgt en sterft? Digitale technologie verandert in hoog tempo en heeft tegelijkertijd grote invloed op het dagelijks leven van mensen. Of we nu spreken over het behoud van een archief, het ontwerpen van een game of het ontwikkelen van nieuwe journalistieke formules: er heerst verwarring over de huidige stand van zaken omdat de nabije toekomst al grote onzekerheid biedt.
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Wat er gebeurt in bijvoorbeeld de muziekindustrie wordt meer bepaald door intuïtieve gevoelens dan door rationele argumenten. En in dit intuïtieve gevoel zijn telkens weer dezelfde stemmen te horen. Een bijna ongebreidelde interesse in nieuwe mogelijkheden spreekt tegen een diep besef dat beschermd moet worden wat er nu is. We kunnen alles op Internet zetten en er alles leren, maar, zegt een andere stem dan, hoewel er veel op internet staat is wijsheid er niet te vinden. Op verschillend wetenschappelijke fora wordt de vraag gesteld of de cognitieve ontwikkeling van mensen die in dit nieuwe medialandschap opgroeien anders verloopt dan vroeger. Sommigen benadrukken dat de kinderen die nu opgroeien in een stadse mediaomgeving sneller complexe situaties kunnen hanteren. Maar, zegt de andere stem dan, ook de nieuwe kinderen hebben een context nodig waarin ze opbloeien door liefde en vertrouwen, waarin ze de weerbaarheid ontwikkelen om processen te kunnen doormaken, en waarin zij leren lezen en leren zich te concentreren…
is als voorheen. Platenmaatschappijen hebben inmiddels een andere positie nu mensen zelf muziek kunnen downloaden, professionele muzikanten en amateurs hun eigen werk wereldwijd kunnen verkopen en elkaar kunnen vinden op vele platforms op Internet. Het museum, dat een bron van kennisexpositie was, kan een centrum worden van kennisproductie door het faciliteren van een netwerk van amateurs en professionals. In museumgoudA bijvoorbeeld is een bijzondere collectie beschilderd aardewerk dat als porselein oogt te vinden. Veel van deze stukken ‘Gouds Plateel’ zijn in Goudse families bewaard gebleven omdat de mensen in Gouda werkten in de fabrieken die dit aardewerk in het begin van de vorige eeuw maakten. Het museum is rond deze verzameling een netwerk gaan regisseren, waardoor de kennis over dit aardewerk is verdiept en de feitelijke verzameling groter is geworden. Ook is het museum door dit project regisseur geworden van een structurele samenwerking tussen een aantal sociale instituties in Gouda waaronder de bibliotheek.
Door de nieuwe perspectieven op identiteit ontstaan grote kansen en ook nieuwe spanningen tussen generaties en tussen verschillende bevolkingsgroepen die op dezelfde plaats leven. Ook de relatie met mensen die elders leven is er door veranderd. De verwarring tussen hoe mensen elkaar waarnemen in de ‘echte’ wereld, hoe dit resoneert met beelden uit de media en hoe dit begrepen wordt vanuit verschillende religieuze en historische contexten is in vele situaties voelbaar en oorsprong van grote conflicten. Tegelijkertijd zijn miljoenen mensen dagelijks in contact met mensen die heel anders en/of ver weg zijn, zoals nooit tevoren mogelijk was.
Het woord amateur is direct afgeleid van het Latijnse woord ‘amare’, dat ‘houden van’ betekent. Professioneel refereert aan het Latijnse ‘professi’, dat volgens het etymologische woordenboek ‘in het openbaar verkondigen, openlijk verklaren, zijn beroep te maken van, doceren’ betekent. Het onderscheid tussen amateur en professional blijkt historisch te liggen in verschillende domeinen waarin men handelt: de amateur in het privédomein, de professional in het openbare. Met de komst van de grote internetplatforms en de vele Web 2.0 applicaties blijkt dat het handelingsdomein van zowel de professional als van de amateur aan het verschuiven is. Terwijl de amateurs massaal in de openbaarheid publiceren, speelt het professionele leven zich meer en meer in beschermde intranetomgevingen af. Mensen blijken graag kennis en kunde in de openbaarheid te willen delen, en zodoende is het onderscheid tussen de bijdrage van de amateur en de bijdrage van de professional niet meer te maken op basis van het in de openbaarheid claimen van een bepaalde kennis of kunde. Amateurs hebben met behulp van Internet massaal de handelingsruimte van de professional betreden en het onderscheid tussen de één en de ander lijkt in die openbaarheid voornamelijk
In de ‘hemel en aarde’ van vandaag is een nieuwe identiteit van de mens aan het ontstaan. Niet alleen de ervaring van tijd en plaats is veranderd, maar ook de wijze waarop men handelt en de relatie met andere mensen die we wel of niet kennen. De professional en de amateur
In deze tijd van nieuwe perspectieven op onze identiteit voltrekt zich ook een andere grote verandering. Tussen de amateur en de professional is een spanningsveld ontstaan omdat met name (de rol van de intermediairs in) de professionele omgeving niet dezelfde
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contextafhankelijk te zijn geworden. Een belangrijk neveneffect van dit nieuwe spanningsveld is dat de vraag naar het ontstaan en herkennen van kwaliteit indringend wordt gesteld. In digitale montages van beeld en geluid worden ‘samples’ van anderen gebruikt en in deze montages worden originelen en de context waarin ze verschijnen veranderd. Ook hier klinken verschillende stemmen. Er wordt geargumenteerd dat in de montage nieuw werk ontstaat. Anderen argumenteren dat de kwaliteit feitelijk wordt ontleend aan het werk van de makers die het oorspronkelijke materiaal hebben gemaakt. Het blijkt echter dat miljoenen mensen en vele kunstenaars als vanzelfsprekend materiaal van anderen gebruiken zonder dat men het gevoel heeft iets te stelen van een ander. Het voelt net als een liedje leren zingen. Iemand zingt een liedje: Als ik het ook leer zingen dan kunnen we het samen zingen en hebben we plezier! Mensen groeien op in een omgeving waarin cultuur een grote rol speelt en net als met de natuur heeft men een vanzelfsprekend gevoel om elementen uit deze omgeving te mogen gebruiken. De ‘sharing economy’, zoals Lawrence Lessig dit fenomeen genaamd heeft, blijkt veel groter en sterker dan verwacht. De ‘sharing economy’ staat echter op gespannen voet met de huidige economie waar eigendom, ook geestelijk eigendom, de motor is achter de economische en juridische dynamiek. Het blijkt echter dat auteursrechten en copyrights de miljoenen amateurs bijvoorbeeld niet belemmeren in het downloaden van muziek. Ook blijkt dat inmiddels miljoenen amateurs publiceren in het openbaar zonder dat men auteursrecht of copyrights claimt. Belangrijk daarbij is dat aan bepaalde voorwaarden voor vertrouwen is voldaan. Een dergelijk vertrouwen blijkt eerder te ontstaan doordat een platform door vele anderen wordt gebruikt dan dat een juridisch vastgelegd auteursrecht dit beschermt. Dit neemt echter niet weg dat een auteur, professioneel of amateur, behoefte heeft eigen werk van een eigen signatuur te voorzien, maar tegelijkertijd het werk van anderen vrijelijk wil kunnen gebruiken. Cultuur is immers voor meer dan de helft van de wereldbevolking een groot gedeelte van hun stedelijke natuur geworden. Mensen willen graag hun
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eigen omgeving kunnen aanraken en gebruiken. Door de grote schaal en reikwijdte van het Internet is de zichtbaarheid en bruikbaarheid van de producten echter in zo’n hoog tempo veranderd, dat we op zoek zijn naar een nieuw gevoel, opvatting en vaststelling van wat het recht is van een auteur en wat het recht is van een ander die hetzelfde materiaal wil gebruiken.1 Ook de vraag naar de kwaliteit van het werk van de professional en die van de amateur staat ter discussie. Deze maatschappelijke dynamiek leidt tot complexe zaken waar in vele dagelijkse beslissingen een uitspraak over wordt verwacht.
Directie en regie
Wanneer de vraag wordt gesteld hoe de identiteit van de mens zich ontwikkelt, wordt tegelijk de vraag gesteld naar de omgeving die deze mens nodig heeft. Een complexe vraag, zeker wanneer men zich realiseert dat de ontwikkelingen in onze tijd geen heldere intentie hebben. Er is geen sprake van een ‘masterplan’ maar er is een dynamiek ontstaan die wordt gevoed door wat vele mensen doen en waar uiteindelijk niemand voor verantwoordelijk is. In deze dynamiek spelen bovendien grote commerciële belangen een rol. Deze belangen, die gericht zijn op financieel rendement op korte termijn, zijn lang niet altijd zichtbaar maar veranderen wel diepgaand en op de lange termijn de sociale structuur van de mondiale samenleving. Als gevolg wordt ook de vraag naar de essentie van de kwaliteit van de samenleving steeds indringender gesteld. Hoe de markt voor de commerciële productie van cultuur te organiseren opdat er mondiale diversiteit kan blijven bestaan? Hoe te zorgen dat wanneer mensen hun kennis en kunde delen deze niet kan worden misbruikt? Welke cultuur hebben de mensen van morgen nodig om met elkaar te kunnen leven? Welke kennis en creativiteit kunnen mensen delen en wanneer is het noodzakelijk dat er verdiend wordt? Hoeveel cultuur dragen we vanzelf? Hoe groot en duur mag het kunstwerk worden? En hoe kan de Nederlandse overheid in deze dynamiek de Nederlandse cultuur en haar lokale culturen stimuleren en beschermen? Sporen van onze geschiedenis hoeven niet persé tegen hoge kosten te worden bewaard, maar als de monumenten en archieven niet kunnen worden bezocht, kunnen de mensen ook geen gevoel voor geschiedenis
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ontwikkelen. Bibliotheken die belemmerd worden in het ontsluiten en toegankelijk maken van bronnen en materiaal omdat zij steeds vaker geconfronteerd worden met auteursrechtelijke sloten of kostbare drempels, zien hun bestaansgrond wankelen. En dan strijdt de opvatting dat wat niet meer bruikbaar is geen waarde meer heeft, met de opvatting dat een bijzonder archief bewaard moet worden zodat op een dag iemand er van zal genieten. De Nederlandse filmsector moet worden beschermd omdat zij een waarde heeft voor de Nederlandse cultuur. Maar als die sector het commercieel niet redt, waar ligt dan de grens aan hoeveel gemeenschapsgeld zij mag gebruiken? Kunst en cultuur als instrument staat in dit perspectief tegenover kunst en cultuur als waarde in zichzelf, terwijl beide perspectieven op kunst en cultuur elkaar juist zo goed kunnen aanvullen. Zo worden de kunstenaar en de kunstgenieter beiden gerespecteerd. Het mag duidelijk zijn dat deze vraagstukken complex zijn en geen eenduidige antwoorden kennen. Daar komt nog bij dat de technologie maar door weinigen wordt begrepen en voortdurend verandert. Bovendien mislukken ook grote projecten regelmatig en worden ze vaak door onzichtbare financiële belangen gedomineerd. Niettemin komt de vraag naar kwaliteit op allerlei niveaus naar boven. Ook in dagelijkse managementsituaties en beleidsomgevingen waar zelden de tijd is om er dieper op in te gaan. In iedere sector en in iedere industrie moeten voortdurend beslissingen worden genomen over wat er nodig is, waarin geïnvesteerd wordt, wat juridisch wordt beschermd, hoeveel ruimte amateurs en professionals krijgen voor een eigen inbreng, en in hoeverre gehoorzaamheid en handelen volgens afspraak wordt verlangd. In de snel medialiserende samenleving is het in sommige sectoren moeilijk om te voorzien waar de ontwikkelingen heen gaan en wordt de ratio onder beleid en beslissingen vergelijkbaar met de situatie van een boer die zaait en hoopt op goed weer. Verantwoordelijkheid durven te nemen in complexe situaties die men niet in de hand heeft is moeilijk maar onafwendbaar. De vraag hoe de persoonlijke verantwoordelijkheid zich ver houdt tot de dynamiek van het collectief is in veel situaties niet helder. De waan van de dag regeert, getuige ook de vele actuele kwesties waarin de
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1 Fair use, copyright, copyleft en creative commons beogen het intellectuele eigendom van de auteur te beschermen en transacties tussen auteurs te organiseren. De vraag is of dit haalbaar en/of wenselijk blijft. Op de London School of Economics vindt nu een Europees onderzoek plaats dat de bewijslast verlegt: iedereen mag alles gebruiken, behalve elkaars naam. Ik kan dus een citaat van Michael Jackson gebruiken, maar mag zonder zijn uitdrukkelijke toestemming niet vermelden dat dit van hem afkomstig is. Auteursrecht wordt in dit geval geminimaliseerd tot het kunnen verdedigen van de eigen reputatie.
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verantwoordelijkheid van bestuurders ter discussie staat. Het ‘ware leiderschap’ is een groot thema in managementkringen en vereist persoonlijke integriteit en verantwoordelijkheid die zich onafhankelijk van de waan van de dag vormt en ontwikkelt. Het snel veranderende landschap vraagt om nieuwe bestuurs- en organisatiemodellen om zowel de markt als het publieke domein als de kunsten in goede verhoudingen te regisseren. Sturing en controle creëren betrouwbaarheid en aansprakelijkheid, maar kunnen ook leiden tot verstarring en gebrek aan inzicht in wat er aan het gebeuren is. Goede regie en veel inspiratie creëren een bloeiende cultuur met veel initiatief, maar worden kwetsbaar en vluchtig zonder fundament in de vorm van een goede juridische en financiële infrastructuur. Qua managementstijl begint er inmiddels een groot verschil te ontstaan tussen de ‘oude’ en de ‘nieuwe’ stijl van managen en besturen. De nieuwe stijl balanceert tussen de hierboven geschetste dynamiek van sturing naar regie, maakt fouten, maar heeft ook succes. De oude stijl consolideert en probeert voornamelijk te redden wat er te redden valt, is verbaasd over wat er in de wereld gebeurt en sluit zich af.
is de mens zelf het product geworden. Daarom wordt de mens geteld, gevolgd en meetbaar gemaakt.
Steeds meer mensen realiseren zich dat de informatie- en communicatietechnologie niet alleen rendement en efficiency moeten opleveren, maar ook wezenlijk kan bijdragen aan de kwaliteit van het dagelijks leven van vele mensen. Het is geweldig dat we in contact kunnen staan met mensen aan de andere kant van de wereld, dat we muziek uit alle windstreken kunnen horen zonder er te zijn, dat we beelden kunnen delen en samen kunnen componeren, dat archieven online beschikbaar zijn, dat we bibliotheekboeken thuis kunnen bestellen, dat kunstenaars hun werk kunnen publiceren, dat het publiek dat werk in drie klikken op de computer kan vinden, dat we informatie kunnen opzoeken en checken als nooit tevoren!
Het blijkt dat fundamentele processen in de verschillende waardeketens kenteren in deze grote omslag van ‘product design’ naar ‘service design’. Het museum regisseert een netwerk om de dingen te kunnen tonen. De muzikant publiceert online om live te kunnen spelen. De filters van het nieuws zijn afhankelijk van de potentiële kijkers. In deze omslag van product naar service
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Een moedige regie is noodzakelijk: er zijn grote kansen en er staan grote verworven vrijheden op het spel. Grote commerciële- en politieke belangen met een structureel gebrek aan transparantie hebben op dit moment bijna vrij spel. Maar weinig mensen begrijpen de implicaties van de huidige technologische ontwikkeling. Een dergelijke moedige regie heeft ondersteuning nodig van een goede organisatievorm die ondersteund wordt door een adequate juridische- en financiële infrastructuur waaraan ook de technologische platforms zich committeren. Er is op dit moment en in deze jaren een grote alertheid en daadkracht vereist opdat in de komende decennia een betrouwbare mondiale omgeving kan worden gebouwd. Wat er (on)mogelijk is met de huidige technologieën is in de afgelopen 10 jaar zichtbaar geworden. De zogenaamde ‘innovatieruimte’ heeft zich gevuld. Het is zaak om nu te durven weten wat er aan de hand is, met alle ratio en intuïtie die ons ter beschikking staat. Alleen dan is er kans dat in 2058 de kinderen rustig samen zullen zingen: ‘Stil maar, wacht maar, alles wordt nieuw, de hemel en de aarde..’
zonder dat ze eerst auteursrechten aan Huub Oosterhuis hebben afgestaan. Of dat ze bijvoorbeeld Indonesië niet mogen bezoeken omdat ze ooit, digitaal aantoonbaar, een christelijk liedje hebben gezongen. (Eigenlijk wil ik dit eerste gedeelte afsluiten met een Peanuts cartoon dat ik in de International Herald Tribune van maandag 20 oktober 2008 zag staan. Maar omdat dit artikel wordt gepubliceerd kan dat niet vanwege de copyright. In deze cartoon ligt Charlie Brown in bed en Snoopy ligt op zijn buik. Hij mijmert een beetje voor het in slaap vallen en zegt ”Sometimes I lie awake at night and ask, can my generation look to the future with hope?” In het volgende plaatje draait hij zich om, terwijl Snoopy hem nu aankijkt en zegt: “Then, out of the dark, a voice comes to me that says, : “why, sure… well, I mean... that is... it sort of depends. i mean...if... when… who… we… and...”)
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orte impressies trends e-cultuur K in kunst en cultuur
Muziek:
In de muziekindustrie hebben de technologische veranderingen grote impact gehad. Opname en montage apparatuur zijn veel goedkoper en beter geworden. In de popmuziekindustrie staat op dit moment feitelijk de gehele waardeketen op zijn kop: consumenten downloaden de muziek en artiesten zijn met behulp van Internet hun eigen producent geworden. In deze digitale beweging is het interessant dat live concerten aantoonbaar meer worden bezocht. Blijkbaar is de ervaring van het bezoeken van een concert van een geheel andere orde. Op Internet mengen amateurs en professionals zich schijnbaar moeiteloos. Beiden hebben toegang tot het publieke domein. De platenmaatschappijen hebben echter lange tijd hun kop in het zand gestoken. Zij zijn hierdoor een groot terrein verloren dat zij nu proberen terug te winnen met initiatieven als iTunes. De klassieke muziek en de moderne muziek lijken steeds kwetsbaarder te worden door de alomtegenwoordigheid van de populaire muziek. Feitelijk blijkt echter dat de bezoekersaantallen zich de afgelopen 10 jaar hebben gestabiliseerd. Dat dit een overwegend ouder publiek is, kan net zo goed een voordeel als een nadeel zijn. De verminderde aandacht voor muziekonderwijs – zowel op de reguliere school als op muziekscholen – is wel een groot probleem. Het leren bespelen van een instrument kost nu eenmaal veel tijd. Het ontwikkelen van talent begint daarom op jonge leeftijd. Indien talent niet op jonge leeftijd wordt opgemerkt is dit op latere leeftijd niet meer in te halen. Goed muziekonderwijs is ook belangrijk om jongeren kennis te laten maken met verschillende soorten muziek zodat ze behalve popmuziek ook weten hoe bijvoorbeeld een symfonisch orkest klinkt. Gelukkig zijn er steeds meer goede initiatieven van musici zelf om ook minder bekende muziek onder de aandacht van jongeren te brengen, zoals het bekende nieuwjaarsconcert van het Nederlands Blazers Ensemble dat ieder jaar op televisie wordt uitgezonden.
Film:
In het filmveld heeft digitale technologie zowel in het productieproces, distributie als afname grote invloed. Met opname- en montageapparatuur en op het gebied van animatie en special-effect is zoveel meer mogelijk dankzij nieuwe technologie. Voor amateurs is de apparatuur zeer
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2 Het onderscheid tussen twee, drie, vier en vijf dimensies heb ik voor het eerst geformuleerd in een interview met Geert Lovink over de ‘Poltics of Presence Design’, http://www. nevejan.org. 3 Een voorbeeld van een kunstwerk in 5 dimensies uit de traditie van Kunst en Technologie: Omdat het begrip tijd – zowel objectief (de tijd op de klok) als subjectief (gevoelsmatig) – zeer sterk aanwezig is op school, ontwikkelde Barbara Visser een kunstwerk dat iets vertelt over het meten en het weergeven van tijd en ook aanleiding kan zijn voor het ontwikkelen van ideeën of activiteiten rond het begrip tijd. De TL/Tijdlamp die zij in samenwerking met uitvinder/ programmeur Stijn Belle en kunstenaar Koert van Mensvoort ontwikkelde, heeft de vorm van een Tl-buis, die langzaam volloopt met gekleurd licht. Licht dat staat voor tijd. Naarmate de lamp langer op een bepaalde plek hangt of staat kan hij zich aan de tijdsindeling van die omgeving aanpassen. Dat doet hij met behulp van sensoren (‘ogen’ en ‘oren’) waarmee geluiden en bewegingen gemeten kunnen worden. De TL/ Tijdlamp komt blanco de school binnen, maar leert patronen in activiteit te herkennen, bijvoorbeeld het ritme van lesuren in een bepaald lokaal. Na afloop van ieder lesuur zal een weerslag te zien zijn van de drukte in de klas, in de vorm van een gekleurd strepenpatroon dat ontstaat doordat een hoger geluidsniveau de kleur van het licht laat veranderen.
