Re: STREB (also pretty long)

Nick Rothwell (nick@cassiel.com)
Sun, 28 Dec 1997 15:45:48 +0000

>Could we imagine a piece where an inovative device or technique is, let us
>say, used in an artistic way or context.?

Sure. To suggest that innovative technology/technique is not usable in an
artistic context is to be as equally blinkered as those who adopt
technology in place of artistic content.

>can medium usurp message?

Now we're getting into deeper water. I believe that the most powerful
pieces of art are those which encourage the audience to bring something to
the experience. An enlightened audience might perceive (and so create) art
from the medium rather than the content. But to assume such as a
practitioner is too easy, and must certainly lead to complacency and bad
quality work in the end.

>Not that I lied, but I tried to bring
>in more crowd by spinning the "hype" which all by itself hangs around this
>stuff.

I do this as well, even though I don't like doing so. It's a case of saying
"I'm using such-and-such because ..." - well, the "because" is because it
gets journalists interested because it's easy to categorise and write about.

>I am referring mostly to the countries I know: Germany, Holland, Belgium,
>Austria.

I've actually seen very little dance work from Germany and Austria, but am
more familiar with (and fond of) Dutch and Belgian work. If I were to
name-drop, I'd have to say I adore Michele Noiret's work, that of Alain
Platel, and that of Maria Voortman. As you say, this material is
well-funded (and often needs to be: the last piece I saw of Platel's used a
working dodgem car track on stage). The downside of this, judging from what
I hear from contacts in the Belgian scene, is that the funding process is
opaque and very judgemental.

Nick Rothwell, CASSIEL contemporary dance projects
http://www.cassiel.com music synthesis and control

years, passing by, VCO, VCF, and again, and again