bereikbaar geworden: bij grote rampen zijn het vaak filmpjes van amateurs die het wereldnieuws halen. Ondanks de miljoenen homevideo’s (zie bijvoorbeeld YouTube) zijn het nog steeds alleen de filmproducenten die ‘grote’ films mogelijk kunnen maken. Voor de Nederlandse filmindustrie is het niet eenvoudig: Nederland is een rijk maar ook klein land met een klein taalgebied. Alleen al in Europa, waar de meest voor de hand liggende coproducenten zijn te vinden, worden meer dan veertig talen gesproken. De Nederlandse speelfilmen documentairemakers lopen dan ook telkens weer tegen productionele grenzen op. In de dynamiek van inspiratie en controle gaat het hier om het beschermen van ruimte voor expressie. Met investeringsregels, belastingafspraken en subsidies probeert de Nederlandse overheid de Nederlandse filmindustrie te blijven stimuleren en een divers aanbod mogelijk te maken. Zonder een dergelijke inspanning zou het Nederlandse filmklimaat er heel anders uitzien. Beeldende kunst en vormgeving:
Omdat de apparatuur zo simpel is geworden en het sampelen van materiaal zo makkelijk, zou men kunnen verwachten dat het onderscheid tussen amateurs en professionele kunstenaars is veranderd. Maar net zo als een kindertekening iets heel anders is dan een tekening van Joan Miró, zo blijft de wezenlijke inspanning van een professionele beeldend kunstenaar van een geheel andere orde dan die van een amateur. Of een kunstwerk nu is geproduceerd in twee dimensies (grafisch), drie dimensies (beeldend), vier dimensies (time-based) of vijf dimensies (en relaties tussen mensen beïnvloedend), dit kunstwerk zet zich uiteen met de traditie vande kunst en wil daar een bijdrage aan leveren.2 Anderzijds heeft de interactie tussen populaire cultuur en professionele kunstenaars de verbeelding van beide diepgaand beïnvloed: van merk tot mode, van blog tot binnenhuisarchitectuur. Het feit dat beeldend kunstenaars en ontwerpers digitale technologie in hun werk zijn gaan gebruiken heeft echter wel degelijk implicaties. De traditie van kunst en technologie heeft zich inmiddels gevestigd als een eigen domein met eigen musea, productiehuizen, conferenties, tijdschriften en wetenschappelijke publicaties. In deze traditie zijn een aantal zaken ingrijpend
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veranderd: de wijze waarop het proces van het maken van het kunstwerk zich voltrekt, de wijze van presenteren, de manier waarop wordt verzameld en verkocht, de manier waarop wordt geconserveerd en bewaard. Omdat in deze traditie de mogelijkheden en implicaties van technologie door het werk van kunstenaars worden belicht is de relatie tussen kunst en wetenschap in deze traditie hechter. Door de aard van de technologie zijn ook andersoortige interacties met een publiek mogelijk geworden. Even als steen anders is dan verf, zo biedt ook technologie specifieke mogelijkheden als medium. Met name de interactie en bijdrage van het publiek aan het ontstaan van het kunstwerk is door de technologie van een geheel andere orde geworden dan daarvoor mogelijk was.3
Theater en dans:
Digitale technologie speelt in de theatertechniek uiteraard een belangrijke rol, maar verder zijn de podiumkunsten eigenlijk nauwelijks door de nieuwe technologieën beroerd. Er zijn weliswaar voorstellingen die nieuwe media integreren en experimenteren met bijvoorbeeld voorstellingen vanuit meerdere locaties, publieksinteractie en ingenieuze mis-en-scènes waarin het beeld een even grote rol speelt als de acteur, echter het wezen van de podiumkunst is onaangeraakt gebleven. Noch voor de kunstenaar, de bezoeker of de intermediairs hebben er ingrijpende veranderingen plaats gevonden. In de dans zijn digitale notatiesystemen ontwikkeld. Met behulp van technologie kunnen bewegingen van danseres worden geanalyseerd en geoptimaliseerd. Maar ook het wezen van de dans is voor de kunstenaar of de bezoeker niet door deze ontwikkelingen aangetast. Wel blijkt bijvoorbeeld dat op de dansopleiding de Nederlandse choreografen niet kunnen worden gedanst vanwege het copyright op deze balletten. Dit is geen gevolg van de technologische ontwikkelingen. Al blijkt een dergelijk gegeven vanuit de hernieuwde aandacht voor de toegankelijkheid van cultureel erfgoed in het publieke domein ten gevolge van de technologische ontwikkelingen wel degelijk van belang. Wat betreft de wereld van de amateurs in de podiumkunsten zou men kunnen argumenteren dat dankzij de alom aanwezige audiovisuele technologie veel meer mensen spelen en dansen:
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thuis, bij vrienden, op een feest, op Internet, in een concert of in de club bij nacht. Anderzijds is de aandacht en concentratie minder geworden voor bijvoorbeeld het spelen van een instrument, het declameren van een gedicht of het zingen van een Nederlands lied. In de productie en de marketing van de podiumkunsten speelt het Internet tot nu toe een marginale rol. Ook wordt gedrag van bezoekers bij mijn weten niet elektronisch geregistreerd. Wat dat betreft is dit ‘gelukkig’ nog een digitale vrije zone. Internet wordt voornamelijk als informatie- en verkoopkanaal gebruikt. Toch kan het niet anders dan dat de veranderende media omgeving wel degelijk effect heeft op de podiumkunsten. Al is het maar omdat het publiek ook gewend is geraakt aan andere dramatische vormen. Na zoveel jaren televisie en het dagelijkse computergebruik van vele mensen is er een nieuwe waardering voor het ‘live’ aanwezig zijn bij een gebeurtenis en het bezoek van een theatervoorstelling wordt vanuit dat perspectief weer meer gewaardeerd. Games en omgevingen als Second Life waarin mensen massaal ‘digitaal toneel spelen’ maken het niet onwaarschijnlijk dat binnenkort nieuwe relaties tussen podiumkunstenaars en hun publiek gestalte zullen krijgen, ook via media als Internet. Net als film en televisie invloed hebben op hoe een publiek dramatische lijnen begrijpt zullen deze vormen daar ook effect op gaan krijgen. Literatuur: Niet eerder in de geschiedenis schreven zo veel mensen in de openbaarheid. Op duizenden blogs, wiki’s, websites en communities beschrijven mensen hun meningen, belevenissen en delen zij hun kennis en kunde. Amateurs en professionals uiten zich op allerlei manieren in verschillende omgevingen en als vanzelfsprekend gezamenlijk. Er wordt meer gelezen dan ooit, en tegelijkertijd krimpt de markt voor de literatuur die in boekvorm verschijnt. Kleine uitgevers houden met moeite het hoofd boven water, het aanbod van grote uitgevers versmalt. De kennis over en techniek van de klassieke literatuur verschraalt. Dankzij een goede samenwerking tussen marktpartijen en overheid gaat het in deze sector niettemin goed. Feitelijk ligt werk van vele nieuwe auteurs in de boekenwinkels, worden
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Nederlandse auteurs in vele talen vertaald en is werk van buitenlandse schrijvers in het Nederlands toegankelijk. De letterenfondsen blijken door welbewust en gedifferentieerd beleid in samenwerking met uitgevers in staat te zijn de professionele omgeving van de literatuur tot hoog niveau te brengen. Digitalisering in het boekenvak gaat snel. De sector buigt zich over auteurscontracten voor digitale producten en uitgevers ontwikkelen nieuwe businessmodellen. Wel is er grote zorg omtrent het literatuuronderwijs en is er het bewustzijn dat wanneer kinderen niet leren genieten van lezen de literatuur zal versterven. Tegelijkertijd kan men vaststellen dat in de populaire cultuur even als in de muziek en op het Internet nieuwe stijlvormen ontstaan, dat jonge mensen geletterd kunnen zijn op vele terreinen op een manier die oudere mensen niet begrijpen of kunnen waarnemen. Met ander woorden: het laatste woord is hier niet over gezegd. De samenwerking tussen markt en overheid, de afwisseling tussen inspiratie en controle, tussen vrijheid en verantwoordelijkheid, werkt in deze sector goed.
Archieven en bibliotheken:
Als de openbare bibliotheek over 20 jaar nog bestaat, hoe ziet zij er dan uit? Een mooi, stil boekenmuseum, een levendige publieke leeszaal annex café annex debatcentrum? Of vinden we de bibliotheek thuis achter onze computer? De ontwikkelingen op het gebied van nieuwe media en ICT en de medialisering van de samenleving gaan zo snel, dat nauwelijks is te voorspellen hoe de toekomstige bibliotheken en archieven eruit zullen zien en welke functie zij zullen vervullen. Zeker is wel dat genoemde ontwikkelingen de intermediaire functie van instellingen als bibliotheken en archieven onder druk zetten. Kennis wordt als economische factor steeds belangrijker en de complexiteit en omvang van de informatiestroom nemen toe. Informatie- en communicatie technologie heeft de intrede van tal van nieuwe partijen in het informatiedomein bewerkstelligd: ook uitgeefconcerns, telecombedrijven en (Internet)providers ontsluiten op grote schaal informatie en nemen daarin niet zelden een machtspositie in. Internet wordt inmiddels door grote groepen mensen beschouwd als ‘hoofdbibliotheek’ waar je 24 uur per dag en zeven dagen per week terecht
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kunt met alle informatievragen. Maar de digitalisering maakt ook kwetsbaar. Ons actuele verleden ontglipt ons waar we bij staan: informatie is in ons digitale tijdperk vluchtig en ongrijpbaar en voor archieven vormt dat een nieuw probleem. Zo vertoont het geheugen van de digitale overheid gaten, en wat niet al weg is, is door slecht technisch en/of intellectueel beheer moeilijk of helemaal niet meer productief te maken.
te maken dat verandert, dat zich steeds minder aantrekt van gevestigde reputaties of institutionele grenzen. Om daar op in te kunnen spelen moet het eigen, institutionele belang terzijde worden geschoven en meer in netwerkstructuren en samenwerkingsverbanden worden gewerkt en gedacht.
Tegelijkertijd biedt digitalisering mogelijkheden tot een enorme verbreding van het aanbod en een uitbreiding van het gebruik en de participatie. Digitalisering maakt een veel bredere, nationale collectie mogelijk, onder meer met audiovisuele bestanden die via het Internet gedistribueerd kunnen worden. Bibliotheken geven in toenemende mate toegang tot informatie die zich elders bevindt: bij andere bibliotheken, bij archieven, omroepen of musea, maar ook bij gebruikers. Daarmee groeit het potentiële publieksbereik van de bibliotheken. Dit alles heeft uiteraard grote gevolgen voor gevestigde instituties als bibliotheken en archieven. Zij worden gedwongen na te denken over hun eigen organisatie (gebouwen, medewerkers, publieksbenadering) en over hun dienstverlening (distributie, selectie, collectievorming, toegankelijkheid). Het publiek, dat actiever (wil) deelnemen aan de betekenisgeving van informatie en beter en sneller bediend wil worden, zal steeds meer centraal komen te staan. Burgers organiseren steeds meer eigen activiteiten en willen daarin niet gestuurd maar wel ondersteund worden. Dit vraagt van bibliotheken en archieven een publieksbenadering die zich minder richt op distributie en aanbieden, en meer op het actief faciliteren van expressie, uitwisseling en het maken van verbindingen tussen mensen, ideeën en bronnen. Binnen de bibliotheeksector hebben de beschreven ontwikkelingen geleid tot een fundamentele discussie over de functie en zelfs de positie van het openbaar bibliotheekwerk. In de archiefsector is een soortgelijke discussie over het bestel en de toekomstbestendigheid ervan op gang gekomen. Duidelijk is dat bibliotheken en archieven steeds meer te maken krijgen met mondiale ontwikkelingen die boven hun eigen macht reiken en soms zelfs boven de macht van de nationale overheid. Tegelijkertijd hebben ze met publiek
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Tien jaar nieuwe media opleidingen in Nederland
Emilie Randoe
Eind 2009 is het tien jaar geleden dat de eerste grote golf nieuwe media opleidingen in Nederland op HBOniveau van start ging. Emilie Randoe, vanaf 2001 directeur van het Instituut voor Interactieve Media van de Hogeschool van Amsterdam, blikt terug op de pioniersjaren van het nieuwe media onderwijs in Nederland en schetst de agenda voor de toekomst. 1 oktober 2008 was een historische datum voor de nieuwe mediaopleidingen op HBO-niveau in Nederland, althans voor die opleidingen die bekend zijn onder de naam Communication & Multi Media Design (CMD): de landelijke opleidingsadviesraad gaf groen licht voor het landelijk gedeeld beroepsprofiel. Met deze goedkeuring werd een langdurig proces afgesloten waarin de zeven verschillende CMD-opleidingen hun identiteiten ontwikkelden en vanuit die verschillende identiteiten overeenstemming bereikten over wat hen bindt. Innovatieve concepten ontwikkelen voor nieuwe media toepassingen staat centraal in het landelijk gedeeld beroepsprofiel. Dat betekent dat er in de opleidingen een belangrijke rol is weggelegd voor het ontwikkelen van concepten in lijn met de strategische doelen van bedrijven en instellingen. Om dat goed te kunnen, heeft de CMD student een breed blikveld nodig. Het beroepsprofiel van de CMD-opleidingen biedt daarom ruim baan voor een slimme combinatie van kennis en vaardigheden op het gebied van theorie op het gebied van media en technologische cultuur, marketing en communicatie, ontwerpen, interaction design, projectmanagement, scripting, ontwerp- en ontwikkelmethoden. Een tweede typisch kenmerk van de CMDopleidingen is dat ze aandacht hebben voor zowel het operationele (iets kunnen maken), het tactische (iets kunnen organiseren) als het strategische niveau (iets nieuws kunnen ontwerpen dat een bijdrage levert aan strategische doelen van de opdrachtgever). Die combinatie van disciplines bracht met zich mee dat de CMD-opleidingen zich in eigen huis vaak moesten verdedigen tegen de reeds bestaande ICT en communicatie opleidingen. Buitenshuis kwamen de CMD-opleidingen begin 2000 terecht in de vuurlinie van de discussie over ‘modieuze’ opleidingen, die weliswaar veel studenten trokken, maar vermoedelijk opleidden tot werkloosheid. Gelukkig is tien jaar later het tegendeel van deze vrees gebleken:
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HBO studenten met een nieuwe media opleiding komen gemakkelijk aan het werk en blijken daar goed te functioneren. Voor dit artikel zijn de instroom gegevens van de HBO Raad en de VSNU geraadpleegd. Toch is het lastig om een accurate inschatting te maken van het aantal studenten dat een opleiding in de nieuwe media volgt. Dat komt doordat van niet alle opleidingen inzichtelijk is hoeveel nieuwe media er in het curriculum opgenomen is. In dit artikel ligt het accent op HBO- en WO-opleidingen. Daarbinnen maken we onderscheid tussen bachelor en masteropleidingen. De CMD-opleidingen zijn niet de enige opleidingen op HBO-niveau waar studenten zich kunnen bekwamen in de nieuwe media. Via 123studiekeuze zijn maar liefst 67 opleidingen (op zowel bachelor als master niveau) geïdentificeerd als funderende opleiding met een flinke dosis nieuwe media in het curriculum. De oudste nieuwe media opleiding in Nederland is Kunst & Techniek van de Hogeschool voor de Kunsten Utrecht. Deze opleiding kan inmiddels ook gevolgd worden bij Saxion. Blijkens de instroomgegevens kiest de bulk van de studenten met belangstelling voor nieuwe media studenten voor een CMD opleiding (ruim 1100 eerstejaars). Een goede tweede is de opleiding Communicatie Systemen (550 nieuwe studenten in 2007). Een betrekkelijke nieuwe speler in het veld is de game opleiding van NHTV (127 eerstejaars in 2007). De opleiding Kunst en Techniek (HKU en Saxion) trok 331 eerstejaars. Voor alle nieuwe media opleidingen geldt dat de instroom de afgelopen tien jaar sterk is gegroeid. Daarnaast zijn de traditionele ICT opleidingen sterk aan het opstomen in het nieuwe media veld via afstudeerrichtingen en minoren op het gebied van nieuwe media, human computer interaction en gamedesign. Over de duim ingeschat starten in Nederland jaarlijks zo’n 3000 studenten met een opleiding gericht op nieuwe media. Het was vlak voor de eeuwwisseling in Nederland ‘bon ton’ om te klagen over de aansluiting tussen de kennis en kunde van net afgestudeerde jonge professionals en de arbeidsmarkt. Het HBO reageerde hierop met de invoering van het zogenaamde competentiegerichte onderwijs. Beroepsvaardigheden en het vermogen om adequaat
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te kunnen handelen in kritische beroepssituaties kwamen centraal te staan. Het werd dus belangrijk om kennis daadwerkelijk te kunnen toepassen. Bij het ontwikkelen van het beroepsprofiel voor Amsterdam gingen we daarom op zoek naar een stevig fundament om de competenties te kunnen formuleren. We spraken met zo’n veertig grote en kleine bedrijven, en zaten na afloop met onze handen in het haar. Elk nieuwe media bedrijf hanteerde eigen namen voor functies en er bleken grote verschillen te zijn tussen capaciteitsbedrijven (de adviesbureaus) en de producenten van technologie en media. Nog weer anders lagen de behoeften bij de klanten en afnemers van deze bedrijven. Bij het doorspitten van vacatures werden we telkens getroffen door de combinatie van werkzaamheden in het toen nieuwe werkveld. Van webmasters bijvoorbeeld werd verwacht dat ze er in drie dagen per week voor zorgden dat de website vlekkeloos werkte, alle vragen die binnenkwamen goed en snel werden afgehandeld, dat externe toeleveranciers op het gebied van redactie, design of techniek werden aangestuurd en dat de directie adequaat werd geïnformeerd over de ontwikkelingen in dit nieuwe mediakanaal. Gemeenschappelijke trefwoorden in die tijd: innovatie, out of the box denken en creativiteit. Ondertussen verscheen het ene na het onderzoek, onder andere van de Gartner groep, waaruit bleek dat ICT en nieuwe media projecten vaak twee keer zoveel tijd in beslag namen als verwacht, twee keer zoveel geld kostten als begroot en meestal maar de helft van de oorspronkelijk bedachte functionaliteit bevatten. Bij het doorspitten van literatuur stuitten we op het boek The Structure of Technological Revolutions van de Argentijnse econoom Carlota Perez. In dit boek doet zij verslag van haar onderzoek naar het verloop van de vijf technologische revoluties in onze samenleving sinds 1771. Uit haar onderzoek blijkt dat deze revoluties, ondanks het feit dat ze in verschillende historische perioden plaatsvonden, een identieke, en met de economie samenhangende dynamiek kennen. Een revolutie begint met ontwrichting door de uitvinding van een nieuwe technologie, zoals stoom, olie, elektriciteit, staal of ICT. Het verstorende karakter trekt investeerders met een goudzoekers profiel, met als gevolg dat de aandelenkoersen omhoog schieten. Het kan niet
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anders dan dat de nieuwe technologie de enorm hoog gespannen verwachtingen niet beantwoordt. Dan volgt een beurscrash waarna de goudzoekers hun wonden likken en de nieuwe technologie zijn weg vindt naar algemeen gebruik. Daarna breekt een periode van ongeveer 50 jaar aan, waarin de nieuwe technologie zinvolle toepassingen oplevert en tot rijpheid komt. De conclusies van Perez hielpen ons om midden in de dotcom crash van 2001 het spoor uit te zetten naar een duurzame opzet van de CMD-opleidingen. We probeerden de organiserende beginselen van de relatief stabiele periode na de crash in het vizier te krijgen. Dat was niet eenvoudig, want het vakgebied en de sector – het begrip creatieve industrie bestond toen nog niet in Nederland – was nog jong. Ondanks de crash was het idee dat bedrijven via de inzet van interactieve media tot innovatie van producten en diensten zouden komen nog volop levend. En terugkijkend kun je ook stellen dat het in enkele gevallen ook echt is gelukt. Musea bijvoorbeeld beperken zich niet langer tot fysieke tentoonstellingsruimten. Studenten in Azië volgen massaal colleges bij Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Nieuwe diensten als Autodate en Greenwheels konden dankzij het internet een grote vlucht nemen, net als het zelf boeken en printen van vliegtickets. En wie herinnert zich nog de tijd dat we voor het opnemen van geld naar de bank moesten of overschrijvingen op de post moesten doen? Toch blijkt innoveren met nieuwe media lastiger dan gedacht, omdat verbetering, vernieuwing of zelfs transformatie van de achterliggende bedrijfsprocessen lastiger is dan gedacht en vaak vele malen langer duurt en kostbaarder is dan van te voren is ingeschat. En hoewel de discussie over modieuze opleidingen verstomde en nieuwe media lang niet al hun beloften over hun innovatieve kwaliteiten inlosten, kan wel gesteld worden dat het inmiddels gemeengoed is dat via nieuwe media de verschillende lagen in de waardeketen aan elkaar geknoopt kunnen worden en dat door het aan elkaar knopen van verschillende ‘value webs’ kunnen ontstaan. Wie dat slim doet, creëert toegevoegde waarde voor de klant. Zo is het gebruikelijk dat je
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tegelijk met de vliegreis, ook het appartement, het hotel en de autohuur regelt. Of dat je bij de aankoop van een kaartje voor een voorstelling, ook suggesties krijgt voor andere voorstellingen in jouw belangstellingsgebied. De musea en culturele instellingen hebben de afgelopen jaren flink geïnvesteerd in het online zetten van hun collectie. Leerlingen en studenten kunnen het culturele erfgoed van hun buurt of stad verkennen via mobiele games. Dat dit gebeurt, is zonder twijfel ook mede te danken aan het feit dat het Internet de consument en afnemers de regie gaf over de knoppen, met hoeveel frustratie of ergernis dat soms ook gepaard gaat in de wereld van het web, overheid, e-cultuur, ambtenaar of docent 2.0.
Waar staan de opleidingen nu?
Geredeneerd vanuit het model van Perez, is het begrijpelijk dat opschaling (van het gebruik van applicaties) en economische groei (van de producerende bedrijven en instellingen) de twee belangrijkste thema’s zijn in het beroepenveld, ook in tijden van kredietcrisis. Daarbij is duurzaamheid, zowel begrepen als ecodesign (de ICT sector behoort tot de meest vervuilende ter wereld vanwege het elektriciteitsverbruik en de snelle omlooptijd van apparatuur) als vernieuwingstrategie (niemand wil nog applicaties die om de anderhalf jaar compleet vervangen moeten worden) een belangrijk criterium geworden. Daarnaast speelt de discussie van globalisering in termen van arbeidsdeling, maar ook in termen van diversiteit: samenlevingen zijn verre van cultureel homogeen en in de wereld van de interactieve media bestaan geografische grenzen niet. Outsourcing en offshoring is niet voor alle ontwerp- en ontwikkeltrajecten een optie, maar zeker grote bedrijven besteden werk uit naar de plaats waar dat het beste, goedkoopste en snelste gedaan kan worden. Dat is overigens een trend van alle tijden, maar wel één die dankzij de communicatiemogelijkheden van het Internet, versneld is. De vijfde belangrijke trend is die van service design: het daadwerkelijk centraal stellen van de behoeften en het gedrag van de gebruikers van nieuwe media. Als alle apparaten ongeveer hetzelfde kunnen, bandbreedte en toegang tot het internet eigenlijk geen probleem meer zijn, vormen toegankelijkheid, het gemakkelijk kunnen wijzigen van je instellingen om de werking van een applicatie toe te snijden op jouw behoeften, en
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zonder hindernissen kunnen navigeren de belangrijkste concurrentievoordelen. Niemand weet nog wat de gevolgen zijn voor de Nederlandse studenten en afgestudeerden van het hoge tempo van de economische groei in Azië en delen van Afrika. Zij richten hun ogen niet zozeer op de Westerse economieën, maar op hun thuismarkten. Gezien de aantallen ICT-ers en ontwerpers die in deze regionen worden opgeleid, is het de vraag of de Europeanen en Amerikanen op de wat langere termijn positie als vormers van het discours kunnen behouden. Aziaten en Afrikanen beschikken in vergelijking met Westerlingen immers over drie competenties die hen een uitstekende uitgangspositie bieden voor een leiderspositie in de 21ste eeuw: ambachtelijke kennis en het vermogen om dingen te maken naast het vermogen om te kunnen samenwerken. Een brede ontwikkeling binnen de nieuwe media opleidingen is de roep om specialisatie. Toen het Internet tien jaar geleden echt opgang begon te maken, werd mondjesmaat vacatureruimte gecreëerd voor nieuwe functies als webmasters en interaction designers. Vaak werd gevraagd naar ‘alleskunners’. Nu het medium volwassen is geworden, groeit de roep om specialisten. Er is ook een samenhang met de economische golven: als de economie groeit, is er meer ruimte voor generalisten, bij krimp overleven alleen de kampioenen. Maar hoe dan ook dienen alle werkers in deze sector te kunnen functioneren in multidisciplinair samengestelde teams. Om dat te kunnen moet je iets begrijpen van waarin je alleen de rol, beroepseer en ethiek van andere disciplines. Er wordt in dit verband wel gesproken van ‘T-Shaped people’ (een begrip dat gemunt is door Ideo Design): in de verticale poot zit stevige expertise op het gebied van de eigen discipline, in de horizontale lijn bevinden zich de competenties om samen te werken, ‘out of the box’ te denken, verbanden te kunnen leggen etc. De landelijke opleidingsadviesraad van CMD roept terecht de vraag op of pas afgestudeerden op HBO/Bachelor-niveau al over al deze kwaliteiten kunnen beschikken. Het zijn immers jonge professionals die net starten. Eenstemmigheid is echter wel over het feit dat succesvol werken in deze sector vraagt om de combinatie van expertise en generalistische vaardigheden. In de breedheid
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zit het wel goed met de nieuwe media opleidingen, maar de verwachting is dat men zich na verbreding ook weer gaat toeleggen op verdieping. De CMD-opleidingen zijn zich van deze ontwikkelingen bewust en spelen in op het onderwijsaanbod. Alle opleidingen hebben het curriculum zodanig ingericht dat er veel mogelijkheden zijn voor studenten om zich te oriënteren op het latere beroep. Maar kopzorgen zijn er ook: – Een grote zorg betreft de kwaliteit van de instroom. De opleidingen in het kunstvakonderwijs kunnen selecteren en doen dat ook. De andere opleidingen selecteren niet aan de poort. Vakopleidingen in het HBO moeten steeds meer tijd vrijmaken voor het aanbrengen van ‘basic skills’ als taal (Nederlands maar ook Engels) en studievaardigheid; – Zorgen zijn er ook over de economische positie van de studenten die uitstromen. Zij moeten flink bikkelen in de kleine bedrijfjes in de creatieve industrie. Docenten die studenten begeleiden tijdens stages of hen nog eens spreken na het afstuderen, maken zich zorgen over het tempo waarin het jonge talent opbrandt; – Bij de kunstopleidingen worden studenten opgeleid tot nieuwe media ontwerpers, maar zij gaan vaak aan de slag als vormgevers; – De schaalvergroting in het hoger onderwijs. Vrijwel alle hogescholen zijn bezig met het (opnieuw cluste ren van opleidingen tot Academie of Domeinen of Faculteiten. Dit zijn over het algemeen bestuurlijk ingezette trajecten die moeten leiden tot een grotere efficiency. Hebben opleidingen die druk zijn met de structuren en de controle nog wel tijd om de betrokkenheid van docenten, die vaak ook met één been in de beroepspraktijk staan, te organiseren? – Het bewaken van het profiel van de opleiding, waardoor herkenbaarheid en profilering in maatschappelijke omgeving verder toeneemt; met andere woorden hoe op creatieve wijze het gebruik van ‘technologie’ user-centered en laagdrempelig te maken en daardoor meerwaarde te creëren. En hoe om te gaan met overlappingen met andere opleidingen en het behoud van het innova tieve karakter (namelijk een meestal competentiegestuurd en studentgedreven curriculum)?
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– Uitval van getalenteerde studenten. Gemiddeld maakt bijna de helft van studenten die een opleiding start, deze niet af. Ongeveer de helft van deze uitvallers bestaat uit studenten die intellectueel onvoldoende aan hun trekken komen of uit studenten die in de periode van het afstuderen in de knel komen met de groei van hun eigen bedrijf; – De groei van het aantal aanbieders van nieuwe media opleidingen, waarvan de aanbieders elkaars kwaliteit nog wel eens betwijfelen. Dat kan leiden tot opleidingen die de markt voor andere verpesten; – Het bijbenen van de ontwikkelingen in het beroepenveld, de ontwikke lingen in het denken over goed onderwijs en daarmee een kennisinstituut neerzetten dat de weg wijst, in plaats van de markt te volgen; – Het bieden en behouden van voldoende kwaliteit in de bekostigingssystematiek. In Nederland hanteren reguliere hogescholen een docent/student ratio van 1 docent op 30 studenten. In het kunstenonderwijs ligt deze ratio gunstiger, maar in vergelijking met het buiten land, steekt Nederland met deze cijfers mager af.
zijn, zoals de Hot 100, maar studenten uitnodigen om in Virtueel Platform-verband een case te laten uitwerken die relevant is voor de sector, zodat studenten worden uitgedaagd om na te denken over interessante nieuwe media vraag stukken; – Het leveren van een bijdrage aan een hoogwaardig kenniscentrum op het gebied van e-cultuur en nieuwe media, waar bijvoorbeeld relevante afstudeerscripties te vinden zijn of waar je kunt deel nemen aan gesprekskringen die bestaan uit professionals uit de praktijk, studenten en docenten; – Het landelijk bij elkaar brengen van vraag naar en aanbod van jong talent.
Behalve kopzorgen zijn er ook dromen. Wat zou Virtueel Platform naar de mening van de mensen die deelnamen aan het onderzoek voor het nieuwe media onderwijs kunnen doen? – Het creëren van ontmoetingsmogelijkheden tussen academies en opleidingen, maar ook tussen de opleidingen en de bedrijven of instellingen op het gebied van nieuwe media rond het thema e-cultuur en ontwikkelingen in het publieke domein kunnen. En dan graag niet alleen in Amsterdam, maar door het hele land. Dat zou niet alleen moeten leiden tot kennisdisseminatie, maar ook tot mogelijkheden voor docentstages aan de ene kant, en het aanbieden van interessante opleidingsmogelijkheden voor professionals aan de andere kant; – Het professionaliseren van de jonge en kleine bedrijven in de creatieve industrie rond thema’s als ondernemerschap en loopbaanontwikkeling en het interesseren van bedrijven om medewerkers één à twee dagen per week te interesseren voor een rol op de opleidingen, bij voorkeur in samenwerking met de opleiding; – Versterken van zaken die er nu al
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Hoe kwam dit artikel tot stand?
Studentenaantallen
Twaalf onderwijsmanagers en opleidingscoördinatoren deden mee aan een elektronische enquête via Surveymonkey. Die enquête was bedoeld om te achterhalen wat er leefde onder de opleidingsmanagers. Daarnaast werden er telefonische interviews gehouden. Vervolgens bracht ik mijn eigen ervaringen en visie in, opgedaan in de zeven jaar dat ik aan het hoofd stond van het Instituut voor Interactieve Media van de Hogeschool van Amsterdam.
Verantwoording
De basis voor de opleidingen in het onderzoek is gelegd door eerder onderzoek van Kennis-centrum GOC in het kader van het project Mediacompetenties. Dit overzicht is aangevuld met een overzicht van de opleidingen waaraan de deelnemers van de Hot 100 studeerden of die zij hadden afgerond. Deze lijsten zijn vervolgens vergeleken met het overzicht van opleidingen op http://www.123studie keuze.nl voor zowel het bachelor- als het master-niveau.
In het HBO kiest de bulk van de studenten nieuwe media voor een opleiding Communication & Multimedia Design. Deze opleiding wordt door acht hogescholen verspreid over heel Nederland aangeboden (sinds september 2008 ook in Utrecht). In 2007 schreven 1.143 studenten zich in, waarvan 219 vrouwen, dat is iets minder dan 20% van de populatie. De tweede grote bron wordt gevormd door de opleiding Communicatiesystemen. Deze opleidingen trokken in 2007 gezamenlijk 588 studenten, waarvan 244 vrouwen bijna 40% van de studentenpopulatie. Kunst & Techniek trok in 2007 266 studenten, waarvan bijna 35% vrouwen. Landelijk uniek zijn de opleidingen Grafimediatechnologie (Rotterdam, 63 studenten, 13% vrouwen) en Game Architecture And Design (NHTV, Breda,129 studenten, 5% vrouwen). De HBO-studenten informatica die zich op nieuwe media richten zijn in dit overzicht niet meegenomen. Naar schatting een kwart van de informatica studenten, is met nieuwe media bezig. Nederland telde in 2007 in totaal 2400 nieuwe ICT studenten, waarvan vier procent vrouwen. Tellen we deze aantallen op, dan komen we op ruwweg 3000 nieuwe studenten nieuwe media in Nederland in 2007, waarvan 18% vrouwen. Het wetenschappelijk onderwijs kent geen expliciete nieuwe media opleiding. Het dichtste bij komen Media & Cultuur en Communicatiewetenschappen met een gezamenlijke instroom van bijna 1400 studenten, waarvan ongeveer 50% vrouwen.
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5x E-cultuur en commercie
Stephan Fellinger Dagan Cohen Guido van Nispen Jeroen de Bakker Walter Amerika
Stephan Fellinger is bestuursvoorzitter en medeoprichter van Stichting SpinAwards, dé prijzen in Nederland voor creativiteit en effectiviteit in interactieve communicatie. Ook is hij vaste columnist voor het Tijdschrift voor Marketing en schrijver en mede-initiatiefnemer van MolBlog, het weblog van Tijdschrift voor Marketing. Stephan werd in 2006 gekozen tot Online Mediaman van het jaar. In 2007 kreeg hij een Coq d’Honneur uitgereikt van de Bond van Adverteerders (BVA), het Genootschap van Reclame (GVR) en de Vereniging van Communicatie-Adviesbureaus (VEA). In 2008 werd hij door Tijdschrift voor Marketing gekozen bij de top 40 beste marketeers van Nederland. Hij heeft sinds 1990 ervaring met interactieve media en marketing. Na een aantal jaren aan omroep- en bureauzijde te hebben gewerkt, is hij sinds 2001 Internet-ondernemer. Hij adviseert organisaties over het veranderende interactieve medialandschap, hierbij speelt vooral het veranderende gedrag van mensen een hoofdrol. Voor de Hogeschool van Amsterdam en Generation Next zit hij in de Raad van Advies. Bij de Thuiswinkel Awards, is hij dit jaar jurylid.
In gesprek met Antoinette Hoes, januari 2009.
AH: Ken je inspirerende voorbeelden van e-kunst?
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Antionette Hoes: Wat is voor jou e-cultuur? Stephan Fellinger: Eerst maar even terug naar de definitie van cultuur volgens Wikipedia: # In brede zin wordt cultuur gebruikt voor ‘alles wat door de samenleving wordt voortgebracht’. ‘Cultuur’ wordt tegenover ‘natuur’ gesteld. # In engere zin wordt het woord gebruikt voor kunstuitingen. Ik ben een liefhebber van de eerste definitie. En link het dan met de invloed die technologie heeft op alles wat door de samenleving wordt voortgebracht. Voor mij is het dan ook belangrijk dat het gaat om cultuur die ons leven beïnvloed. Dat is ook mijn fascinatie voor interactieve media, de wijze hoe het ons leven beïnvloedt, hoe we bijvoorbeeld met elkaar communiceren, en niet alleen wat er tech nisch allemaal mogelijk is.
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SF: Bijzonder van interactieve media is het ijsbergeffect: slechts een klein gedeelte van het landschap begeeft zich boven water. Het grootste gedeelte speelt zich af onder water, ik noem dat de onderwereld. Bij een ijsberg zit letterlijk 7/8 onder water. Het is dus heel goed mogelijk dat de prachtigste zaken, zich totaal buiten mijn gezichtsveld afspelen. Dat gevoel heb ik ook bij e-kunst. Ik ben een enorme fan van Micha Klein. Jaren geleden won hij bij de SpinAwards al een prijs voor een project voor Coca-Cola. Daarbij konden jongeren elementen van Micha en zichzelf mixen. Nu is dat heel gewoon, maar Micha was toen zijn tijd ver vooruit. Ook voor de game Spore ontwikkelde hij een karakter. Het leuke aan Micha is dat hij al die verschillende werelden mixed en daar mensen mee inspireert. AH: Hebben e-kunst en e-cultuur (een vernieuwende) invloed op jouw praktijk of die van anderen in je omgeving? SF: Natuurlijk, goede kunstenaars laten je met een andere bril naar de wereld kijken en dat hebben we allemaal nodig om als mensheid verder te komen. AH: Waar zie jij de vernieuwing/ innovatie ontstaan in jouw praktijk/ beroepsgroep? SF: In de mix tussen de verschillende werelden. Creatieven hebben vaak de conservatieve neiging vooral in hun eigen wereld rond te kijken. Maar de ware inspiratie zit juist in de ongewone combinaties van verschillende werelden. Met de SpinAwards willen we bijvoorbeeld werelden als Internet, televisie, film, reclame, muziek, telecom, games, kunst en opleidingen met elkaar in contact brengen, zo ontstaan weer nieuwe zaken. De moderne creatie veling en kunstenaar is de perfecte mixer en niet bang voor technologie.
de wereld te kijken en heb regelmatig andere mensen nodig die mij nieuwe inzichten geven. Voor je het weet, word je dat, waar je je altijd tegen afgezet hebt, dat is mijn drive om te blijven veranderen. Ik noem dat altijd het Veronica effect: ooit de piraat tegen de gevestigde orde, en nu zelf gevestigde orde. Dat wil je toch niet?
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Dagan Cohen is creative director bij Draftfcb te Amsterdam, een geïntegreerd marketing- en communicatiebureau die de consument bereikt en betrekt door gebruik te maken, alsmede combinaties te vormen, tussen de beschikbare communicatiekanalen (oud en nieuw). Daarnaast doceert Dagan aan de Rietveld Academie en jureert hij voor de Dutch Design Awards. Voor The Next Web selecteerde hij de meest innovatieve ‘pre-start-up’ bedrijven binnen het digitale veld. In 2008 richtte Dagan Upload Cinema op, een maandelijks evenement in film theater De Uitkijk, Amsterdam, waar films van het web worden geprojecteerd op het grote scherm. Elke maand kent een thema en bezoekers kunnen hun eigen webfilms aandienen voor het programma dat vervolgens door Dagan en een kleine groep experts en enthousiasten wordt gevormd tot een avondvullend programma. Antionette Hoes: Wat is voor jou e-cultuur?
AH: Kun je je voorstellen wat e-cultuur en e-kunst (beleid) zouden kunnen bijdragen aan jouw beroepspraktijk?
Dagan Cohen: Ik vind het een ouder- wets begrip dat volgens mij ook niet leeft in de samenleving. De huidige (jongeren) cultuur is doordrongen van elektronische/ digitale communicatiemiddelen en uitingen. E-cultuur is een ge passeerd station. De cultuur is al digitaal. Dat neemt overigens niet weg dat in het onderwijs en met name in het kunstonderwijs de beginselen en mogelijkheden van digitale media onvoldoende onder de aandacht worden gebracht.
SF: Een andere blik. Ik leer mensen zelf op een andere manier naar
AH: Ken je inspirerende voorbeelden van e-kunst?
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DC: Ja, ik ken genoeg interessante voorbeelden van e-kunst. Bijvoorbeeld Jonathan Harris die steeds nieuwe visualisaties en interfaces voor het weergeven van internetdata ontwikkeld. Of het Graffiti Reseach Lab die met lasers lichtgraffiti maken op gebouwen. AH: Hebben e-kunst en e-cultuur (een vernieuwende) invloed op jouw praktijk of die van anderen in je omgeving? DC: Ja, ik houd het werk van studenten en kunstenaars die in het digitale domein actief zijn in de gaten. En probeer de experimentele geest van het autonome werk in mijn bedrijf te integreren. Onder andere door projecten te doen met academies of individuele studenten. AH: Waar zie jij de vernieuwing/ innovatie ontstaan in jouw praktijk/ beroepsgroep? DC: Vernieuwing ontstaat op grens gebieden. Van het oude en het nieuwe, het vertrouwde en onverwachte, het fysieke en virtuele. En in de samenwerking van door gewinterde professionals en onbevooroordeelde jonge mensen. AH: Kun je je voorstellen wat e-cultuur en e-kunst (beleid) zouden kunnen bijdragen aan jouw beroepspraktijk? DC: Ik zou graag zien dat de overheid en e-cultuur organisaties de samen werking tussen commerciële be- drijven en autonome kunstenaars, ontwerpers en kunstopleidingen beleidsmatiger zouden stimuleren. Zodat goede, vernieuwende ideeën hun weg naar de markt kunnen vinden.
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Guido van Nispen is managing director van Veronica, een mediaorganisatie die veel pionierwerk verricht heeft aan de grenzen van het medialandschap. Veronica moedigt jong talent aan met de V-Academy, de eigen cross media academie, maar ook als media producent in media bedrijven en door te
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investeren in beginnende media en entertainment ondernemingen. Naast zijn positie als MD bij Veronica is Guido fondsmanager bij het Dutch Creative Industry Fund, een seed private equity fund van Telgraaf Media Groep, Sanoma, IDG en Veronica. DCIF is gespecialiseerd in het sponsoren van beginnende Nederlandse ondernemingen op het gebied van media en technologie, en heeft een degelijk portfolio van veelbelovende starters opgebouwd. Daarnaast is Guido de voorzitter van IPAN, een genootschap die professionals uit het interactieve en online veld bij elkaar brengt. Tot slot is hij lid van de adviesraad van Liftconference, actief blogger en fotograaf. Zo maakte hij in zijn laatste project een serie van portretten van Nederlandse digitale pioniers. Antoinette Hoes: Wat is voor jou e-cultuur? Guido van Nispen: De term heeft geen echte lading of betekenis voor mij. AH: Ken je inspirerende voorbeelden van e-kunst? GVN: Ik zie geen dingen uit de kun stenhoek komen die echt invloed hebben op wat de rest van de digitale/Internet wereld ontwikkelt. Maar ik ga ook weinig naar gelegen heden waar ik wordt geconfronteerd met dat type kunstuitingen. AH: Hebben e-kunst en e-cultuur (een vernieuwende) invloed op jouw praktijk of die van anderen in je omgeving? GVN: Het commerciële en het ge- subsidieerde traject zijn echt twee gescheiden werelden. Ik zie uit de Digitale Pioniers (regeling) en het Mediagilde niet echt de doorstarters komen. Het zijn gescheiden gefragmenteerde trajecten die heel erg in hun eigen circuit bezig zijn. Voor mij zijn dingen succesvol als mensen er direct iets aan hebben. De Culturele sector zou kunnen helpen bij een schaalvergroting, zo’n Hot 100 initiatief is fantastisch. Mensen uit verschillende hoeken bij elkaar zetten en daar nieuwe dingen, nieuwe samenwerkings verbanden laten ontstaan.
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AH: Waar zie jij de vernieuwing/ innovatie ontstaan in jouw praktijk/ beroepsgroep? GVN: Je zou het talent uit de Hot 100 binnen die context in een competitie kunnen stoppen. Dat werkt. Als je als jonge startende ondernemer alleen maar online je eigen dingen doet, dan blijf het vinden wat je al vond. Dat stopt de vernieuwing. Als je ondernemers en cultuurmensen bij elkaar zet, dan kunnen ze samen een nieuwe context creëren. De jonge digitale ondernemers hebben soms last van ‘rockstar’ gedrag. Ze nemen zichzelf als norm en sluiten ideeën van anderen uit. Daarnaast is alles rondom rechten nu wereldwijd een ramp en dat remt veel initiatieven of laat ze sneuvelen. Muziekrechten, HD-tv, nieuwsrechten, sportrechten, het zou interessant zijn om daar aan de cultuur en beleidskant iets mee te doen en daar de slagen te maken die iedereen verder gaan helpen. AH: Kun je je voorstellen wat e-cultuur en e-kunst (beleid) zouden kunnen bijdragen aan jouw beroepspraktijk?
Daarnaast ontwikkeld Qi ook zijn eigen digitale mediaproducten zoals het virtuele reclamebureau Qineboko.com en mobiele content platformen. Daarna werkte Jeroen voor de TWBA Company groep waar merk activering en nieuwe media gecombineerd werden. Op dit moment focust Jeroen zich op het opstarten van innovatieve media ondernemingen, door cliënten te adviseren in hun omgang met nieuwe media en door te werken als strategisch directeur bij de Creative Shop 2009. Daarnaast is hij samen met Rembrandt Smids een nieuw bedrijf gestart, genaamd BrandWebbing: een nieuw en uniek merk strategische benadering voor online media. Antoinette Hoes: Wat is voor jou e-cultuur? Jeroen de Bakker: Ik kan me bij e-cultuur wel iets voorstellen, maar ik gebruik de term nooit. Voor mij is het dat deel van de cultuur dat wordt beïnvloed door technologische, elektronische en digitale ontwikkelingen. AH: Ken je inspirerende voorbeelden van e-kunst?
GVN: Het zou aan de commerciële kant JDB: Ik heb niet direct zicht op kunst, op prijs worden gesteld als je met nieuwe media of e-kunst. Mijn de zaken verder kan die met collega’s hebben dat veel meer, de publieke middelen zijn ontwikkeld. mensen die echte creatieve functies Als je daar subsidieert moet je in het bedrijf hebben. Zij gaan vaak het later vrijgeven aan de wereld. naar tentoonstellingen en bijeenNeem als voorbeeld het Fabchannel komsten zoals bij Mediamatic of in platform. Dat wordt nu door henzelf de Zwijger. verder vercommercialiseerd, maar Zelf ga ik bijvoorbeeld naar Picnic waarom zou je het platform, zonder en ben ik bij het DEAF electronic de ‘indie muziek content/richting’ arts festival geweest en daar heb ik niet vrijgeven zodat anderen er leuke dingen gezien. De laatste keer weer nieuwe concepten op kunnen vooral rondom het thema augmenontwikkelen. Maar de dingen zijn nu ted reality. De combinatie van het nog vaak niet overdraagbaar. Een fysieke en het virtuele werd goed dergelijk model stelt eisen aan de ingevuld. Maar ik denk niet dat ze in kwaliteit van het ontwerp, de schaalde kunsten verder zijn. De kunsten baarheid en het documenteren ervan. en de commerciële wereld zijn met dezelfde ontwikkelingen bezig, maar passen ze anders toe. Ik zou een volgende keer weer naar DEAF gaan.
AH: Hebben e-kunst en e-cultuur (een vernieuwende) invloed op jouw praktijk of die van anderen in je omgeving?
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Jeroen de Bakker is medeoprichter van Qi, tot stand gekomen in het laatste kwartaal van 1997. Qi heeft verscheidene prijswinnende interactieve marketing- en merkconcepten ontwikkeld.
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JDB: Alles wat de creatieven en (concept)ontwikkelaars zien en meemaken verwerken zij in hun opdracht.
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Vanuit mijn functie kijk ik primair vanuit de behoefte van de adver teerder. Ik ben het filter dat soms (vernieuwende) dingen tegenhoudt als het geen of onvoldoende functie heeft voor het merk of de adverteerder. Het is leuk als dingen mooi, slim en vernieuwend zijn, maar het moet in ons vak ook nog een functie hebben. Ik bewaak dat stuk. AH: Waar zie jij de vernieuwing/ innovatie ontstaan in jouw praktijk/ beroepsgroep? JDB: Het is opvallend dat de schei- ding tussen de ‘oude’ wereld en de digitale wereld nog zo lang blijft bestaan. Er wordt afhankelijk van de oorspronkelijke discipline heel vaak met één uitgangspunt bijvoorbeeld technologie, gestart. Dat zal in de kunsten niet veel anders zijn dan in de reclame. Ooit zal de toevoeging ‘e’ overbodig zijn, maar het gaat niet snel. Innovatie ontstaat waar gecombineerd talent zit, dat versterkt elkaar. Broedplaatsen zijn belangrijk, plek ken waar mensen (uit de kunsten en uit andere gebieden) van elkaar leren en samen gaan toepassen. Een plek waar aangrenzende dingen bij elkaar komen. Ik werk zelf ook graag met teams waarin we diverse disciplines bij elkaar brengen. AH: Kun je je voorstellen wat e-cultuur en e-kunst (beleid) zouden kunnen bijdragen aan jouw beroepspraktijk? JDB: Het allerbelangrijkste lijkt mij het investeren in nieuwe vormen van onderwijs. Het is toch frappant dat Eckart Wintzen zijn nieuwe type school in Amerika ging oprichten en niet hier. Nu wij hebben vastgesteld dat creativiteit een van de peilers is voor onze Westerse economie zou daar in het onderwijs meer nadruk op mogen liggen. In die totaal andere economie die eraan komt zijn naast lezen en schrijven ook hele andere en nieuwe vaardigheden nodig. Daar zou veel in mogen gebeuren. Ook hoe we omgaan met intellectueel eigendom is en blijft heel belangrijk. Het stimuleringsbeleid dat nu voor de ‘oude kunsten’ bestaat zou ook voor nieuwe vormen en kunst in combinatie met technologie moeten bestaan. 94
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Walter Amerika is een onafhankelijk adviseur voor bestuursraden, creatieve ondernemer en spreker op het gebied van creativiteit en innovatie. Zijn nieuwste project is de Creative Industry SOFA, waar naar nieuwe mogelijkheden gezocht wordt om initiatieven binnen de creatieve industrie te financieren. Daarnaast is hij tevens hoofd van de faculteit ‘Market’ aan de Design Academy in Eindhoven, voorzitter van de stichting Doors of Perception, lid van de Nederlandse Onderwijsraad, bestuurslid van States of Humanity, adviseur voor het Nederlands Comité voor Internationale Samenwerking en Duurzame Ontwikkeling op het gebied van Nederlands Ontwerp in Ontwikkeling, lid van de adviesraad van Custom Fit, adviseur op het gebied van Creatieve Industrie bij management centrum DeBaak, en ambassadeur voor de Dutch Design Awards. Antoinette Hoes: Wat is voor jou e-cultuur? Walter Amerika: Cultuur is zo’n breed begrip. Er ontstaat zeker cultuur onder invloed van alle nieuwe technologische ontwikkelingen. Maar is het ook hoge cultuur? Net als in de rest van de wereld is die ‘hoge cultuur’ er in het digitale domein veel te weinig. Er wordt veel ontwikkeld op basis van een technology push, maar dat is iets anders dan dat mensen er daadwerkelijk behoefte aan hebben. AH: Ken je inspirerende voorbeelden van e-kunst? WA: Ja, ik zie veel verschillende zaken. Ik denk dan bijvoorbeeld aan het Nederlands Instituut voor Mediakunst of interactieve kunst. Maar ook mensen als Daniëlle Kwaaitaal en Micha Klein die zich met videocultuur bezighouden. AH: Hebben e-kunst en e-cultuur (een vernieuwende) invloed op jouw praktijk of die van anderen in je omgeving?
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WA: Innovatie komt vanuit de hobby- isten in de (banken) branche. Bankiers zelf houden liever de kaarten tegen de borst en zijn conservatief. De wetgeving helpt ook niet mee, daar stokt het hele proces van vernieuwing, omdat je alleen maar licenties krijgt als je beantwoordt aan het oude model. AH: Waar zie jij de vernieuwing/ innovatie ontstaan in jouw praktijk/ beroepsgroep? WA: Bepaalde branches en sommige bedrijven zijn heel ver in het in corporeren van nieuwe ontwikkelingen in hun werkprocessen en concepten. Denk aan AMO, het bureau van Rem Koolhaas waar architectuur naadloos wordt geïn tegreerd met andere disciplines uit de creatieve industrie. Maar bijvoorbeeld de bankenbranche... Daar hebben ze allemaal dezelfde back bone. Ze onderscheiden zich niet. De banken concentreren zich op proces-standaardisatie in plaats van dat ze technologische ontwikkelingen inzetten om zich daarmee te onderscheiden. Er moet een bereidheid ontstaan in de branches om ook in vormen en in beelden te denken en niet alleen in technische interfaces.
fiscaal interessant, rek de garantstellingen op. Nu zijn dat type regelingen nog teveel puur gericht op technologische innovatie. Ook ‘zachtere’ vormen zouden hiervoor in aanmerking moeten komen.. en als je dan stimuleert mag je aan de resultaten ook best behoorlijke eisen stellen. Op dit moment gaan subsidies soms naar niches van niches. Fabchannel is een prachtig project, maar het platform is veel breder inzetbaar dan de niche, qua content, waar het nu voor wordt ingezet. Ik denk ook dat als je innovatie stimuleert met publieke middelen dat je dat weer terug moet geven aan het publiek. Naast de aanbodkant zou er ook aandacht mogen zijn voor de vraagkant. Hoe maak je aan de verschillende sectoren duidelijk wat e-cultuur en creativiteit en innovatie te bieden hebben.
Wij zetten ons nu in voor de ver nieuwing van de bankenbranche, denk aan zaken als peer-to-peer banking, coöperatief bankieren. Niet meer top-down, maar (onder andere met behulp van technologische ontwikkelingen) ook bottomup. Als dat soort zaken gaan ver anderen betekent dat een cultuuromslag voor de hele maatschappij. Er zou meer vraaggestuurd gewerkt moeten worden, maar dat ontstaat zeker niet vanuit de technologie. AH: Kun je je voorstellen wat e-cultuur en e-kunst (beleid) zouden kunnen bijdragen aan jouw beroepspraktijk? WA: Je mag best industriebeleid voeren als er politiek draagvlak is voor die keuzes. Als Nederland het moet (gaan) hebben van de handel in ideeën en creativiteit dan mag je daar beleid op loslaten. Dat betekent niet dat je alles hoeft te subsidiëren. Dat kan ook met investeringen. Maak investeren
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Practice-based Research in the Arts Henk Borgdorff is professor (lector) of Art Theory and Research at the Amsterdam School of the Arts, and research fellow at the Royal Academy of Art and the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague. Borgdorff is co-chair of the research group ARTI (Artistic Research, Theory and Innovation) at the Amsterdam School of the Arts, where he supervises practice-based research projects by research fellows and staff members. Borgdorff has published on Immanuel Kant’s music aesthetics, Theodor W. Adorno, Donald Davidson, John McDowell and on the (philosophical and political) rationale of artistic research. His research interests are the epistemology of artistic research, music aesthetics and critique of metaphysics.
Henk Borgdorff
http://www.ahk.nl/ahk/lectoraten/therorie/arti/indez.shtml
based on an interview with Anne Helmond
http://ww.annehelmond.nl
Anne Helmond is a New Media lecturer at the Media Studies department of the University of Amsterdam.
Research groups in the Netherlands In 2002 research groups were introduced throughout the Dutch system of higher vocational training (hoger beroepsonderwijs, HBO), including arts education. There are now approximately 400 research groups, 30 of which are in the arts, focusing on widely diverse areas. In arts education, the head of each research group, the lector, is expected to do four things:
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Conduct research: there is a fixed budget for research that can be carried out by teaching staff and by individuals from outside the school. The lectors are assigned a budget they can use to conduct research themselves and to fund research by the research group in the academy;
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Encourage innovation in education;
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Improve the relationship with the outside world (specifically professional practice), in our case the arts world;
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Professionalise teaching staff. My research group Art Theory and Research – the first of its kind at the Amsterdam School of the Arts (Amsterdamse Hogeschool voor de Kunsten, AHK) – was formed in 2002, and more followed in subsequent years. The first three of the now five research groups at the AHK have a supra-faculty position. Ours is a large art school with six faculties, the largest of which 96
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is the Conservatorium van Amsterdam; the others are the Theatre School, the Netherlands Film and Television Academy, the Academy of Architecture, the Reinwardt Academy (museology) and the Academy of Visual Arts Training (Academie voor Beeldende Vorming, teacher training for visual arts and design). We do not have an autonomous visual arts department; in Amsterdam that role is filled by the Rietveld Academy, which is independent but with whom we frequently collaborate. The supra-faculty lectors thus work for the organisation as a whole. My research groups and I work closely with Marijke Hoogenboom and her research group Art Practice and Development. We collaborate as ARTI (Artistic Research, Theory & Innovation1), an interdisciplinary research group composed of teaching staff and research fellows (from outside the Academy) who all participate in research projects; some of these projects are truly practice-based, while others have a more classical approach. Several of the people involved are conducting doctoral research. Research in the Arts My own work in this context is meta research that examines the rationale behind what research in the arts is, or could be. To what extent, for example, does this form of research differ from scientific research? And how does it relate to the field, art and practice? Several of the articles I have written on the subject have been published online.2 My other activities include teaching and involving myself in matters of policy development in the Netherlands and abroad, and I am a member of the HBO board’s strategic working group on research.
1 http://www.ahk.nl/ ahk/lectoraten/theorie/ arti/index.shtml.
2 http://www.ahk.nl/ ahk/lectoraten/theorie/ publicaties-theorie. shtml.
Research as a trend An examination of funding applications confirms that research is a hot topic at the moment. In the Netherlands we have several channels for research that are not education-related, the cultural funds, for example. This is something we observe on an international level too: it’s a separate field financially stimulated by the government. In principle, the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science has separate channels of support for culture and education. Sometimes, however, the division is unclear, especially in the case of post-academic institutions such as the Jan van Eyck Academy and the Rijksacademie voor Beeldende Kunsten. In addition, there are production houses and workspaces that also conduct a certain amount of research, but the traditional home of research is academia: universities and, increasingly, the universities of applied sciences. It was only with the advent of the lectors and research groups that the universities of applied sciences started becoming involved, but research now ranks high on the agenda. Abroad, academies are nowadays called ‘universities of applied science’, and research is one of their core activities, along with education. 98
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In fact, it is a three-pronged approach, because the academies are required to focus on education, research and professional practice. In the Netherlands, the precise definition of what is and can be called ‘research’ is still being contested. A couple of years ago the Advisory Council on Science and Technology Policy in the Netherlands (Adviesraad voor Wetenschap en Technologiebeleid in Nederland) published a report Design and Development. The function and place of research activities in universities of professional education, a title that underscored their opposition to universities of applied sciences using the term ‘research’ to describe their activities. The report maintains that what we describe as research only amounts to design and development, and that true research is the exclusive preserve of traditional universities. The advisory council had to concede defeat on this point because research does have a high priority at the universities of applied sciences, including those involved in art education. We are, however, still lagging behind comparable institutions abroad.
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3 ‘Primary financing’ comes from the Ministry of Education Culture and Science, ‘secondary financing’ comes from independent public organisations such as the Dutch Organisation for Scientific Research (Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek, NWO) and ‘tertiary financing ’ is projectbased and may come from private institutions or government departments.
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The dissolving boundary between universities of applied science and universities Internationally, and especially in Europe, there is an increasing tendency for the distinction between universities of applied sciences and universities to become fuzzy. Sometimes these changes have been far reaching, as in the UK where former polytechnics are now regulated in the same way as universities. In practice there are still differences, but in principle it means that they have an equal claim to research funding through so-called primary and secondary financing.3 This means that in the UK there are basic financial resources available for research staff members. Until recently, this was not the case in the Netherlands. If you were appointed to an academy, you were paid to teach, not conduct research. The arrival of the lectors and the research groups has created a little room for manoeuvre. Just a little. Research is not included in the tasks assigned to those employed by the universities of applied sciences. The situation is different in the UK, where it is an integral part of the basic funding of the universities of applied sciences (the primary financing), putting them on level footing with the universities in this regard. And then there is secondary financing, which is guaranteed because of the funds in the UK, funds that are in fact research councils. These funds invite competing applications for the funding of research projects, including those within universities of applied sciences. Because of this equal treatment, universities of applied sciences can apply for basic research funding. In practice, however, most of the money goes to the universities because the universities of applied sciences have not yet been able to prove themselves. We see similar developments taking place in Scandanavia, Belgium, Austria, Switzerland and Germany, where there are now third-cycle post-Master, or doctoral, programmes. HENK BORGDORFF
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In the Netherlands we still make a clear distinction between universities and universities of applied sciences. There is university education with research, and vocational training without or with little research. Government legislation still strongly regulates the separation between HBO institutions and universities. I don’t know how long we can maintain this situation when it is changing elsewhere in Europe. Of course it is related to the Bologna Process, which seeks to create a European Higher Education Area (EHEA) from 2010, the underlying principle being that it would simplify the comparison of diplomas. The mobility of teaching staff and students plays an important role in this context. Another important contributing factor is the intended region-wide implementation of a parallel three-phase structure, comprising Bachelor, Master and doctorate degrees. This means that in time there will be a third phase in art education too, as already exists abroad. Last year, I organised a two-day conference on the third phase, in the Felix Meritis, Amsterdam.4 We are really trailing behind when it comes to infrastructure and facilities for practice-based research in higher arts education. Much has to be achieved before 2010. The old guard steps on the brakes Various forces influence the situation in the Netherlands: the old guard still rules the roost at the art academies and are stepping on the brakes, while all manner of developments are taking place beneath the surface. A year ago, a national platform called the Platform for Doctoral Studies in the Arts (Platform Promoties in de Kunsten) was set up to tackle the issue of PhD studies in the arts and advocate a place for the third cycle and its financing within arts education. It consists of people from the arts education sector and the universities, especially the various art studies. Over the intervening year we have worked on constructing a framework for doctoral research which we presented to The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (De Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek, NWO), which has in turn collaborated with the Netherlands Foundation for Visual Arts, Design and Architecture (Fonds Beeldende Kunsten Vormgeving en Bouwkunst, BKVB) on starting a pilot PhD programme for two (visual) artists. Although such programmes exist elsewhere, this is a first for the Netherlands. It is a breakthrough, a small breakthrough certainly, but an important and positive development.
discursive component should be produced that can stand on its own: a dissertation. There are differences of opinion about the relationship between these two. In summary, the encouraging developments taking place beneath the surface are: the breakthrough at the NWO, a national platform, consideration of a third cycle as an extension of the conference, and lectors focusing on research. On the downside, there are many people in the Netherlands who happen to be in controlling positions who are applying the brakes and not prioritising research. ‘Artistic research is not one of the academy’s core activities’ The Amsterdam School of the Arts recently organised a meeting involving the Board of Governors, all the faculty heads, and those responsible for policy within the school. It emerged from this meeting that artistic research is not among the academy’s core activities. In other countries there is explosive growth in prioritising practice-based research in arts education, while people in the Netherlands are wary, concerned perhaps that we are getting ideas above our station. To quote one leading figure at the school, ‘We are a technical school’. Some research is allowed, but it isn’t given a prominent position. It is a fair point of course, because we are in the first place an institution for vocational education, and research isn’t everybody’s cup of tea.
4 De derde cyclus: Artistiek onderzoek na Bologna (The Third Cycle: Artistic Research After Bologna). International conference on the third cycle in higher education in the arts, Amsterdam, 10 and 11 October 2007. http://www.ahk.nl/ ahk/lectoraten/ theorie/conferentie3/ programma.shtml.
Collaboration on a European level There is an official, contractual collaborative relationship between the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, the Conservatory in The Hague, Leiden University, the Orpheus Institute in Ghent and Leuven University: DocArtes; they collaborate on a practice-based doctoral programme in the area of music for composers and musicians. This collaborative relationship has been extended to an alliance including the Royal College of Music in London, Oxford University and Royal Holloway, University of London. This robust collaboration, funded by the European Community, intends to develop a type of joint programme in the field of music education. In the Netherlands a doctoral studies course has also been initiated in the visual arts – it’s the first in the Netherlands and is a collaboration between the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague and the PhD Arts course at Leiden University. There are good contacts with the Norwegian Research Fellowship Program, which provides artists with the opportunity to conduct full-time research. These are mid-career artists with substantial track records. This makes for a win-win situation in which the pressure to produce work on a day-to-day basis is removed, giving time to pause, reflect and develop, while providing benefits for the educational establishment through exchanges that occur during seminars.
A key issue in practice-based research is the relationship between the artistic and the discursive aspects, between the practice (what can be shown, displayed, demonstrated, made) and the theoretical, verbal aspects. Some people regard the artistic component as sufficient (proof of ability/degree of competence) for the third-cycle level. Others think a written, 100
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The characteristics of practice-based research There is no universal methodology; you have to adapt to what the project needs. People wrestle with the term ‘methodology’, but I prefer to avoid it and talk about ‘a method’; there are various options and the choice depends on the subject, the framing of the question and the goal. I’m very open-minded in this respect: anything goes as long as it deals with the subject in an effective way. In the case of practice-based research this means that:
5 De waarde van kunstvakonderwijs (The Value of Art Education), Position Paper, HBO board, February 2009.
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The practice of making, creating (studio-based), is key to the method – so there’s no sitting behind a desk; it’s all about getting into the studio and getting you hands dirty. In this respect it is comparable to experimentation in the natural sciences: in a laboratory, as it were;
being trained for unemployment’) and also mentions research.5 In fact, research as a key task of the universities of applied sciences features fairly prominently in the position paper, contrasting the current situation in the Netherlands. The paper was originally going to contain a lot of far-reaching ideas but these were omitted for political reasons, for example, a proposal to follow the lead of Norway and the UK in setting up a research fellowship programme and a third cycle programme. And not everyone within arts education is behind it: ‘Let the cobbler stick to his last; we are a technical school’. A certain amount of information about research is included in the position paper, but Dutch decision-making is based on the ‘polder model’, which means it takes a long time before decisions are made at national level. Although the Netherlands is a small country, it is just too big for us all to merge forces and speak with one voice.
2.
There is a fine example of this happening in Austria. Last year, the six rectors of the art universities there collaborated on writing and publishing a leaflet entitled Money (f )or the Arts, which declares that ‘fundamental artistic research, independent of market-focused art production, is the future of Austria as a cultural nation’. We need research in the arts. At the moment, it is inconceivable that statements like this could be made in the Netherlands. There are too few managers in control in this country who think in such a visionary way. The problem with a new development such as this on the European mainland is that it meets a great deal of resistance. It is understandable that there is a certain degree of scepticism. Some think it is passing phase; there is also some scepticism about these developments within the art world. But the fact is that arts practice became reflective by itself; we have to discard our naivety, even if only because of external pressures. Artists have to position themselves in society and contextualise their work. They have to account for their activities to funding bodies and the general public. But something is going on within art itself: it has become reflective – and not only conceptual art, because modern art has had a tendency to be reflective since the end of the 19th century. Reflection is inherent to art, and this generates a need for artists to have the space to pause and reflect on their work, not only produce. That space simply does not exist within the current framework of higher education, or at least not at the third-cycle level. The universities are unconvinced because they see their own funding shrinking. In the end it’s always about power and money. These two factors can be said to corrupt existing developments, developments that have a certain intrinsic validity, necessity and urgency.
The results of the research must be practical and not just a written treatment of acquired knowledge; not just words. Something tangible has to be produced. It’s up to the artist which additional method is selected. Some cases might require a method derived from techniques applied in the humanities: interpretation, hermeneutics, deconstruction, psychoanalysis, critical theory or cultural studies. Other cases might require a method more oriented towards techniques used in the social sciences, such as engaged ethnographic research or observational participation, or it could be research based on a more scientific or technological approach. Any of these could apply, depending on the subject. What distinguishes this research from standard academic research is that it focuses on arts practice – as distinct from research into the arts. Of course there is an element of reflection, and the research will involve a certain amount of contemplation and writing, but the resulting written work will not always fit into the framework of a classical academic thesis. The most important factor is that it is appropriate for the practice: the practice is paramount. A great deal of the practice-based research conducted at the AHK is done on an individual basis, but there are also interfaculty and interdisciplinary collaborations. The future: money (f )or the Arts We are expecting (at the time of interview) a letter from the Minister of Culture, Mr. Plasterk, in which he is expected to have stern words for the arts education sector in the Netherlands or announce planned cutbacks. So, this is not the moment to propose all manner of new initiatives to the ministry. The higher arts education sector (the SAC-KUO, the HBO board’s advisory council for the arts education sector) has prepared a position paper, which includes responses to rumours and attacks by the press on art education (‘Artists are 102
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PRACTICE-BASED RESEARCH IN THE ARTS
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Cultuurlokaal Gouda
The Patching Zone: Collaborative Practice and Practice-Based Research
Anne Nigten is the director of The Patching Zone, a praxis laboratory where Master, PhD students and professionals work together on meaningful creative content. Prior to her current position, she was the manager of V2_ Lab, the aRt&D department of V2_, Institute for the Unstable Media in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. She lectures on research and development in the interdisciplinary field from an art perspective. She advises several media art and science initiatives in the Netherlands and Europe. She completed her PhD at the University of the Arts London (UK), and frequently publishes papers on art, engineering and (computer) science collaboration and software development. Before her current position at V2_ she worked as an independent media artist, and simultaneously fulfilled several management jobs for the media art sector in the Netherlands.
Anne Nigten
http://patchingzone.net http://processpatching.net
in conversation with Anne Helmond
http://www.annehelmond.nl
The Patching Zone is a transdisciplinary laboratory for innovation where Master’s students, postgraduates and professionals from various fields create meaningful content. Anne Nigten, the initiator of the Patching Zone, discusses the ‘Process patching’ approach used by the Patching Zone as the primary methodology for creative research and development. anne helmond
What inspired you to start the Patching Zone? anne nigten
1 V2_, Institute for the Unstable Media is an interdisciplinary centre for art and media technology in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, http:// www.v2.nl/.
THE PATCHING ZONE: Collaborative Practice and Practice-Based Research
I was concerned with the question of how artists active in the realms of art and technology can optimise cooperation with technicians, computer scientists and designers. I noticed that this has been a recurring problem for the last few years at V2_ in Rotterdam and therefore decided to write my PhD thesis on this subject.1 The greatest and most obvious problem appears to be cooperation, which ultimately prompted the question: which methodology and approaches do artists working in the areas of art and technology and electronic art utilise? Even today, I still encounter the same situation in the education sector: you can see that creative practice is increasingly becoming collaborative, and extremely difficult to adapt to college curricula. Even if it involves working with people from different branches, almost ANNE NIGTEN
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all of them are branches of the same tree. Frequently there is also an existing educational model that inhibits collaboration between people with very different backgrounds. I wanted to establish a practice-oriented laboratory where I could further shape these ideas; I wanted to examine how cooperation between people working together can be optimised and how the gaps can be filled by the colleges themselves, thereby making a contribution for future artists. Although we do work with students and researchers from diverse disciplines, our origins are in the art world. This is the core issue. The approach has emerged from our own backgrounds and our experience at V2_. The Patching Zone sees art and design as having paramount importance.
a mandatory number of seminars and lectures. It would not be correct to state that people are not interested, because the most important factor is the problem with scheduling. This will be addressed so that, as much as possible, all future projects will start in September, to ensure that they are concurrent with college rosters. Of course, it won’t be possible to perfectly synchronise all the courses. We have just started an active information campaign for all courses in the Netherlands that is not limited to one region only, but is intended to fulfil a national role. This initiative is thus not restricted to Rotterdam. We intend to start working at a European level as soon as possible.
ah
How does the Patching Zone relate to practicebased research?
The Patching Zone works with students on a project basis. How do students apply? aN
Applicants for Patching Zone projects come from a wide variety of backgrounds, but it is usually the better students that feel up to it. It is noteworthy that there is more interest from abroad than from the Netherlands. This can be partly explained by the fact that the Netherlands is still catching up in the area of dual education: there are as yet no Master degrees and PhDs in the arts- and design sectors, and Master’s and PhD courses at technical colleges are generally more focused on themselves. We have some extremely talented students from many European countries for our upcoming project. Applications from abroad were generally of a higher quality than those from the Netherlands. aH
Do you actively seek affiliations in your own region? aN
Insofar as it is possible, I try to involve local universities and colleges, but ultimately it also has to fit into the curriculum, as well as in the academic roster. Notwithstanding that a Master’s and PhD approach is developing in the Netherlands, one Master student may be working on a single project from September to June, while another is allocated a fixed number of months to complete the final paper. Moreover, students frequently have to attend 106
2 PhDArts is joint programme of The Faculty of Arts, University of Leiden, and the Royal Academy of Art (RKA) in The Hague. Certain modules are also carried out in partnership with the Research Institute at the KU Leuven. For more information see http://www.lectoraat kabk.nl/nl/phd-inde-kunst/index.html. The programme has been extended to include a PhD in partnership with the Netherlands Foundation for Visual Arts, Design and Architecture (Fonds BKVB).
aH
aN
As most of our students are from the arts and design worlds, they work according to one of the variants of practice-based research, which knows a number of trends. Students attending courses having a more technical and theoretical orientation, i.e., reflective studies, obviously work in a completely different way. The issue of cooperation has also made inroads in practice-based research relating to electronic art and the creative industry. We hope that it will gradually become clear that the role played by artists and designers in innovation teams is also extremely interesting if it involves cooperation, and that this gives their work added value. In this way we hope that we can refine the image of practice-based research, and demonstrate that it does not always have to be a solo endeavour – while the model of scientific PhDs in particular is far more focused on the individual. I think that this is an interesting complement, especially for courses focusing on innovation. It will be far less well received by autonomous artists; it is meant for those who have mastered the process. Being helped to increase awareness of their methodology provides interesting new opportunities for artists and designers in collaborative projects. This really gives a practice-based PhD enormous extra value. This is something I am trying to achieve at the Patching Zone. We
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are not particularly concerned in this regard with a courses such as the PhD in Leiden.2 They are now collaborating with the Netherlands Foundation for Visual Arts, Design and Architecture on a course which is much more rooted in a variant of the scientific academic model that has held sway since the Enlightenment: the model of the individual, creative, contemplative artist. We aspire to a somewhat different approach at the Patching Zone. We ensure that practice and theory run parallel so that they can nourish each other and more knowledge becomes available about the working process and the methodology, and any shortcomings can be identified. These are extremely valuable components when shaping theory. The power of many art and design processes is derived from the fact that theoreticians also actually involve themselves in the practical aspects during the process, and not only retroactively. This is a completely different way of reflecting on one’s work if you are really in the thick of it: combining the first and third person means that, sometimes, you are directly involved, while at other times you observe from a distance, and it is easy to alternate these roles. This is an issue I would like to explore further with the students and my colleagues at the Patching Zone – to be involved with much more awareness, so that you can also benefit more from the process. aH
How does the Patching Zone intend to disseminate the knowledge produced by the projects? aN
One example of how we intend to document our activities is with leaflets. This is general documentation for a broad audience that is conversant with the creative field. We also frequently produce scientific publications, both academic papers and popular scientific works. Students are involved as much as possible in writing these papers. Several papers relating to our previous project are currently being prepared. Already, various PhD chapters and Master theses have been written by students, either as PhD chapter, papers, or as a case study – and we assist them with these as well. We will also post some superb video footage on our website: short films documenting the THE PATCHING ZONE: Collaborative Practice and Practice-Based Research
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process and how people reacted, which also demonstrate that this curious approach can sometimes elicit a very interesting and disarming reactions. Finally, a book that we published in cooperation with The Hague University: Het Woudlopersboek voor de Cultureel Erfgoed Medewerker 2.0 was presented during the Digital Heritage Netherlands Congress in December 2008.3 It is a report on the Cultuur Lokaal project,4 and is written from the perspective of an employee working at a cultural institution. The assignment for this project was to create a training course for employees at three cultural organisations: the library, museumgoudA and the Regional Archive. Employees apparently had great difficulty anticipating the changes that new models and interaction with the public could have on their professional work. How were their roles going to change and how could this be stimulated or shaped? How can you play a pro-active role to avoid alienating your audience? Employees must be able to adapt to present or future expectations. The Hague University and Web in de Wijk (web in the neighbourhood5) collaborated on a formal training programme. We took care of the informal training programme in which a group of Patching Zone students conducted a series of interventions in the public space that were all based on topics suggested by the employees of the cultural organisations, such as the project ‘Vergeten Eten’ (forgotten food). The archive employees told us that they had some beautiful 16th- and 17th-century recipe books written in Old Dutch, which included regional recipes that they wanted use as the basis of the project. They selected several recipes and these were brought up to date and prepared using ingredients that are available nowadays, and with our current notions about flavouring. Our friends were our test subjects. We erected a lovely, large, red Vergeten Eten tent on the Gouda market square and employees from the Regional Archive cooked and served the food. Many visitors to the market came and sampled our wares. Diners were asked to leave a recipe behind, thus ensuring that all the basic components were included in the project: giving, sharing, creating an 108
environment, and engaging in discussions. It was an extremely enjoyable event. We also created a layout for putting the recipes online in a small network. Neither the interventions nor the website were intended as end products, as such, but they were important facets of the training programme. It enabled project participants to make contact in an entirely different way with people who we couldn’t have known in advance would be interested in doing something with food. We received recipes and knowledge about the city from people with whom we probably would not have come into contact. It was not a formal topic provided by the cultural organisations, but a pleasant public event which enabled people to learn a great deal by applying a method between art and research. Moreover, it was not a high profile event, and we did not create brouhaha about it. Some of our participants walked around the market inviting people into the tent, which involved a ‘canvassing’ function completely different to a supportive function behind the counter at an organisation. We have organised a number of events that started with the basic principles of social networking and co-creation and gradually introduced elements of a technically oriented approach. Each step involved an additional technical aspect, which required the intensive practical application of various design and development principles – especially from the areas of ethnographic field research and social sciences. It was an interesting combination of context research and design research. It’s important to note that they were extremely pleased with our efforts. Four events were held and the project is now completed. The most interesting result of the entire project was that one of the employees was assigned a new job: previously an archivist in the Regional Archive, he is now the innovation manager. It is extremely encouraging that a training course can lead to a transformation in the professional lives of these employees. aH
When selecting students do you also consider the balance between theory and practice?
‘Vergeten eten’, The Patching Zone (2008)
3 The publication Het Woudlopersboek voor de Cultureel Erfgoed Medewerker 2.0 can be ordered from the Research group for Information Technology and Society of The Hague University of Applied Sciences 4 Cultuur Lokaal is a collaboration between the Waterwolf laboratories (Haagse Hogeschool lectoraat Society and ICT by Dick Rijken and three cultural institutions in Gouda: the Public Library Gouda, the Regional archive Central-Holland, Museum GoudA) and The Patching Zone in the Netherlands. http://cultuur lokaal.patchingzone. net/. 5 Web in de Wijk is an initiative aimed at improving neighbourhood life, by making it easier for residents to find out more about their neighbourhood, become acquainted and plan activities together by means of the Internet.
aH
With whom do you collaborate, and in what kinds of formal or informal networks do you collaborate?
aN
We always work on the basis of assignments, and two important criteria are evaluated when
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selecting students. Firstly, the appropriate knowledge must be represented in the team to ensure that the assignment is carried out in accordance with the expectations. Secondly, there must be a healthy balance between the members of the group: not only between the relative numbers of men and women, and between theory and practice, but also between the various disciplines themselves. The composition of the team is of vital importance. We always start by assessing our requirements, firstly by evaluating what we require, and then by ensuring that there is a good balance between theory, practice, design and implementation. We want people with a theoretical background to play an active role at the start of the process and not only at the end, or when compiling the report. We now have a theorybased participant, who joined the team at its inception in January. This is an important factor. In general it is much easier for theoreticians to look back and reflect on a completed project than to accumulate sufficient knowledge to analyse the working process while it is in progress. I think it is important that this reflection does not only occur retroactively. You need retroactive analysis, too, but if it is nurtured throughout the entire process in which people play an active role, theory and practice can flow among the people involved.
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aN
The Patching Zone has a network of ‘ambassadors’. These are people who operate purely out of interest and without financial reward on our behalf to create alliances with the industrial, scientific and governmental communities. We have several partners and are funded by Creative Challenge Call, a collaborative programme between the Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science; the The Go-for-IT! project is commissioned by Rotterdam South Pact in close collaboration with city district Feijenoord and Stichting Welzijn Feijenoord in south Rotterdam.
Kristina Andersen is a maker and researcher based at STEIM in Amsterdam. She works with electronics to create unusual objects and experiences as a part of her ongoing obsession with ‘naïve electronics’. She holds an MA. in wearable computers, an M.Sc in tangible objects in virtual spaces, and was a research fellow at the Interaction Design Institute Ivrea. She has mentored and taught at DasArts, Piet Zwart Institute and Willem de Kooning Academie and she was an honorary visiting design fellow at the University of York. She has designed and hosted countless workshops in strange locations. She currently mentors at the Patchingzone and is director of research and communication at STEIM.
aH
Embodying Research
Do you have European ambitions? aN
We are currently in the inventorying phase and are actively ensuring that we have a robust base in the Netherlands. We are going to closely monitor our operating procedures because we want to work on an assignment basis as much as possible and do not want to become affiliated with one particular university. That would create obligations and we would rather develop a workshop or seminar model that we can use to cooperate with several colleges, instead of creating the impression that we are obliged to accept a given number of students from a particular college each year. We want our selection procedure to be determined by the quality of the students and their suitability for the project. We are organising a meeting at ISEA in Belfast in Northern Ireland in August 2009 to advance our European alliances. This encounter will consist of a panel that will on the one hand provide a platform for our students, students from elsewhere and researchers, and on the other hand, provide them with an opportunity to discuss our approach and their experiences within both a scientific and an artistic context. In a new field such as this, it is extremely important to safeguard quality and create a portfolio. The Patching Zone is a unique concept, and it is therefore impossible to compare our activities and progress with other initiatives, which perhaps emphasises the importance of precisely defining quality criteria. This is the first thing we want to do. 110
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Dick Rijken graduated as a cognitive psychologist, with major excursions into Sonology and Computer Science. He was head of the Interaction Design department at the Utrecht School of the Arts in the early 1990s. Since then he has worked at VPRO, a broadcasting organisation, as project manager and strategic consultant for Internet projects. Currently, he is director of STEIM, and lector in Information Technology and Society at the The Hague University of Applied Sciences where he studies the role of cultural institutions in the context of Web 2.0. He also works as an independent consultant for companies and non-profit organsations and as a lecturer and project coach on strategic and conceptual issues in digital communication.
Dick Rijken
http://www.steim.nl
Kristina Andersen
http://www.steim.nl
in conversation with Cathy Brickwood
http://www.virtueelplatform.nl
Workshop Go-for-IT!, The Patching Zone (2008)
STEIM is a practice based laboratorium for research and development of instruments and tools for digital live performance, based in Amsterdam. It is also an international meeting place, an artist hotel, and production office. It serves an international group of people working in the field of live electro-acoustic music, DJ’s, VJ’s, theatre and installation makers and video artists.
CATHY BRICKWOOD
What is your understanding of practice-based research?
KRISTINA ANDERSEN
At the moment, there is a very active debate all over Europe about practice-based research. Basically, it’s a spectrum. At one end of that spectrum, the artist is seen as an intuitive and individual creator, untouchable by reason and untouched by society. Practice is then seen as the creation of art and only the art itself determines the success of the endeavour. Thus, an individual artist can be granted a PhD solely on the basis of an artistic body of work. At the other end of that spectrum, the artist is seen as connected to all of society, to philosophy, to science, and to critical reflection. Thus, it makes sense to ask artists to explain themselves—without having the ‘magic’ disappear. Like in science this approach is based on notions of rigourousness, repeatability and experiment: You build on other people’s work, you reference your work and you disseminate it in the system. This can result in demanding more or less traditional PhD theses from artists, complementing their actual works of art. So the spectrum ranges from ‘makers’ to ‘scholars’,
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with most art practice and artistic research somewhere along that spectrum. Likewise, researchers and researchers position themselves there as well, with products ranging from art works to purely academic publications, or combinations of the two.
CB
How do you see the position of STEIM as a research body?
in academic research, so we can work broadly on that spectrum between art and scholarship.
KA
In some way we cannot help but feel that the current discussion about practice-based research validates the way we work at STEIM. We are in an excellent position of provide a space for exploring what practice based research can be here in the Netherlands.
DICK RIJKEN
STEIM doesn’t experience artistic practice and technical or conceptual research as conflicting activities. In our specific practice of building instruments for live performance, it’s natural for us to connect them. It requires a lot of research at the technical and artistic level. We are often forced to create innovative technical solutions and there is a continuous process of critical artistic reflection about the relationship between instrument design and artistic expression. As we create new instruments, we generate knowledge that can be interesting to other fields as well. Live performance is a very valuable context for interactivity, because it is such a critical situation where notions like feedback, timing and expressivity can never be compromised. The knowledge we acquire by helping people build instruments is present here in the organisation. However, due to the large number of projects (around 150) that turn up each year, it is a big challenge to decide what to focus on for external publication. This is our primary challenge for the near future: to pick out the best projects and publish what we learn from them to both develop our body of knowledge and reach a larger audience. As part of the process of instrument design and development, we are going to have more critical discussions, more explicit ways of documenting what happens and why. We will interview people during the process, take photos, explain choices, show intermediate results, etc. Thus, we are contributing to a conceptual vocabulary for physical interactivity. The resulting knowledge will be presented in different media, ranging from videos and interviews on our websites to books, and it will also feed in to the more academic world with scientific publications. The ideal guest is someone who is both a musician and interested 112
As an institution we have a lot of freedom, and we have been able to develop a high level of craftsmanship as ‘makers’ over the years. Labs that are part of traditional universities complain that everything they do has to be validated by publishing academic papers in academic journals. We can develop relationships with institutions like that by moving them slightly away from that academic focus, and they appreciate us for doing that, since there is knowledge that only emerges from making instruments that work. STEIM is unique in this sense. Other institutions build interfaces, test them, and then write an academic paper. We make instruments that you have to learn to play, that grow as you practice.
DJ Sniff
DR
And that process of changing and tweaking, while someone is learning to play an instrument, yields new knowledge as well. It’s another very valuable opportunity for reflection.
Laetitia Sonami plays the Lady’s Glove
There is a longer process of interaction involved. We’re not into ‘proof of concept’, we make real things. That is what also makes it interesting from a scientific point of view, that it is lived. So it transcends an objectified view on research where the researcher is disconnected from what is studied.
KA
Two kinds of musicians come to STEIM. One group is the more traditional musicians who make a living playing, and then there is a group with a more academic orientation. Both cultures have different reward systems and peer review systems. We have the reputation of being a safe house, we don’t judge processes harshly on their outcomes and we accept the value of failure. We want to continue to be a place where you can experiment and take risks.
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Alex Nowitz plays Nintendo Wii
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KA
We have produced a small number of publications, but there have been countless tours, concerts, exhibitions, and workshops. All these things are valuable to us. The artists that work with us, perform all over the world – they are seen by people and they talk about us. Also, our guest house plays has an important role in bringing people together. People meet each other, work together, and often end the day by having dinner in the shared kitchen. The guest house is a place to exchange ideas and form intricate networks and these networks make us grow in turn.
DR
The concerts are also part of the experimentation process. You make yourself vulnerable to an audience, the work is only validated in the performance situation.
KA
It’s a cliché and a joke but: ‘It’s what you do with it that counts’. An instrument doesn’t only have to be able to work at the moment of completion, it has to afford virtuosity. A good instrument can be played for a long time, it can become someone’s tool for expression. Learning to play and becoming a virtuoso is something that requires the instrument to have space for growth and exploration and even surprise. We want instruments that are developed through use and practice. That is an approach you don’t see often elsewhere.
CB
Where is elsewhere?
DR
Other labs with a more classical scientific mentality, but also thousands of small studios and hobby rooms, people doing it themselves. These days, anybody can buy a Wii controller, hook it up to their computer, press a button, swing the controller through the air and make a sound. But, for us, that’s only the beginning. DIY culture is actually enabling us to move away from sensor technology, and focus more on artistic coaching and the development of knowledge. We are experts when it comes to 114
KA
We often modify string instruments. People entrust us with very old, valuable instruments. Violins are a classic example. John Rose is a musician who has been a regular visitor to STEIM for the past 20 years. He uses electronics to modify his violin and experiments with different types of strings and bows, enriching the instrument. He embodies the process of constantly revisiting and tweaking. Another example is is Laetetia Sonami who has been working and re-working her glove controller for years.
DR
The world needs places that can host practicalbased research. We already get requests from people who want to do their PhD at STEIM. It’s an excellent opportunity for us, not only in terms of research methodology, but also for further developing our concepts and content, linking the physical and conceptual aspects of our work.
CB
DR
The most obvious example is the current trend of interfaces becoming more physical. Smart objects and gesture-based interactivity, these are big topics in current human interface design, but we’ve been doing that kind of research for decades. You can also describe our instruments as tangible interfaces for real time manipulation of data. We know what it is like to design physical interfaces. We are used to thinking in terms of situated and embodied experience that does not originate from a flat computer screen. Recently, we developed a museum installation in in the Gemeentemuseum in The Hague where teenagers physically interact with sound. That installation was a direct result of our research on musical instruments. Now that physical interaction is becoming more common, we have valuable knowledge to contribute.
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DR
Music is timing. Music is consciously designed and composed sound, that is organised in time. If you use our software to build an instrument it will be better because of this timing issue. But it’s an underestimated issue in interface design, and people are starting to realise this. Timing is crucial in many application areas of computing. We can feed into all those areas with our knowledge and expertise.
Returning to an earlier point about performance based innovation being very relevant to other fields of innovation, can you give an example?
KA
An issue that constantly comes up for us is ‘time’ – timing, synchronisation, scheduling, clocks, both technically and conceptually. When you are building instruments, you cannot tolerate delays. We take this very seriously in all our software and hardware, shaving milliseconds off the reaction time of an interface might not be worth doing for anybody but us, but for us it is part of taking our performances seriously. There are notions of timing that come straight from dance, and others that refer to the internal clocks in all electronic devices and processors. Every performer runs on an internal clock, the body has an internal clock. Timing is enormously important to what we do: Being present in the moment working directly with the electronics that you’re controlling. Our constituency knows and cares about this: if you get the timing wrong, everything falls apart.
building instruments. We can mount sensors on your oboe without damaging the instrument. But, more importantly, we can reflect CB on what it is that you want to achieve by doing Even without publishing you have built a strong international reputation. How did you manage that? this, and help you refine and evolve your art. It’s OK to come to STEIM and find out that your idea doesn’t work.
Modified Cello Bow (top), Modified Saxophone (bottom)
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KA
We are very excited about what the future will bring in terms of who we will engage with about these issues. It may not be who we think it is. It will depend on how we publish, what language and vocabulary we use. In the process we will build up a vocabulary that will be a pidgin of a range of fields, science, music, philosophy, dance and so on. The vocabulary will need to be both broad and very specific about the work and concerns of our constituency. We are lucky, we have a specific knowledge of very different worlds and we can draw on this. In many ways it’s quite a simple story. We feel the world is moving towards us. Instead of seeing it as a sign that we are obsolete, we are incredibly excited: We feel we have something very timely to contribute and we want to move the work, the conversation, the exploration forward.
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Open Cultural Economy? By Klaas Kuitenbrouwer
www.virtueelplatform.nl www.otocron.net
it is a defensible standpoint that culture created with public means should also be accessible for each and every citizen.
Klaas Kuitenbrouwer is programme manager at Virtueel Platform. Until recently he worked at Mediamatic. Klaas has researched and put together conference programmes, courses and workshop curricula for professionals in various cross sections of media, technology and culture. His main focus has been the appliance of RFID / NFC technology in social contexts, creative use of game technology in various media and cultural sectors, online and mobile audiovisual projects, physical computing. He advises several cultural organisations, and cultural funds in the Netherlands on new media and teaching programmes and lectures and teaches at universities and art academies in various countries in Europe.
There is one key word that is shared by a number of important innovative movements in electronic media and new communication technologies. That word is ‘open’, as in ‘open source’, ‘open access’, ‘open content’, ‘open hardware’, etc. Many of the practices these terms refer to originate in the techno-cultural vanguards of the 1980s and have in the meantime evolved to become part of mainstream culture. The term ‘open’ as used above can be broadly interpreted in two ways: firstly, as establishing the principle that the development process of an open object is accessible to all, and secondly that the open object can be used by everyone to their own ends (and usually at no cost). All these open practices are derived from the distributed interactive communication that is made possible through digital networking and from the characteristic of digital information that it is able to be reproduced from wherever it is present (server, browser window, hard disc, etc.). Open practices are thus a useful application of a feature of digital reality. But the term ‘open’ encompasses an entire ideology: the conviction that the development of culture and those participating in it is best served by open processes and the free distribution of open objects.1 Or in a wider, political sense, it is the way in which digital space becomes public space that can be organised democratically. Participation in culture (and by this I mean both the production of culture as well as the consumption thereof ) in the digital domain is very susceptible to these open developments. Obviously, and to a large extent, culture is stimulated by its free availability, and the Internet, like no other medium or instrument, also offers the means to achieve this. Furthermore, 116
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2 See Software Studies, Lev Manovich, 2008; and Free Culture, the Nature and Future of Creativity, Lawrence Lessig, 2004.
3 ‘Pirates and Samaritans: a Decade of Measurements on Peer Production and their Implications for Net Neutrality and Copyright’, by J.A. Pouwelse, P. Garbacki, D.H.J. Epema, H.J. Sips, in Telecommunication Policy Journal, December 2008.
1 For the pre-digital background to this cultural attitude, see ‘Remixologie – over de bronnen van Shareware’, Omar Muñoz-Cremers, in Metropolis M, no. 1, 2009.
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4 Works published under the GNU Public License or under Creative Commons licences that touch upon or are combined with (parts of ) copyright-protected works are still thorny legal issues that have to be resolved. 5 http://www.beelden voordetoekomst.nl/.
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Disarray The cultural economy, however, is thrown into complete disarray by these developments. It depends for its proper functioning on two mechanisms: the marketability of cultural products by means of their physical carriers; and a system for sharing the rights accrued from the distribution of the content of cultural products, i.e., copyright. In recent decades cultural products have come to include purely digital objects that can easily be distributed, adapted, doctored, stretched, duplicated and refined without any loss of quality. This has become one of the most important engines of cultural regeneration.2 In the current techno-cultural context the preservation of copyrights is somewhat problematic. In December 2008 a team from the Delft University of Technology published the report Pirates and Samaritans about the current situation and the anticipated developments in file sharing and peer-to-peer networking. This report includes data from the most substantial scientific research relating to the unpaid and illegal downloading of copyright-protected songs, films and games. The report concludes that copyright enforcement will be impossible in practice from 2010.3 Moreover, many would regard the (presently theoretical) protection of copyrighted works as an undesirable legal restraint on an important cultural engine. The ‘open’ approach is no longer solely a political choice or a smart and inexpensive method of developmental process: it is part of the new digital nature. Some rights reserved Some creative alternatives to the increasingly unrealistic ‘all rights reserved’ culture have been developed. The GNU Public Licence for software and various Creative Commons licences for different types of open content are successful projects that stimulate technological and cultural innovation in a way that is unique to the new digital reality and makes a constructive contribution to the development of new legal concepts.4 A large-scale project to improve access to media archives is Beelden voor de Toekomst (Images for the Future),5 a collaborative project by Beeld en Geluid, the Filmmuseum, the National Archive, the Association of Public Libraries (Vereniging van Openbare Bibliotheken), the Rotterdam Central Record Library (Centrale Discotheek Rotterdam) and the Nederland Kennisland Foundation. One of the aims of the project is to make available a basic collection of digital film and sound recordings, primarily for educational purposes, either copyright-free or under the provisions of a Creative Commons licence. In this framework, part of the National Archive’s collection of historic photographs has been scanned at high resolution and posted on KLAAS KUITENBROUWER
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Flickr: The Commons 6 (a Library of Congress initiative) under the Creative Commons licence. The GNU Public Licence and Creative Commons are legal constructs that support the political and social dimensions of open culture. Who pays the bills? How does the open concept work on an economic level? The basic costs involved in developing open objects can be kept to a minimum if people participate in the project on a voluntary basis. Many types of audiovisual productions can now be made for considerably less money than previously: broadcast-quality audiovisual projects can be produced with equipment costing around 5000 euros. The IDFA Festival regularly screens films that cost even less than this to make. But production costs also include infrastructure, support and management. The Beelden voor de Toekomst initiative managed to find a project-based subsidy to make the archives available to a wider audience. But sound business models still have to be developed that will ensure the maintenance of public digital archives in the long term. In addition, much ‘open’ content is not produced by an open process per se, and is only published as an open work after it is completed. Also, individual authorship is an important production modus in our current culture. In such cases, production costs for open objects are no different from those for non-open objects, and those working in the cultural sector also want to be able to pay the rent (or even a mortgage). At the other end of the spectrum are the budgets of highend blockbuster films, which run from 90 million euros to three times this amount. And the budget of a TripleA game such as Killzone2, manufactured by the Dutch company Guerilla Games, is estimated to be a tidy 60 million euros. Making a single copy of a copyrighted work for home use is not illegal,7 but unlimited free distribution of expensive digital products drives a stake through the heart of the blockbuster business model.
6 http://www.flickr.com/ commons.
Bumboat trader/flaoting grocer in rowing boat selling groceries (milk) to a skipper, 1930, Collection Spaarnestad Photo, available on Flickr Commons
7 http://www.thuiskopie. nl/.
Specialised services Production costs and income for makers have to be protected in some way, and if copying is free, then only something that is not a copy can be sold. How can money be made from open objects? Several models have been applied in various parts of the world that ensure open objects create a flow of money. The first is supplying specialised services relating to open objects, services that have to be paid for. The most well known example is Linux, a very robust, safe and versatile operating system, published under the GNU Public Licence, which means no one has to pay licence fees. Open source development means that a group of programmers continually improves the software
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Recording a radio play, The Netherlands, 1949, Collection Spaarnestad Photo, available on Flickr Commons
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on a voluntary basis. Open source development guarantees the quality and safety of the product (if it is properly managed). A company like RedHat does not earn anything from selling Linux itself, but from the installation, maintenance or customisation of Linux applications. This model is also applied to open source applications such as Drupal and Joomla 8 (and many others), which are dedicated content management systems (CMS) for websites and online communities. Companies offer specialised commercial services for both systems, without selling actual software licences. Particularly the use of standard applications results in lower prices for clients. Donations Another well-known open model is that of donations, which is, surprisingly, reasonably financially tenable – Wikipedia survives this way, for example. No expenses are incurred in developing the content on Wikipedia – this is done by volunteer contributors and editors from all corners of the Internet – but costs that do have to be paid include those for hosting, software development, and making and maintaining accessibility. In the case of a massive project such as Wikipedia these costs can be enormous. Wikipedia is entirely financed by donations from individuals and independent funding sources. The most recent, large fundraising campaign – an appeal for donations on the front page of the Wikipedia website – generated in excess of 6 million dollars between 5 November 2008 and 2 January 2009.9 This initiative succeeded because Wikipedia enjoys worldwide repute, is used a great deal and especially because Wikipedia has enormous value for many people. Smaller projects with lower production costs can also be financed in this way. Steal This Film, an open-content film about file sharing and PirateBay,10 was financed by voluntary donations from viewers after its release on peer-to-peer networks.
approach guaranteed them all the rights to their material (the large record company EMI holds the rights to their earlier works). And when the album was released later as a CD, it entered the pop charts at the number one position in both the United Kingdom and the United States. 8 http://www.drupal.org and http://www. joomla.org.
9 http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Press_ releases/Wikipedia_ fundraiser_surpasses _$6million_USD_ January_2009. 10 http://www.open business.cc/2006/ 08/25/steal-this-film/. 11 http://www.blender. org/blenderorg/ blender-institute/.
Screenshot Steal This Film
Radiohead made their album In Rainbows available on their own website from 10 October to 10 December 2007. Visitors were asked to pay what they could afford for the album, but could, in effect, download the tracks for free. Estimates of Radiohead’s income from this experiment range from 5 to 10 million euros. More important for the band itself was that this 120
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12 https://www.google. com/adsense/support/ bin/answer.py?answer =81567; http://www. johnchow.com/theinternets-biggestgoogle-whores/.
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The entire freeware model works in a comparable way. Freeware is software (both open source and non-open source) that is published as open. People who actually use the software are asked to make a donation. These are rarely large amounts and such projects are usually not capital-intensive. Other models have been developed whereby financing can be crowd-sourced prior to production – the current term is crowd-funding. Steal This Film 2 was pre-financed according to the so-called Street Performers Protocol (SPP) – a practice specially developed to stimulate the publication of creative work in the public domain. The SPP requires that the maker of a given work release that work into the public domain when a previously agreed amount of money has been donated in escrow. This fund is managed by a third party, who pays the maker and the publisher (if there is one) if the conditions have been met. Obviously, this model only works if the maker’s reputation makes it likely that he or she will produce a work of the anticipated quality. These models can work for relatively low-budget productions. It is also important to note that better production quality can also be achieved with technology that continues to decrease in cost. Blender, for example, is free, open source 3D animation software of professional quality, with a global community of developers and users. This community’s first Open Movie, the Big Buck Bunny project, was a great success and formed the basis of a creative and functioning business model. This model is an interesting mix of free software, paid services, donations, subsidies and sponsoring, from which funds new Open Projects can be financed in advance.11 Advertising A third generic business model applied in open e-cultural practice is (online) advertisements. In this model it is not the makers, users or managers of the open objects that generate direct income, but the third parties who pay to be seen by visitors to the site in the context of the open object. Google’s AdSense works well in the context of sites dedicated to specific subjects (e.g. blogs); sites that appeal to a so-called niche public. Other systems only work with sheer volume, and are more interesting for busy non-specific sites. A reasonably busy website with a more or less specific audience can recoup hosting costs with Google AdSense: the large and busy site digg.com earned 250.000 dollar per month from Google advertisements in 2007.12 KLAAS KUITENBROUWER
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Subsidies Subsidies are the fourth important source of money for producers of culture, much of which comes from taxes, but some of which is also sourced from private funds. With software that is developed with public money, it is common that the recipient of the funding wants the software to also be published as open source, so that in theory other participants in the public domain can reuse the software. In practice, however, specific cultural software applications are rarely reused. Each new maker has his or her own goal that requires slightly different tools. One effective way to enrich the software content of the public domain would be to increase contributions to the creation of more generic building blocks that could form the basis for a wider variety of software; to illustrate: a new type of Lego brick makes possible an infinite number of new designs, while the design of new robot that juggles ping pong balls is only interesting to someone who was looking for precisely such a machine. It should be noted that the classical copyright model protecting content made with public money is generally rigorously safeguarded. New paths These four flows of funding seem to suggest some realistic basis for a vibrant cultural economy. But the real research is still in its infancy. If it is possible to conceive of other funding models, where should our search start? Jan Velterop is Chief Executive Officer of Knewco (http://www.knewco.com) and a leading expert in open access and open business models in academic publishing. Velterop says there are three possible sources of funding for such models. The business model follows naturally from the answer to the question, ‘Who has the most to gain from publication?’ The paying reader? This is the classical, copyright, model that is becoming increasingly difficult to enforce. Moreover, there has long been great resistance from academia to the prevailing expensive and exclusive subscription system in academic publishing, because it obstructs the free dissemination of academic material, something that is of vital importance to the development of science. Is it perhaps the third parties who will pay to advertise? This does create income, but to claim that advertisers are the greatest stakeholders in academic publishing would be incorrect. No, the most important stakeholder is the author. This is not as strange as it may appear, because the author’s academic status depends on the publication of his work and the degree to which his or her research is referenced. Where universities once paid for publication by means of expensive subscriptions to scientific journals, they now pay the author. The flow of money is being re-routed. And this makes open access to scientific articles a realistic financial model.13 122
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14 http://www.kennisland. nl/nl/mensen/harry/ index.html and http:// www.frankwatching. com/archive/ 2008/09 /14/het-niet-kopieer bare-businessmodelvoor-de-toekomst/. 15 See the impressive information graphics at http://www.nytimes. com/interactive/2008/ 02/23/movies/2008 0223_REVENUE_ GRAPHIC.html. 16 According to Peter Kaufman at the Economies of the Commons convention, 11 April 2008, http:// www.debalie.nl/player/ playmovie_v2.jsp?movie id=254647& videofragmentsid=. 17 http://www.tribler.org. 18 1) The ability to distinguish good contributions from bad. 2) A regulatory mechanism for computer and network resources. 3) Good mechanisms for group communication. 4) A sense of community.
Cultural sales tax This is probably the reason for iTunes’ rumoured consideration of a different business model, a standard subscription that would give users free access to all iTunes content. The income would then be shared between the makers and iTunes. This system shares some features with the one used by Stichting De Thuiskopie (Home Copy Foundation, established in 1991) during the heyday of taped audio and video. To this day in the Netherlands a small surcharge is levied on blank CDs and DVDs. The money raised in this way is then divided among copyright holders by several funds. But nowadays most copying no longer requires a CD or a DVD. The new iTunes model is more redolent of an idea developed by the copyright lawyer Lawrence Lessig (who also came up with the Creative Commons licence) and William Fisher. In brief, the government would pay makers based on how frequently their works, or derivatives thereof, are read, watched
13 http://research.images forthefuture.org/ panel-4-uncommonbusiness-models/.
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Better than free Harry Verwayen of Kennisland 14 analysed the reasons that could move people to pay for open content. What is better than getting something for nothing? Speed is better than free. People are prepared to pay for immediacy: to be the first to have something or to get it as quickly as possible, or to save time. The income graphs of large film productions indicate a clear trend: the films earn more and more income in increasingly shorter periods of time after the first screenings.15 Live football is a prime example of a successful, profitable model for television, which can still transmit real-time images better than the Internet. Personal is better than free. Beck’s album The Information was sold in a cover that only had his name on it, but which included a set of funky stickers that purchasers could use to create a personalised cover. Authenticity is better than free. Despite making the music available online for free, Radiohead still sold a great many CDs with the same tracks, but this time with a great cover and booklet. Open content can also work as a viral campaign for events or products in the physical world. In accordance with this mechanism, the average price of a concert ticket has risen substantially. A product that has been selected, annotated and provided with a context, that is safe and has guaranteed sound quality, is better than a whole heap of free stuff. iTunes lives from the proceeds – although it only takes about eight minutes before a new song on iTunes becomes available for free on a P2P network.16 But according to the report Pirates and Samaritans (mentioned earlier, see footnote 3) it is only a matter of time before P2P networks overcome such obstacles. Tribler 17 is P2P technology that scores well in the four most important quality characteristics of peer-to-peer networks.18
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or heard. The money is amassed from a form of cultural sales tax, imposed on all products that are related in some way with cultural production and distribution. One could imagine it might work, but how could it be introduced globally and all at once? Or could it be done at a European level? It is, in any case, being discussed seriously by various governments.
Open Movie project Elephants Dream
The actual functioning business models suggest a reasonable future for relatively inexpensive productions where components that can usefully be produced in an open source process are voluntarily contributed by web users. But whether such a system can also be used to finance larger productions with a ‘high production value’ still has to be ascertained. P2P networks could perhaps be used for outsourcing large rendering tasks – open and free of charge, and the same would be true for other large digital jobs that could become very costly if they had to be carried out at a single dedicated and specialised location. A good, and early (1999) example of such online crowd-sourcing involves the installation by millions of home computer users of the Seti@Home module (Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence) that makes use of each computer’s downtime to process the enormous amount of data picked up by gigantic radio telescopes, to ascertain if aliens somewhere out there really are trying to establish contact with us. Blender Open Movie project Big Buck Bunny
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The current credit crisis does not create a stimulating context for experimentation with new business models, although the crisis underscores the increasing urgency for such a system. But, the crisis aside, these are certainly extremely interesting times, with untold opportunities for a new networked culture and a new cultural economy.
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The Chinese Dream Alex Adriaansens
http://www.v2.nl
based on a interview with with Anne Helmond
http://www.annehelmond.nl
cultural exporters and players in the future. Right now, their main focus is knowledge development: see what is going on abroad, attract people to China and set up networks. After the Cultural Revolution, China was closed to outside influences and responded to what was going on in the world in a limited, selective fashion. Many Chinese know little about their own culture let alone other cultures, although this has changed over the last two decades, and has sparked great openness and curiosity about the West. This ‘outward gaze’ is often a way for the Chinese to discover themselves.
Alex Adriaansens is one of the founders of V2_ Institute for Unstable Media (1981), of which he is director. He has given many talks and presentations around the world on topics including art and public space/ domain; art & science; the construction of world models; space time constructs. He has curated and co-curated many exhibitions, symposia and public space events. He is also the artistic director of the DEAF festival. Alex is a member of the Advisory Board of Transmediale, Berlin; The Franck Mohr Institute for Media Art Education; eArts festival in Shanghai. He has been an advisor for different institutes and organisations in countries including China, Netherlands, Spain, Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Germany, Croatia, France, Norway, Canada, and jury member of a variety of international art festivals and awards, including Ars Electronica (Austria), Transmediale (Germany), Share (Italy) and Laboral (Spain).
Universities as cultural beacons Five years ago, Tsinghua University in Beijing, one of the largest universities in China, invited V2_ to discuss setting up a programme devoted to art, science, technology and society. Tsinghua University is famous and renowned for bringing forth the party leaders, and because the revolutions always originated there. An important university in the field of policy developments and ‘the new coming man’. The universities are important players in China at the moment. They are places for innovation, or certainly were five years ago. The young generations meet here and can enjoy a large degree of openness thanks to the energetic exchange programme that is an integral part of the universities’ large-scale cultural programmes. All the major universities have a museum. Tsinghua museum is larger than Boymans van Beuningen. Tsinghua University has a traditional art faculty and an industrial design department. China is very focused on creative industries, which is used as a kind of slogan for innovation. Precisely what the creative industries are is still being nailed down. Here in Europe and the Netherlands, no one really understands what creative industries are, and China is no different. It is a kind of catch-all for getting things started, and steering them in the right direction.
Workshop during eArts festival, Shanghai (October, 2008)
Over the last five years, V2_, Institute for the Unstable Media, has developed a series of activities in China varying from small-scale conferences and debates to large-scale exhibitions. V2_’s network now includes bloggers and independent art spaces, the National Museum of China and a number of universities. Alex Adriaansens talks about what V2_ is doing in China and what it hopes to achieve in the years ahead. In the history and background of China, you can see that there’s been a huge explosion of a so-called ‘open market’ over the last 20-25 years. China has opened up to outside influences. This also means that you are going to see new ideas about culture which you will need to take on board. A buoyant economy always goes hand in hand with cultural export. Looking at all the major influential regions over the last century and in America in particular, you can see how, fired by the booming US economy, American culture became a global export. In Japan, this is evident in the manga culture, which has swept the globe.
Five years ago, Tsinghua asked an intermediary to establish contact with a number of organisations in the world. The intermediaries are often Chinese who fled to the West in the 1980s, where they studied and now hold good jobs. They are being welcomed with open arms because they can act as a bridge between China and the West. They know both cultures and their ways of thinking and working. The Tsinghua intermediary was asked to see which parties might be interested in setting up a long-term trajectory. For the universities, this would be an incentive to new programmes, developing a network and a biennial or triennial in Beijing to act as an international point of contact and put Beijing in the position of playing an international role in artistic, scientific, technological and social developments. Three parties were invited to participate in this long-term strategy: Ars Electronica in Linz, ZKM in Karlsruhe and V2_. The programme was to centre around these three pioneering organisations. We then began
Japan and China excel at copying, amplifying and improving. They go about cultural innovation in a very different way to the Americans. The entire Southeast Asia region, to which China belongs, is developing at an exponential rate. People in the region are very aware that they are set to become significant
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The intermediary then involved the National Art Museum of China (NAMOC), one of the country’s wealthiest and most influential museums. It was quite a strange move because young artists are reluctant to or avoid working with museums because museums represent the old guard and all that is slow, unwieldy and at fault in the institutions. However, two years ago, the NAMOC appointed a new, young, director to instigate change. If anyone can reinvigorate the museum world, it would be him. This was also one of the reasons why I decided to work with the institution. Our network is built on a web of informal organisations and small independent art spaces. We have contacts with more formal organisations but are mainly interested in the new, young organisations because of their greater longterm potential for the network.’
presentations of institutions: which are the institutions we consider important in this field? Can we feature them in a special exhibition linked to a three-day conference? 25 universities from China were also involved. One item on the agenda was how Tsinghua can act as a catalyst within the university world in China. Looking back on the first meeting five years ago, it’s obvious how rapidly things have changed in China. For the first exhibition, we sent a shipment of all our publications, but they got stuck in Customs. We were told that the books had to be approved by a committee for entry into the country. The day before the exhibition opened, they were released on the understanding that the publications were allowed into the exhibition but had to be shipped back to the Netherlands afterwards without leaving the exhibition space. I’d brought a similar suitcase with me which had got through Customs without a hitch. During that first year, we really had to learn how to deal with the official and unofficial sides of doing business in China: unofficially, there’s quite a lot of freedom but official channels are subject to all kinds of rules and strict protocols.
1 http://www.media artchina.org.
The first exhibition and conference wasn’t just a great discovery and positive journey, it was also the start of building a network in China. Primarily because 25 universities attended. The idea was to see how we could move on from this point. In the years that followed, we organised a larger exhibition and conference. It expanded. It was all about the artists and themes, not the institutions. In the second year, in 2005, I organised a small exhibition on behalf of V2_ as part of a larger exhibition exploring the relationship between media, art and public space. Public space is a very tricky theme in China. It is the most controlled domain. It is a particularly problematic area for the media because relationships very different in nature to those in the physical public space, spring up via media. During its period of explosive growth five years ago, China fully embraced the Internet and now boasts the highest number of Internet users and bloggers. All the online games are based in China. The blog community was thriving because it was a very informal way of communicating – a media channel to talk about anything and everything. Naturally, the Chinese government soon got wind of this and unleashed a 30,000-strong squad to get Internet traffic ‘under control’. However, Chinese bloggers are supremely inventive in finding ways of getting material online through their networks.
There are more success stories, even outside Beijing and the programme with Tsinghua University. We managed to build a huge network in China in a very short space of time. All the young organisations and players in China are looking for a place to meet foreign institutions. Factory 978 in the Beijing 978 Art Zone is an old industrial complex in China where young avant-garde artists have been working for the last 25 years. With small galleries and studios it was a kind of sanctuary for the arts. We also established contact with the bloggers community in China and with a number of architecture faculties. Urban development in China was significant to us because it encompasses issues concerning media and infrastructure and a new social cohesion in China. Urban development is, by definition, an anchor. This led us to realise that, although we could visit China each year, it was clear from my meetings with Chinese artists, curators and educators that what they really want is to connect with networks here. In 2007 we invited 23 young curators and artists for the DEAF festival with a China programme to give them opportunities for connecting with our international network. Everyone gets together during the DEAF festival, which is ideal for them. The Mondriaan Foundation gave them a tour of other institutions like Waag Society and the Netherlands Institute for Media Arts, so they could see how they operate. They also visited art colleges and institutions to get some idea of their activities.
Successes After a couple of years in China the partners wondered if the time was ripe to organise the major event exploring themes relating to art, science and technology in which all parties, national and international, were represented. 128
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The collaboration with the NAMOC was a triumph. In June 2008, together with a number of parties, we organised Synthetic Times – Media Art China 2008,1 which attracted 100,000 visitors over a three-week period. If the NAMOC organises an exhibition, the art world sits up and takes notice; all the museum directors saw the exhibition and formed an idea of it. The media reviewed it and the show received widespread attention. The exhibition’s success prompted the NAMOC to turn it into an official triennial. The next edition is in 2011.
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are primarily concerned with how we can actively bring the festival to disadvantaged areas. As Shanghai is such a huge city, this will mainly take shape in 2010. This year, they organised the festival across three or four districts, with many activities in public parks. In Shanghai, for instance, there’s a neighbourhood populated only by students – 150,000 of them. It was once built by a project developer: there are ten universities cheek by jowl all eager for social and cultural interaction in the public space. The festival can be instrumental in this. It can also involve this demographic in developing insights on art, culture, media and science.
In addition, we presented a number of projects from China, the most important of which was The Long March. The aim of the project is to address and challenge realities and myths about China, its historical and political context, and potential future. The enterprise, organised by Chinese curators and artists, has been running for several years and follows the route of Mao Zedong’s Long March through China that began in October 1934. Performances and workshops are held along the route to explore specific local cultural traditions such as paper-cutting and tattooing. The project focuses on the question: what is China’s identity? What could it be? For many Chinese, The Long March was about underlining the fact that the nation’s identity was in fact a Western import, and examined the West’s views of exotic China. And the Chinese are quick to make this their own, while history and reality are very different.
E-Arts receive funding from the cultural development corporation in Shanghai and are supported by a number of Shanghaibased organisations but must achieve independence within four years. It is a monumental festival and, now in its second year, they opened a hotel with 150 rooms, a restaurant and large new exhibition space. The space is used for the festival and is hired out in between as commercial spaces. They generate revenue form the hotel, restaurant and exhibition space. It is a very young, hard-working organisation, but many of their difficulties are directly related to their small structural budget: they are unable to keep many of their project personnel, so lose knowledge. The intention is a smaller festival next year – a more concentrated event so there can be greater investment in teams and a solid team and organisational structure so that we’ll have a strong organisation in place in 2010.
Developing the network V2_ has been concentrating efforts on developing the network with all kinds of partners in China: universities, small, independent artist’s groups, young curators and several museums. Hong Kong is the most European-oriented city, with great potential for activities. A theme such as art and public space is a common feature in festivals because it’s easier to work in the public space there. This isn’t the case in Beijing, for instance: there, I had to show a museum how projects work in the public space, and the kinds of themes they can deal with. Now, five years later, E-Arts, the party I worked with in Shanghai, has made public space and media one of its spearheads. This shows how much interest there is in the theme of public space, openness and exchange in Chinese cities, especially among cultural players, and that people are pushing back the boundaries. Definitely with the World Expo around the corner: if you could really open up the theme of public space, you’d really have achieved something. We set up a coalition on several levels with the E-Arts festival for the next three years: as international advisor to the festival, as advisor on an exhibition with Chinese artists this year, and as co-curator of E-Arts. In 2010 we will see if we can realise one or two media art and public space projects from the Netherlands during the World Expo in Shanghai.
In China, they take a very different approach to us, with self-supporting spaces that generate income. A basic infrastructure that provides them with sufficient exhibition space to organise activities and host residencies throughout the year, with no extra costs because they have their own hotel and restaurant. The city provided them with the basic infrastructure cost-free. In the Netherlands we are used to having a structural relationship with the state but this is more complicated in China because the state wields more power and influence. The organisation is hoping to be completely self-supporting within four years, which will allow them to operate far more freely. V2_ takes an international approach to national and international exhibitions. We only mentioned V2_ in the first exhibition. After that, we only featured our logo and secured the participation of Dutch and international artists, and organised many shows around specific themes. We haven’t promoted e-culture as a specific sector – which in principle wasn’t our mandate, either. We’ve always tried to see V2_ as representative, as a typically Dutch institution in that it works, thinks and works towards shaping internationalisation.
It is a multi-phase programme. I generally start on a small scale with a party in China to see how the organisation works, who it consists of, how they operate and the network they belong to. In Shanghai, I have now met the owner of the largest LED screen in the world, for instance. They want to use it for cultural projects, so we’re looking into that. Another project, the Oriental Tower, in the centre of Shanghai, will probably host an exhibition next year [2009]. Those are two important landmarks for foreigners in Shanghai, but E-Arts 130
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Entrance NAMOC museum Beijing. Design exhibition and entrance by Lars Spuybroek, sound installation by Edwin van der Heide
Nat Muller is an independent curator and critic. She has held positions as staff curator at V2_, Institute for Unstable Media (Rotterdam) and De Balie, Centre for Culture and Politics (Amsterdam). Her main interests include: the intersections of aesthetics, media and politics; (new) media and art in the Middle East. She has published articles in off- and online media; is a regular contributor for Springerin, Bidoun, and MetropolisM. Her latest projects include: Xeno_Sonic: a series of experimental sound performances from the Middle East (Amsterdam, 2005), DEAF07 (Rotterdam, 2007), the workshop ‘Between a Rock and a Hard Place? Negotiating Artistic Practice, Audiences,
impoverished population and its dwindling infrastructure with an iron fist; sleepy, stable Jordan does as Jordan does, under the yoke of the monarchy. In the Gulf the starry-eyed glitz and construction frenzy – Walhallas of consumer capitalism – are grinding to a halt because of the global credit crunch. Dubai in particular is hard-hit, with vacant hotel rooms and unfinished buildings. Abu Dhabi, the oil-richest Emirate has more or less bailed out Dubai, and continues its own cultural megalomanic branding projects with the development of the Louvre and Guggenheim on Saadiyat Island.
Representation and Collaboration within Local and International Frameworks’ (Amman, 2007). She has curated video screenings for projects and festivals in a.o. Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Berlin, New York, Istanbul, Copenhagen, Grimstad, Lugano, Dubai, Cairo and Beirut. She has taught at the Willem de Kooning Academy (NL), ALBA (Beirut), the Lebanese American University (Beirut), and A.U.D. in Dubai (UAE).
The above illustrates in 250 words how we are usually conditioned to ‘map’ the geo-political territory called ‘The Middle East’, more often than not mediated to us by bad news. I have written elsewhere about the inadequacy of terminology such as ‘the Arab World’, ‘the Middle East’ or ‘MENA’ (Middle East and North Africa) to designate a region heterogeneous in culture, customs, ethnic and socio-political make-up. More often than not, it is Western orientalist convenience that likes to homogenise and lump things together, especially if rss feeds, broadcast media and newspapers keep offering us the same images and narratives time and time again. By corollary, the idea of mapping e-culture and media practices within this region will always have to critically take into account the importance of media as ideological agents of representation, projection, and counter-representation. In addition, material constraints with regard to physical mobility (especially inter-regional), telecommunication monopolies, class and accessibility privileges, state repression, infrastructural constraints and media literacy need to be factored in. More often than not, when listing initiatives and institutions engaged in the utilisation of media (for artistic, educational, political or social purposes),the struggle for these affordances do not feature on the map.
Beyond the Media Mystique: Addressing Media and E-culture in Egypt, Lebanon and Palestine Nat Muller
http://www.labforculture.org/en/labforculture/blogs/10739
If anything, this incomplete and subjective ‘mapping’ outlined below, should first and foremost be read as a selection of the cartographer’s tastes, interests and fieldwork in Palestine, Egypt and Lebanon.
These words are written in late January 2009, while a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas is barely holding after three weeks of bloodshed and destruction in Gaza. In the meanwhile, neighbouring Lebanon is still licking its wounds from the violent sectarian clashes of May 2008, which rekindled fears of a return to the days of civil war (1975-1990). Also here battered South Lebanon and the Beiruti suburbs are still in the process of reconstructing the ruins of the 2006 war with Israel. The list of debris and occupations gets longer, if we consider Iraq.Unfortunately, the dynamics of destruction, disarray and thwarted reconstruction are the ones we are most accustomed to when conjuring up the Middle East. That, or the hard-handedness of weakening dictatorial regimes: Syria is making attempts to scramble out of its diplomatic isolation and its axis-of-evil stigma; Egypt is trying desperately to contain its hungry and 134
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Uneasy relations and the preservation of memory In Lebanon much of contemporary art attempts to excavate the narratives and untold histories of Lebanon’s tortured past of civil strife (1975-1990), and its re-articulation within the present. Well-established artists such as Akram Zaatari, Walid Raad, Tony Chakar, Lamia Joreige, Joanna Hadjithomas, Khalil Joreige and Rabih Mroue have made this the crux of their work. The relationship to media is always uneasy, if not suspicious. Indeed, much of this work actually deconstructs the inadequacy or taintedness of any medium to convey catastrophe, or lays bare the ideological scripts embedded in any media ESSAY
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Beyond the institutional One often hears that Western funders are to invest in capacity building and the development of public institutions. Yet within the complex political reality of the Middle East, where in Lebanon the public sector is as good as non-existent, in Egypt a corrupt and repressive regime has eradicated all trust in public institutions, and in Palestine one cannot even speak of a State, the role of the institutional becomes convoluted. In Egypt, for example, institutions are plagued by bureaucracy, inefficiency, cronyism, over-staffing and corruption. So too are the state-run art academies, where one video projector serves a few hundred students, and foreign guests cannot lecture officially, due to ‘security concerns’ (=censorship). These educational institutions have de facto become state tools for exercising containment. It is due to individuals like media artist and Helwan University Professor Shady Noshokaty,4 that students from modest backgrounds – unable to foot he exorbitant tuition fees of the censor-free private universities such as the American University of Cairo (A.U.C) and the German University in Cairo (G.U.C) – have had some exposure to electronic art and new media practice. With a controversial PhD titled ‘Media Art and Egyptian Identity’ (2007), Noshokaty has worked tirelessly over the past eight years to introduce media arts to his students by ways of seminars and hands-on workshops. Of course all this is organised afterhours, in his own free time, with no support from the institution whatsoever. Moreover, the university has often rebuked Noshokaty for exposing the students to bad influences – such as video art and digital art.
for purposes of perceptual and representational management. Nevertheless, the preservation of memory is a venture that is very much media-related. It is therefore telling that in Beirut, three remarkable initiatives focus on the preservation, cataloguing and digitalisation of media heritage. The Arab Image Foundation,1 founded in Beirut in 1996 by a collective of Lebanese artists and photographers, is a case in point. As a unique project in the Arab world, its objective is the preservation of the photographic heritage of the Middle East and North Africa. In addition to restoring and preserving the images and, digitalising them, a comprehensive online database offers an extraordinary research tool. Similarly Umam D&R,2 founded in 2004 by the Lebanese-German couple Lokman Slim and Monika Borgmann, aims to ‘preserve and revive fading memories of civil violence and war, as well as to provide a platform for public access to, and exchange of, such memories’.Umam’s collection consists of a vast body of materials, ranging from books, newspapers, leaflets, posters, videos and magazines to personal and official documents, narratives and interviews. During the 2006 war with Israel, much of Umam’s collection, which was stored in a hangar in Haret Hreik (the heavily-hit South-Beiruti suburbs) was damaged. The digitalisation of the material thus became very urgent. Slim and Borgmann state that digitalisation and online accessibility are the only way to fully protect the archive. An equally important analysis of memory is to be found in American University of Beirut Professor Zeina Maasri’s ongoing research into the political posters of Lebanon’s political factions during the 15 years of civil war (1975-1990). Since 2004 Maasri has been examining the convergences of visual culture, graphic design, and political ideology from a semiotic and aesthetic perspective. Her research is rooted within a local historic context and understanding of visual iconography and media, and hence offers a novel way of articulating a media theory which is situated. In April of 2008 this research culminated in the exhibition Signs of Conflict: Political Posters of Lebanon’s Civil War (1975-1990), during the Homeworks IV – Forum on Cultural Practices, and the newly-published book Off the Wall: Political Posters of the Lebanese Civil War (I.B. Tauris, 2009). Here too an online database, which will make this wealth of historical material accessible to a larger userbase, is planned.
The latter situation is not uncommon in Egypt. In Alexandria, Egypt’s second largest city, ACAF 5 (Alexandria Contemporary Arts Forum) faces similar hurdles. Founded in 2005 by curator Bassam el Baroni, ACAF has since 2006 been focussing strongly on electronic art and new media, with small exhibitions, presentations, workshops and artist residencies. Due to the small size of the art community and the power of the state-run art academy in Alexandria, ACAF events are often boycotted by academy professors. Nevertheless, Baroni and his team continue their work, in what almost seems like a vacuum. The 2008 Cleotronica: Festival for Media, Art and SocioCulture6 was a highly ambitious project, which comprised a six-month lecture and workshop programme as a run-up to the concluding symposium. With a slew of well-know international media artists, Cleotronica covered topics as broad as net. art, interventions in public space, psycho-geography, tactical media, and design. I could not help but think that the final symposium in May 2008 – where I was invited as a speaker – and the subsequent themes of curating new media art, were somehow lost on the local audience.
Initiatives such as UMAM, D&R, the Arab Image Foundation and Zeina Maasri’s research not only urge us to go back to old(er) media in order to understand present contexts, but also call for a reconceptualisation of what we think of as media, in a country plagued by practically the most expensive telecommunication in the world, narrow bandwidth, politically-driven telecom monopolies, and a political situation which makes any legislation on the part of relating to ICT impossible.
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a significant lack of contextualising new media art within larger art historical and theoretical frameworks, which could possibly also tie into the students own particular locality. ALBA has since 2006 had the plan of setting up a media lab for its students, interested artists and researchers, but the unstable political situation has made it impossible to bring the project to fruition. A frequent visitor and participant in European festivals such as Ars Electronica, EMAF and Transmediale, as well as on international panels on e-culture and DigiArts, Ricardo Mbarkho has done much to introduce new media and electronic art to a generation of Lebanese students, and encourage local exhibitions. The most recent example being the 2008 Lebanon Now: New Media Art exhibition, organised by the Lebanese Artists Association, which featured older and newly commissioned work – much of it interactive – by seven Lebanese media artists.
In the absence of the transparent functioning of state institutions, in Egypt it is mostly up to a handful of individuals and organisations such as ACAF, The Townhouse Gallery of Contemporary Art and Contemporary Image Collective (CIC), all running on foreign funding, to provide media literacy education, editing and software workshops and introductions into media art and theory. The divisions are not always as stark as the two camps – the government scene and the so-called ‘independent’ scene - like to sketch out. In 2008 the Egyptian Ministry of Culture set up a huge exhibition at the Palace of the Arts, called What’s Happening Now showcasing a large amount of contemporary artists engaged in media: from video, to interactive installation; from sound art to photography. Interestingly, quite a few of the artists usually associated with the ‘independent scene’ showed their work in a governmental context for the first time. Likewise, this year’s Cairo Biennial boasted workshops in collaboration with the Spanish embassy, LABoral Centro de Arte (Gijon), and Hangar (Barcelona) on DIY hardware, free software and tactical cartographies.
It would be impossible to write about e-culture in the Middle East without mentioning the work of Lebanese electro-acoustic musician and media artist Tarek Atoui. Moving nomadically between France, Amsterdam, Beirut and Cairo, Atoui has worked with renowned institutions such as IRCAM (Paris), STEIM (where he was artistic director), and performed at major festivals and events such as DEAF, Today’s Art, Transmediale, Art Dubai and Art Miami. His practice oscillates between his own performance work and showing artists in the Middle-East region the possibilities of new technologies. This has been particularly well-designed in the ‘Bytes and Pieces’ workshops, conducted in Lebanon and Egypt, wherein artists are introduced to different types of software and sensor technology – taking the technological limitations of locality into account – and develop an artistic project or tool that relies on these technologies and techniques. Atoui supervises the project from its conceptual phase to its material execution. In his Empty Cans project, he worked with youngsters in Palestinian Refugee camps in Lebanon, and with disenfranchised youth in France and Egypt, using self-developed software which allows live audio-visual manipulation with game console joysticks. Especially in post-2006 Lebanon, these workshops have helped kids articulate their wartime experiences. The Zan Studio14 design collective in Ramallah has undertaken a similar project using pinhole cameras, when working when kids in refugee camps across the West Bank.
The Egyptian case is very specific: in Lebanon and Palestine there are universities and academies doing excellent work under dire conditions. An apt example is the Virtual Gallery at Birzeit University in the West Bank (Palestine), co-founded in 2005 by artist and Professor of Islamic art and architecture, Vera Tamari. The idea for this project came in reaction to lengthily imposed closures and heavy restrictions on travel imposed on the Palestinian population. The Virtual Gallery offers a gateway to work of Palestinian artists in the West-Bank, Gaza, within Israel and the diaspora. In addition to featuring a comprehensive database of Palestinian artworks, which includes biographical information, documentation, articles, photos and video excerpts, the Virtual Gallery profiles monthly a contemporary Palestinian artist in its ‘artist of the month’ section. In addition, the Virtual Gallery offers a credited online course on Palestinian art history (from the 1920s to the present) for Birzeit students. It is Tamari’s wish that the Virtual Gallery develops into an augmented virtual architecture, with a 3-D space wherein curators and artists can collaborate professionally on local, regional and international levels, and hold virtual exhibitions, virtually open to all, in defiance of the curbed access and freedoms of reality. In Lebanon ALBA (Acédemie Libanaise des Beaux-Arts) spearheads new media education, with a cinema/audio-visual department, and a department dedicated to multi-media under the auspices of Ricardo Mbarkho and Sammy Moujaes, respectively a media artist and a designer. Having taught there myself, I was impressed with the infrastructural facilities and technical skills of the students – due to a curriculum offering modules taught by professionals in the field. Yet, there is still 138
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The young, the collective, and their obstacles In Egypt, as well as in Palestine, there is a young generation of artists and media practitioners who have grown weary and suspicious of foreign aid, and funding bodies with dictating policies and double agendas. They prefer to set up their activities independently, and keep their ventures afloat by commercial work and/or by surfing on the infrastructure of ESSAY
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The opening of the exhibition Lebanon Now at LAA Gallery, Beirut, Lebanon (June 2008), work by Ricardo Mbarkho, Digital visuals from Lebanon, a series of digital images rendered from text files
Idioms films studio
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in developing a website for any cause [they] find worthy or interesting and for any speech that is censored or prosecuted in Egypt’. Apart from that they organise the ‘Arab Digital Expression Camps’ 23 for teenagers, and Manal was co-founder of the Egyptian GNU/Linux Users Group (EGLUG) 24 in 2004. Within this context, and with the active participation of Manal and Ala, the first Arab Techies 25 gathering, hosted at the Townhouse Gallery (December 2008), is definitely worth mentioning. Over 20 Arab ICT activists and professionals from across the Arab world met to highlight the social role of techies, with the objective to pull them out of their isolation. Subjects covered were: digital activism, citizen media communities, running community hubs support, training and documentation for activists, artists and social entrepreneurs, and tech savvy activists, artists and media practitioners. The main purpose of this historical gathering was to learn, strengthen ties, and connect peers across the Arab world.
existing institutions and organisations. A prime example of the former, is the Ramallah-based filmmakers collective Idioms,15 founded in 2006 by Yazan Khalili and Mohanad Yaqubi. While Idioms certainly boasts one of the best editing facilities and studio spaces in Ramallah, the members have expressed their concern with issues of professionalisation and developing business and working models befitting the hardships of their local context. In addition, more pragmatic and technical problems such as copyrights, digitalisation and preservation, distribution and online release of material, as well as managerial and sustainability topics, have been operational handicaps. For both young Palestinians and Egyptians constraints in mobility have resulted in very little – to no – inter-regional collaboration and exposure. This while one can discern similar obstacles: the Cairene collective Medrar,16 for example, are hampered by comparable problems. Run by Mohamed Allam and Dia’deen Helmy, both in their mid-twenties and both former students of Shady Noshkaty, they have since 2005 put on an annual alternative video and short film festival accompanied by workshops, encouraging students and very young artists to experiment with video. Their tactic has been one of piggybacking on the facilities of other organisations. The first time I met them in May 2008, Allam was still keeping the collective’s archive in his bedroom, and complained about lack of visibility!
While the above illustrates bottom-up and tactical media approaches, in Beirut the Rootspace 26 collective tries to combine ICT4D with social entrepreneurship, and promote open source, Creative Commons, as well as address intellectual property issues specific to Lebanon in their ‘OpenSesameBarCamp’, 27 the first BarCamp in the Arab world. The discourse Rootspace uses is a dazzling cocktail of hip managerial lingo, creative industry speak and FLOSS terminology, which makes their mission at times confusing, but somehow also typically Lebanese. It is these types of initiatives that sit interestingly within the context of the region, especially when juxtaposed with more traditional ‘free speech’ platforms, such as the Menassat 28 website, which specifically addresses censorship, press freedom and the position of journalists in the Arab world.
Electronic and experimental music has fared better, with wider exposure and professionalisation because of a few strong independent labels. In Cairo Mahmoud Refat’s 100 copies 17 label, virtually created an electronic experimental music scene. The label, founded in 2006, functions as a platform and network for experimental musicians. Similarly in Beirut, labels such as the now obsolete those kids must choke 18 (founded by Charbel Haber), al Maslakh 19 (founded in 2005 by Mazen Kerbaj) and the annual IRTIJAL 20 improv and experimental music festival (founded in 2000 by Mazen Kerbaj and Christine and Sharif Sehnaoui) have been seminal in pushing and strengthening an otherwise fragmented scene.
The limited scope of this article has not allowed for a very meticulous contextualisation. Yet in a time when global politics will have us lulled into the mystique of the general and the generic, any ‘mapping’ involving such a contested geo-political region as the Middle East, will do good to insist on the specific and the particular.
Critical platforms and networks: makers and shakers Web 2.0 applications have solidly conquered the Arab world: facebook is not only widely popular, but has also proven to be the most effective tool to rally people for cultural and other events. Especially in Egypt, the use of facebook is widespread, and has become the prime outlet critiquing Hosni Mubarak’s 28-year old regime. This has led to the subsequent arrest 21 and torture of facebook activists and bloggers, and to parliament debating how to regulate and curtail online media for the sake of ‘order and security’. Well-known Internet activists putting their safety at risk are a young couple simply known as Manal and Ala,22 who host a political blog, advocating free speech. They also offer a ‘drupal based free hosting space and free aid 142
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Endnotes/Links:
1 Arab Image Foundation: http://www.fai.org.lb/.
19 Al Maslakh: http://www.almaslakh.org/.
2 Umam Documentation and Research: http://www.umam-dr.org/.
20 Irtijal: http://www.irtijal.org/.
3 Homeworks IV: http://www.ashkalalwan.org/. 4 Shady Noshokaty: http://www.noshokaty.com/. 5 ACAF: http://www.acafspace.org. 6 Cleotronica: http://www.cleotronica.org/. 7 The Townhouse Gallery: http://www.thetownhousegallery. com/. 8 Contemporary Image Collective: http://www.ciccairo.com/. 9 Cairo Biennial: http://www.cairobiennale.gov.eg/. 10 Virtual Gallery: http://virtualgallery.birzeit.edu/. 11 ALBA: http://www.alba.edu/. 12 Ricardo Mbarkho: http://www.ricardombarkho.com/.
21 A well-known case is that of the ‘April 6’ facebook group, which called in 2008 for a national strike. More than 14 activists were arrested and tortured. 22 Manal and Ala: http://www.manalaa.net/. 23 Arab digital expression camps: http://www.arabdigitalexpression. net/. 24 EGLUG: http://www.eglug.org/. 25 Arab Techies: http://www.arabtechies.net/. 26 Rootspace: http://www.therootspace.org/. 27 Open Sesame BarCamp: http://barcamp.org/ OpenSesame+BarCamp-Lebanon. 28 Menassat: http://www.menassat.com.
13 Tarek Atoui: http://asa-djinnia.com/. 14 Zan Studio: http://www.zanstudio.com/. 15 Idioms Films: http://www.idiomsfilm.com/. 16 Medrar: http://medrar.org/. 17 100 copies: http://www.100copies.com/. 18 Those kids must choke: http://thosekidsmustchoke.com/.
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Alexandre Freire’s Lab under construction, Bonete, Ilha Bela.
Tracing the Trace Bronac Ferran
http://www.boundaryobject.org
Bronac Ferran works part time as Senior Tutor for the Industrial Design Engineering Department at the Royal College of Art in London where among other things she manages theidealaboratory, a space for connecting thinking and research across disciplinary boundaries She is also working freelance as a writer, researcher and consultant and current projects include a cultural mapping of digital culture in Brazil for SICA in the Netherlands and an essay entitled ‘Rethinking Ownership’ for Arts Council England. She is part of the jury for the Transmediale festival in Berlin and organised the Paralelo event in Sao Paulo for the British Council in Spring 2009.
‘Maps do not only represent borders of one’s country with neighbouring ones, but also invisible borders, geopolitical, cultural and society borders that exist inside the country, between countries or in any given community..’.1 This quotation from Michel de Certeau was the starting point for a report commissioned by SICA 2 and published in March 2009, as part of a suite of mapping documents surveying artforms as well as architecture and design in Brazil. Each report attempts an overview in 40-45 pages of the multiple constellations of activities and endeavours that combine to form a particular map seen from the perspective of the authors in each case. For the report on digital culture I invited Brazilian media researcher Felipe Fonseca to be co-author. Felipe brought an in-depth engagement and understanding of a strand of development in Brazil which one might call ‘a networked ecology’. This ecology lies right at the heart of the story we tell, which shows also that empathising with the desire for decentralisation and a distributed and collaborative process of working and interacting is key to an appreciation of important trends in the country. European practice to policy models from the late 1990s were being replicated but then also shifted from centralising and institutional models to decentralised and distributed networks. We noted how micro, network based initiatives (such as metareciclagem,3 which Felipe co-founded) could be seen as spores, or intensive points on a star-map, glittering for a while and, though not always sustained, affecting memory and leaving traces. The act of naming and briefly describing each tactical media spore conveys the sense of a movement. In the report we also point to a series of horizon146
tal connections between parts of what is a highly centralised set of venues and institutes, and the more distributed developments which have been a fairly constant pattern for a number of decades. The full mapping report can be read on the SICA website.
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1 Michel de Certeau, The Practice of Everyday Life. Trans: Richard Nice. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1988. 2 SICA is a portal for Dutch cultural policy for professionals involved in international activities. http://www. sica.nl. 3 Metareciclagem, an open network founded in 2002 in Brazil. http://www.unesco-ci. org/cgi-bin/ifapstories /page cgi?g=Detailed% 2F32.html;d=1 http://rede.metarecicla gem.org/ http://faultlines.waag. org/wp-content/up loads/2007/10/slides _pf4.pdf.
4 The short story ‘Of Exactitude in Science’ may be found in J. L. Borges, J.L. A Universal History of Infamy. London: Allen Lane, 1973. http://www.youtube. com/watch?v=if0YH_ PC02Y. 5 J.G. Ballard, Empire of the Sun. London: Victor Gollancz, 1984. http://www.research pubs.com/Blog/?page _id=150. 6 Introduction to catalogue Brazil – L’art des nouveaux médias en Brésil, dans un approche historique et actuelle: de l’art concret and neo-concret à internet, Paris: Festival @rt Outsiders 2005, 1 Anomalie digital_arts series. 7 Eduardo Kac: ‘Waldermar Cordeiro’s Oeuvre and its Context: a Biographical Note’, ibid. 8 Arlindo Machado: ‘Pioneers of Electronic Art in Brazil’, ibid. 9 Christine Mello: ‘New Media Art: Practices and Contexts in Brazil since the 1990s’, ibid. and http://www magazines.documenta. de/frontend/article. php?IdLanguage =1&NrArticle=229.
‘Never confuse the map with the territory’ This sentiment found in both J. L. Borges 4 and J.G. Ballard 5 was important for us in the process of writing the first report and also this essay. Since completing the text, which like all cultural maps, had to start and end somewhere, we of course have recognised gaps and omissions, and indeed we look at things differently having travelled along a particular road. It reinforces something we felt strongly at the outset. It is an act of paradox to try to limit the description of developments in such a kinetic, emergent and dynamic field (and country) to the act of writing sentences, though the poetics of assemblage which we attempt hopefully takes some people on a journey if they have time to read and reflect on what we have written. An online version that enables further expansion and addition to the exercise using graphic and visual methods would perhaps be an appropriate thing to encourage and develop for the future. The best way to do this kind of exercise is using open and collaborative methods and so the output could also be opened up for change, transformation and recombinant exchange. In generating the narrative, that runs from the 1920s in Brazil through to 2009, considering many marks made on this territory by those who came before, we condensed and compressed many different dialogues and exchanges. We had help from a publication produced in Paris in 2005 to coincide with an exhibition of Brazilian digital media art there, which deserves to be reissued in electronic form for a broader audience. In his introduction to this publication based on the 2005 Outsiders Festival, Emanuel Quinz 6 comments on: ‘… a common thread, the issue of a “Brazilian specificity”, of a constant in the plurality of approaches, of a particular way of appropriating the media and transforming its structures and strategies into artistic material. This specificity could be identified in the “mixture of tropical sensuality and Constructivist rigor” that Eduardo Kac 7 talks about or, in the “critical thrust”, that Arlindo Machado 8 talks of, a result of the confrontation between artistic practices and an extremely difficult social context, or even in the “anthropofagic” attitude mentioned by Christine Mello 9 a kind of cultural recycling strategy.’ This book provides insights for European audiences into the depth and intensity of experimentation with technological communication systems in Brazil over several decades. It points to a desire for ‘wholeness’ – for communication across distanc-
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es, using whatever emergent technologies were at hand at that time – from fax art to mail art to telematics. And it also conveys to those of us who had (wrongly) perceived Brazilian digital culture as a latter day activity (linked to the high profile Cultura Digital initiative 10) that this was (like most things) based on a deep and magnetic well spring of previous action and reaction. One might suggest that the search for wholeness has been fulfilled with the emergence of connective networks that allow many types of relationships to exist and co-exist across geographical and time divides. A natural knowledge economy One aspect of Brazil which we needed to address in the report was the sense of this being a country on the move, a threshold country, a ‘natural knowledge economy’ 11 and an accelerating ‘new economy’ different from those older economies such as the UK and other European countries which appear sometimes to be (in development terms) played out. It is also - for the first time in its history – beginning to reach out and take notice of its Latin American partners. There are several cultural initiatives in train to bring together artists, curators and so on from different Latin American countries. In geographical terms its scale can over-awe European visitors who may have vague notions of the leading cities – often distorted through media or touristic lens – but nothing beyond. The gaps between the under-developed north and north east, the west and the intensely populated south east, with regional disparaties among the largest in the world, is a key cultural factor, particularly when one realises that large-scale migration from north east to urban centres and particularly Sao Paulo is still a critical factor in terms of the Brazilian cultural imaginary. This imaginary of course also relates to forced and voluntary migration from many different countries to Brazil, which has provided the country with its heterogeneity and linguistic/cultural diversity underlying the surface of unified Portuguese. Vilém Flusser, the Czech born media philosopher and writer who lived as an exile in Brazil for 35 years, has written texts based on his experience there which go much further into the complexities behind what at times can be a superficial narrative about the unity – despite the diversity – of Brazilian culture. He touches on how poets and other cultural protagonists in the 1920s creatively exposed the schisms which existed between the formal language of the academy, law etc. in Brazil – an inorganic Portuguese that had been transferred over along with the colonisation process – and the informal vernacular living speech. The latter combined many difference influences drawn from the diverse strands of peoples living in the country (who also according to Flusser would speak Portuguese in the classroom or other formal situations then go home to speak Japanese, German, etc). The nature of this complexity was such that it drew lines between formal and informal encounters and led to a concern for the 148
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working out of language as a system leading directly into the strengthening of engagement of many Brazilian artists with concretism and neo-concretism in poetry and other artforms – through into a close engagement with semiotics and a digital poetics which continues to run through today.
10 http://www.cultura. gov.br/foruns_de_cultura/cultura_digital/ index.html. 12 http://www.bricolabs. net.
11 Brazil: The Natural Knowledge Economy, Report from Demos, July 2008, ed. Kirsten Bound.http://www. demos.co.uk/publications/brazilz.
13 http://pub.descentro. org/fine_young_canni bals_of_brazilian_tac tical_media. 14 http://www.network cultures.org/incom municado/index.php? onder deelID=2& paginaID=7.
A play with language and the ‘poetics of difference’ has been notable in many examples of the networked ecologies I note above, which influence also debates and dialogues on websites such as bricolabs,12 a mailing list of now over 150 people worldwide working in areas related to DIY, open source, free media and independent media research. The bricolabs network was partially founded in Brazil and its ethos and spirit reflects much of the energy and desire for collaborative exchange as well as linguistic subversion/experimentation that characterises a great deal of the online activity among Brazilian based media artists and others working there in the cultural field. The underlying sequences and cosmologies that are perhaps a truer map of a culture as pluralistic and diverse as Brazil are hard, if not impossible, for occasional visitors to penetrate. Dutch researchers and organisers have been in the foreground of directly or indirectly stimulating writing by and about independent media in Brazil. Two examples are David Garcia’s report, ‘Fine Young Cannibals of Brazilian Tactical Media’, written in 2004,13 and a useful chapter on the background to the Cultura Digital experiment and the FLOSS Project, written by Alexandre Friere, Ariel G. Foina and Felipe Fonseca in the Incommunicado Reader.14 This was published in 2005 following the conference of the same name which brought the Brazilian Cultura Digital experience into a useful shared critical context with other developmental initiatives worldwide. In the months following the completion of the SICA mapping document a publication edited by the late Ricardo Rosas and funded by Waag Society (as a subset to its programme of work with the Sarai Institute in Delhi) has finally been published. Paul Keller (who was involved with the commission) commented on his website on 19th January this year:
Digitofagia book
‘Yesterday evening I found an envelope with a copy of the book Digitofagia - net_cultura1.0 by Ricardo Rosas and Giseli Vasconcelos on the stairs to my apartment (thanks for the relay Geert!). This book has been in the making for more than ESSAY
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thoughtful and exploratory way. Freire sets out the agenda for the next decade on Bonete in a systematic and thoughtful way. His aim, though, is to provide for the needs of the ‘seventh generation’, so this is a long-term engagement and investment, balancing out somehow the high speed, highly accelerated work he was previously at the heart of within the Cultura Digital programme, which scaled up too quickly and outran its own energy and resources. His plan for Bonete is to: ‘- finish construction of first lab, supporting horticulture and fruit gardens, sewage and compost treatment systems - install renewable energy infrastructure - install publicly available mesh wifi, voip, fm radio, and vhf tv telecommunications infrastructure
4 years and I had more or less accepted that I would never see it in print. The idea for this book came up in the context of the Waag-Sarai Exchange platform in late 2004/early 2005. The book collects a number of articles and essays that discuss the - very lively - netculture/hactivism scene in Brazil at that time. It is the outcome of a number of discussions we had with people around the projects midiatactica and metareciclagem around that time. Realizing this book was one of the more complicated things I have contributed to over time (transferring money to Brazil is a real nightmare) and when we were ready to go to print we learned that Ricardo, who had spent an enormous amount of energy chasing authors and finding a publisher, had passed away.’ In writing the mapping document, I spoke with Keller last autumn at Ars Electronica who showed me the PDF of the text on his computer - and it is excellent that this key text has now reached the light of day, though its story needs updating. Another publication about digital culture in Brazil - called Apropriacoes Tecnologicas - has also recently been produced, edited by Karla Schuch Brunet at the Federal University of Bahia.15 The Bonete Laboratory: 100 linhas Back in Brazil, some of the original protagonists who were deeply enmeshed in the government programme mentioned above (which was initially influenced also by discussions and debates held at the Next 5 Minutes conferences in Amsterdam) have decided that they need new tactics and strategies to achieve their collective goals. One noteworthy project, mentioned briefly in the mapping document, which deserves a little more space here is the Laboratory being built (literally built, constructed, made by their own physical work) by brothers and coders Alexandre and Fernando Freire. It is located in a place called Bonete, on Ilha Bela, off the Sao Paulo coast. The construction of this Laboratory is well under way, using permaculture methods, and the plan is to make a residency space for visiting researchers (for members of the bricolabs network from other parts of the Southern hemisphere, for example) for exchange, collaborative projects and so on. The venture has been drawing deeply on ecological and sustainable methodologies – with the site providing its own water (from a nearby waterfall) and heat from solar panels, food grown on the land or exchanged/bought from the locals, whose economy is based on fishing and small-scale tourism. There is no desire here to create a modernist space that has little reference to its surrounding locality – rather it draws on the territory and on the social networks that have deep roots in this small community. The purpose of the Lab is primarily to contribute to the context within which it is sited and to develop processes that re-engage the technological with the social/natural world in a 150
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- - - -
And he describes the context: ‘Bonete is a small (100 families) fishing village surrounded by Mata Atlantica forest. It currently only has one school that provides education up to the 4th primary grade, after that youth are encouraged to attend a TV course in the evenings but most either go surf, work in construction or work in the fields or fishing at the sea with their parents. The only connections to the outside world are two public satellite telephones and now a shared wifi connected to a satellite backbone provided by our lab 100linhas.’
15 http://www.vialibre. org.ar/2008/12/05/ apropriacoes-tecno logicas/.
16 http://www.desc entro.org/.
ESSAY
construct expanded living quarters experiment in exchange programmes research everyday tactics of digital culture interact with the local school.’
TRACING THE TRACE
Lessons learnt from the successes and failures of the Cultura Digital project, which though temporary has catalysed much in its wake, have been used to inform many other follow-on projects, not least the work of the members of the DesCentro 16 network, many of whom (like Friere) have gone even more deeply into the ground of development through hands-on, rooted, projects with a radical engagement with ecology and society. Others – like Ricardo Ruiz – continue to influence government policies at regional and trans-regional level and, as outlined more fully in the mapping report, are engaging in a programme of self-organised critical reflection, publishing and research, to diffuse and disseminate elements of what has been discovered through the processes of experimentation. It is clear that network culture is alive and thriving in this constantly moving society where energies are spent seeking to reach across localities and to connect and combine old models (such as the building of media centres with which we are familiar in Europe) into new forms that engage rather than disengage from society and which dig deeper into the terrain of development than many media arts practitioners often tend to do. BRONAC FERRAN
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The lessons from these Brazilian experiments are fascinating ones: the combining of European practice to policy initiatives with a Brazilian tactical/meta/recombining – moving from notions of centring to decentring and to distributed models of exchange – takes us off our familiar maps and into new and rather glorious territories. The social and economic challenges in this country are enormous, and areas just off the corners of any digital culture map will show evidence of great difficulties and personal investment. One story recently on the bricolabs list by Atteqa Malik from Karachi told us that a Brazilian media educationalist who had greatly inspired her had e-mailed to say she was closing her project in Salvador in Bahia in north east Brazil after many years working with little support and few personal resources. Bernard Stiegler the French media philosopher, has spoken of the need for systems of attention and ‘care’17 – and it is clear that as we activate the capacity of networked media to develop our human networks we need also to consider how we might help projects elsewhere to be sustainable or to find ways to help each other beyond temporary observations, mappings and star gazing exercises.
17 http://www.scribd.com/ doc/6990534/Care-ByBernard-Stiegler.
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[Mapping ECulture, eCultuur, E-cultuur or e-culture, Richard Rogers, p23-28] Govcom.org is een Amsterdamse stichting die zich bezighoudt met het maken en hosten van politieke tools voor het web. Een groot deel van de werkzaamheden bestaat uit het in kaart brengen (‘mappen’) van netwerken rond maatschappelijke kwesties, bijvoorbeeld met de zogenaamde IssueCrawler. De naam van de stichting is een samenvoeging van de extensies van drie grote actoren in maatschappelijke debatten online: gov (overheid), com (commerciële sector) en org (maatschappelijke organisaties). Govcom.org werkt op projectbasis en met wisselende teams van vormgevers, researchers, programmeurs en data-analisten. In 2008 vroeg Virtueel Platform aan Govcom.org om de term e-cultuur te mappen. Richard Rogers van Govcom. org zegt dat de manier waarop je de resultaten in kaart wilt brengen, ook de methode van onderzoek bepaalt. ‘We zijn op zoek gegaan naar dingen die ‘cloud-able’ zijn. Deze vorm van onderzoek blijft dicht bij de bron: online digitale data. De tag cloud is verhalend, een digitaal concept dat geen precedent kent. Je zou kunnen stellen dat het een nieuwe manier van informatiecultuur is, dat je het kunt zien als een nieuwe manier van denken over online gegevens. Wij willen dat vertalen in een nieuwe manier van onderzoek. Die e-cultuur map heeft drie componenten: Waar gaat e-cultuur over, wie maakt het en wie (h)erkent de term? We zijn begonnen met een verzameling van Nederlandse organisaties. In dit geval heeft Virtueel Platform er eerst 80 geselecteerd. We hebben deze gecodeerd volgens een schema dat bestond uit keywords van zowel activiteiten als type organisatie. Aan de hand van deze data werden de organisaties uitgebreid tot 250 en zijn we begonnen met tellen om een algemeen beeld te krijgen van het veld, en om te zien of een bepaald type organisatie dit veld domineerde. We zochten op de websites van de organisaties ook naar het begrip e-cultuur. Zo ondervonden we bijvoorbeeld dat het begrip e-cultuur veel gebruikt wordt door fondsen, waaruit je kan concluderen dat het begrip geaccepteerd is in die kringen. De organisaties zelf, daarentegen, gebruiken het woord e-cultuur veel minder vaak. In plaats daarvan gebruiken ze andere termen.’
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[The Patching Zone, Anne Nigten, p104-110]
[The Chinese Dream, Alex Adriaansens, p126-133]
[Embodying Research, STEIM, p111-115]
The Patching Zone is een transdisciplinair laboratorium voor innovatie waar studenten uit de master- en doctoraalfase, post-doctoraalstudenten en professionals met verschillende achtergronden zinvolle content creëren. Initiatiefnemer Anne Nigten vertelt over de ‘Processpatching’-aanpak die The Patching Zone hanteert als de voornaamste methodiek voor creatieve research en ontwikkeling. ‘De aanmeldingen voor de projecten van Patching Zone zijn zeer divers, maar het zijn veelal de betere studenten die het aandurven. Opvallend is dat er grotere belangstelling is vanuit het buitenland dan uit Nederland zelf. De meeste komen uit de kunst- en ontwerpdisciplines en werken dus volgens één van de varianten van praktijk gebaseerd onderzoek. De studenten uit de meer technische en theoretische opleidingen werken op een hele andere manier. Wij hopen dat het besef gaat doordringen dat de rol van kunstenaars en ontwerpers binnen innovatieteams juist ook heel erg interessant is als het om samenwerking gaat, en dat daarin een meerwaarde zit. Op die manier kun je aantonen dat praktijk gebaseerd onderzoek niet altijd een solistische praktijk hoeft te zijn. Het levert interessante nieuwe mogelijkheden op voor kunstenaars en ontwerpers in samenwerkingstrajecten. In de Patching Zone proberen we om praktijk en theorie de hele tijd parallel te laten lopen en elkaar te laten voeden, zodat er meer kennis beschikbaar komt over het werkproces en over de methodieken en mankementen: de ene keer zit je er midden in en de andere keer kijk je vanaf een afstand. Je kan daar heel makkelijk tussen switchen. Het is een van de dingen waaraan ik graag verder zou willen werken – om daar veel bewuster mee om te gaan, zodat je er ook veel meer uit kan halen.’
V2_, instituut voor de instabiele media, ontwikkelde in de afgelopen vijf jaar een reeks van activiteiten in China, variërend van kleinschalige conferenties en debatten tot grootschalige tentoonstellingen. V2_’s netwerk omvat nu bloggers en kunstenaarsinitiatieven, maar ook het Nationaal Museum van China en een aantal universiteiten. Alex Adriaansens vertelt over V2_’s inspanningen in China en hoe die de komende jaren worden voortgezet. ‘De eerste tentoonstelling, vijf jaar geleden, was niet alleen een leuke ontdekking en een goede zoektocht, maar ook het begin van het opzetten van een netwerk in China. Na een paar jaar in China vroegen de partners zich af hoe ze nu tot een groot evenement konden komen, waarin nationaal en internationaal alle partijen vertegenwoordigd waren en waarin kunst, wetenschap en technologie tot uiting kwamen. In dit kader kwam de samenwerking met het National Art Museum of China (NAMOC) tot stand. Samen met een aantal partijen hebben we er in juni 2008 Synthetic Times – Media Art China 2008 georganiseerd, waar in drie weken tijd 100.000 bezoekers op afkwamen. Een ander voorbeeld van succesvolle internationale samenwerking is The Long March, dat vanuit China zelf gepresenteerd werd. Het project centreerde zich rondom de identiteit van China. Hoe kijkt het Westen naar exotisch China? Veel Chinezen nemen die geprojecteerde identiteit over, terwijl de geschiedenis en werkelijkheid anders is. We zetten e-cultuur niet specifiek als sector weg – dat is onze opdracht ook niet. We positioneren V2_ als typisch Nederlandse instelling die vorm geeft aan internationalisering.’
STEIM is een laboratorium voor elektronische muziekperformance en vernieuwende instrumenten. In de beginjaren werkte STEIM exclusief in het domein van de levende elektronische muziek, maar sindsdien is het gegroeid naar een ontwikkelings- en onderzoekscentrum op het gebied van interactie tussen mens en machine in de podiumkunsten en in de e-cultuur. In Europa is een actief debat gaande over praktijk gebaseerd onderzoek. De discussie bestrijkt een breed gebied met aan ene kant de individuele scheppende artiest en aan het andere kant de theoretische wetenschap. In het ene geval gaat het puur om het maken van het kunstwerk zelf en de betekenis die de artiest eraan geeft, het andere uiterste van het spectrum is een verhandeling over methodologie. Voor STEIM is het heel gewoon om praktijk en theorie met elkaar te verbinden: een instrument moet technisch goed zijn maar ook artistiek van hoog niveau. ‘In tegenstelling tot labs die aan universiteiten verbonden zijn hebben we een hoop vrijheid. We hebben ons kunnen ontwikkelen tot ambachtslieden van hoog niveau, en hoeven niet alles wat we doen wetenschappelijk te verantwoorden. Onze kennis komt voort uit het maken van instrumenten, de praktijk. Wij werken graag samen met instituten en krijgen zelfs verzoeken van mensen die hun PhD bij STEIM willen doen. Onze grootste uitdaging is om de kennis uit onze 150 jaarlijkse projecten aan een breder publiek te presenteren. “It’s what you do with it that counts”: Naast publicaties en tentoonstellingen is STEIMs internationale reputatie vooral te danken aan de artiesten die overal optreden en over ons vertellen. We zijn heel benieuwd wat de toekomst gaat brengen, en wie hierbij betrokken gaan worden. Dat zal mede afhangen van hoe we ons werkterrein omschrijven. Zo is ‘de tijd’ bijvoorbeeld een terugkerend thema, zowel in technisch als conceptueel opzicht. Het begrip verwijst naar de interne klok en ritmegevoel van de performer, maar ook naar de reactietijd van interfaces
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en processors. We maken als het ware een nieuw vocabulaire, een tweede taal die afkomstig is uit wetenschap, muziek, filosofie, dans, enzovoorts. We laten de dingen gewoon op ons afkomen, en dan springen we erbovenop.’
[Practice-based Research in the Arts, Henk Borgdorff in gesprek met Anne Helmond, p97-103] Henk Borgdorff is lector Amsterdamse Hogeschool voor de Kunsten. Zijn faculteitsoverstijgende lectoraat Kunsttheorie en onderzoek was in 2002 het eerste van de huidige vijf lectoraten op de Amsterdamse Hogeschool voor de Kunsten (AHK). Lectoraten zijn posities aan kunstopleidingen die tot doel hebben om onderzoek te doen, het onderwijs te vernieuwen, de docenten te professionaliseren en de relatie met de buitenwereld te versterken met de beroepspraktijk en de kunstwereld. ‘Schoenmaker houd je bij de leest’, vinden sommigen. Maar onderzoek hoort wel degelijk tot de kerntaak van de hogeschool, zegt Borgdorff. ‘In het buitenland is het overal booming business om praktijk gebaseerd onderzoek hoog op de agenda te krijgen van het kunstonderwijs, terwijl we in Nederland huiverig zijn dat we teveel universiteitje gaan spelen. Ook de universiteiten zijn sceptisch: die zien hun eigen subsidie slinken. Vanuit de kunstwereld wordt ook wel met argwaan gekeken naar deze ontwikkelingen. Maar feit is dat de kunstpraktijk reflexief is geworden. Je kan niet meer naïef zijn, al was het maar vanwege de druk van buitenaf. Kunstenaars moeten zich positioneren in de samenleving en als het ware rekenschap afleggen aan fondsen en het publiek. Er is ook iets met kunst zelf aan de hand. Niet alleen de conceptuele kunst, maar ook de moderne kunst vanaf eind 19e eeuw heeft een slag gemaakt: kunstenaars moeten niet alleen kunnen produceren, maar ook reflecteren en stil staan bij wat ze doen. Dat vraagt onderzoeksvaardigheden, en die zijn er nog onvoldoende binnen het gebouw van het hoger onderwijs.’
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[Beyond the Media Mystique: Addressing Media and E-culture in Egypt, Lebanon and Palestine, Nat Muller, p134-144]
Wanneer we e-cultuur in het Midden Oosten naar Westerse maatstaven in kaart brengen ontstaat er een incompleet en gekleurd beeld, waarin ‘slecht nieuws’ overheerst. De regio is echter niet zo homogeen als veel media ons willen doen geloven, en onze definities van e-cultuur zijn niet van toepassing op het Midden Oosten. Libanon bijvoorbeeld wordt gekenmerkt door de duurste telecommunicatie in de wereld, zeer beperkte bandbreedte en politiek gedreven telecom monopolies. Als gevolg kunnen ICT initiatieven niet bestaan zonder terug te grijpen op meer traditionele media zoals fotografie en print. De ontwikkeling van publiekgerichte instituten, die e-cultuur in het Midden Oosten zouden kunnen ondersteunen, stuit op veel problemen. Dat is niet in de eerste plaats een geldkwestie, maar een gevolg van de politieke situatie in de verschillende landen. Zo is er in Libanon nauwelijks sprake van een publieke sector en heeft Palestina geen erkende overheid. In Egypte is er vanwege het corrupte en onderdrukkende regime argwaan tegenover grote instellingen. Ook onderwijsinstellingen worden in deze landen door de overheid gecontroleerd. Dat studenten kennis kunnen maken met ‘slechte invloeden van buiten’ (zoals video en digitale kunst) is te danken aan een handjevol kunstenaars en professoren. Het blijft echter vaak bij een kennismaking: onder de politieke omstandigheden kunnen de meeste studenten niet in alle vrijheid aan de slag met nieuwe media en ICT. Jonge kunstenaars en media makers in Egypte en Palestina willen onafhankelijk blijven en zijn steeds wantrouwender tegenover buitenlandse hulporganisaties of fondsen met een dubbele agenda. Liever bekostigen ze hun activiteiten door het maken van commercieel werk. Technische, logistieke en politieke belemmeringen maken dat hun kunst nauwelijks publiek bereikt en dat samenwerking met andere regio’s niet mogelijk is.
MAPPING E-CULTURE
Kansen en mogelijkheden van globalisering en het World Wide Web gaan vooralsnog voorbij aan de politieke context van deze landen: wie oog wil hebben voor e-cultuur in het Midden Oosten moet kijken naar het specifieke en het particuliere. [Tracing the Trace, Bronac Ferran, p145-152]
SICA (Nederlands instituut voor het internationaal cultuurbeleid) en Virtueel Platform vroegen Bronac Ferran om een beschrijving van het Braziliaanse e-cultuur veld te maken waarin organisaties, individuen en uitwisselingsmogelijkheden in kaart worden gebracht. Het volledige rapport werd in maart 2009 gepubliceerd. Brazilië is een land on the move waarin de ‘nieuwe economie’, in vergelijking met oudere economieën, heel snel groeit. Media kunstenaars maken variaties op bestaande modellen (zoals Europese media centra) die beter aansluiten op de plaatselijke cultuur en omgeving. Een goed voorbeeld is het laboratorium in Bonete, een residentie waar onderzoekers uit alle delen van Brazilië kunnen samenwerken en kennis kunnen delen. Het is een zelfvoorzienend lab, met water uit de nabijgelegen waterval, voedsel uit eigen tuin en zonnepanelen voor energie. Het doel van Bonete is om binnen de context van de omgeving projecten te ontwikkelen die technologie en ecologie bijeen brengen. De lessen uit deze experimenten zijn fascinerend: de samenvoeging van de Europese praktijk met de Braziliaanse initiatieven kunnen onze vertrouwde paradigma’s wijzigen en toegang geven tot een nieuw gebied dat nog niet eerder in kaart is gebracht. In geografisch opzicht is de omvang van Brazilië ontzagwekkend. Regio’s kennen enorme verschillen in ontwikkeling en urbanisatiegraad. Het zijn sleutelfactoren voor de mapping van digitale cultuur in het land. Sociale en economische problemen in Brazilië zijn groot, maar juist de gebieden die net buiten de grenzen van de digitale culturele kaart liggen inspireren diegenen die van uitdagingen houden.
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Credits
ILLUSTRATION CREDITS Page 19 Images front and back cover of New Media Culture in Europe, published by De Balie and Virtueel Platform, Amsterdam, 1999 Page 33 Collection museumgoudA, photo by Tom Haartsen, © All rights reserved Page 41 Photo by Stroom, The Hague, © All rights reserved Page 38 Image by Images for the Future, © All rights reserved Page 47 Images The Blob, Ronimo Games, © All rights reserved Page 49, 50, 51, 52 Photos by Daisy Komen, © All rights reserved Page 104, 109, 110 Photos by The Patching Zone, 2008, © All rights reserved Page 113, 115 Photos by Frank Baldé, © All rights reserved Page 119 Photo (top), photographer unknown, collection Spaarnestad photo Photo (bottom) by Wiel van der Randen, collection Spaarnestad
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We would like to thank all the authors for their contribution to this book.
CREATIVE COMMONS Publication: Virtueel Platform 2009 Except where otherwise stated, content in this publication is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 Netherlands license. The user is allowed to copy, distribute, transmit, and to adapt the work, under the following conditions:
This book was made possible due to the support of the Netherlands Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. EDITED BY Cathy Brickwood COPY EDITING Cathy Brickwood Puck de Klerk
A. Attribution: The user must attribute the work in the manner specified by the author or licensor (but not in any way that suggests that they endorse you or your use of the work).
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