across magazine 00 edition
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this is the across magazine 00 editionTRANSCRIPT
This is theAcrossmagazine 00 edition
Thanks to
+ Basque Country University - Euskal Herriko Unibertsitateahttp://congresomigraciones2012.com/en
+ Museo Marítimo Ría de Bilbaowww.museomaritimobilbao.org
+ Atem Books our partner in making this magazine realwww.atembooks.com
+ All artist
Across magazine 00 is presented during the 7th Congress on International Migration in Spain, in Bilbao, on April 13, 2012.
Find us at www.a-cross.euAcross cultural [email protected]
Cover image by Fernando Villena. Untitled, monotype on paper. 40 x 30 cm. 2011.
Across is happy to be in Bilbao this year! It is an important step for the association that Across Day takes place on April 13th, 2012 at the Museo Marìtimo Rìa de Bilbao, as part of the 7th Conference of Interna-tional Migrations in Spain – Human Mobility and Social Diversity” (11th – 13th April) organized by the Basque Country University – Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea.
For this event Across has been collaborating with the independent publishing house Atem Books based in Girona, Spain. The association wants to express its thanks to Atem Books for its support and for publishing this digital magazine on the web, and to Basque Country University for its hospitality.
Across and its foundersAcross is a cultural association founded in February 2011 in Pisa. It developed from dialogue between seven women, professionals in communication, art and new media, working in Italy, Germany and Spain, united by the wish to promote multiculturalism through art.
Across DayInside the name itself live ideas of sharing and exchange. Across’ desire is to move, to understand changes, and to keep under observation and share expe-riences through the universal language of art. Based on these reflections the association has developed a format that functions as a dynamic artistic contai-ner of migrant visions: the Across Day.
The format involves a series of events taking place on one day only and therefo-re being called Across Day. Each edition of Across Day is dedicated to a different artistic medium and a specific theme. Each year Across Day changes theme, city and state. This formula allows Across to become a vessel for artistic experiences with European roots. Works are selected from artists who answer to an open call published on the web and through different cultural networks in the participa-ting cities. Planning Across Day, the association chooses a city to host the event and involves people from this city to collaborate with its realization. The first three choices are: Pisa, Hamburg and Bilbao.
Across Day Pisa 2011The first Across Day took place in Pisa on October 6th, 2011, at CineClub Arsena-le (www.arsenalecinema.it), and it has investigated migration through audiovi-sual media. Numerous video works selected have shown migration reality focusing on social problems through video inquiry (Dorothea Carl In-Between Worlds, Sergio Caro It’s Not Easy, Arianna Mencaroni In confidenza. Ribellarsi alle nuove forme di schia-vitù, Vittorio Gualtieri INSALLAH). Other artists see migration as a way to escape reality, even in very problematic situations, as in the Volterra prison filmed in Mi Interessa Don Chisciotte by Lavinia Baroni. Tobias Sandberger in Flirt / An Ocean Between talks about migration as inextricably linked to ideas of bridging a distan-ce, in Father’s Farewell by Irina Ruppert it is portrayed as part of the path of life.
Furthermore the association has produced 14 broadcast episodes called “Video Across Day”, featuring artists selected for Across Day Pisa. The epi-sodes are available for streaming on the website www.faretv.net (http://www.faretv.net/home/in-evidenza/video-across-day). In addition they have been broadcast over analogue and digital terrestrial frequencies.
We invite you all to enjoy Across activities!
We from Across wanted to share with people our ideas on move-ments, cultures, identities and participation within European countries.
So, we decided to start this dis-covery journey betting on power of creativity in sharing these tar-get points.
And we did it - this year - looking for stories, landscapes, traces in-side a paper, a typeset, a layout.
We called it “myself, elsewhere”: a theme for 2012 Across Day Open Call that could give back crea-tives’ attitudes on migration as cultural node.
ACROSS DAY BILBAO 2012“myself, elsewhere” is a bet
Across magazine 00 is a possible answer.
Daria Palotti
Daria Palotti“Se porto addosso il mio altrove / if I bring along my somewhere else”2012, Pisa
You make me strangerif I bring along my somewhere elsethat thread of blood that cannot ends.
Matteo Nesti
venediger
In the encounter with the other, we are confronted with a wealth of information. Peo-ple are very adept to draw conclusions about a person in seconds’ time due to visual information they are presen-ted with. This is a very fast and most of the time uncons-cious process. Especially with clothing, but also with hairs-tyle, make-up, bags, hats, sun-glasses and so on, we create our own self and place it in a particular context. In this way statements about our social class, as well as about religion, sexuality, leisure activities, profession, political affiliations and much more are being made.
The face as a major carrier of a person’s personality provides information about the current mood, the character, age, life experience to date and so on.
The large-format black and white drawings invite the viewer to consciously expe-rience this process and mirror themselves in the depicted people.
To establish a relation bet-ween a drawing and himself depends on the viewer. Ulti-mately it is up to him to find a place for the figure.
Since the beginning of the existence of life on planet earth, the main feature of its development has been linked to the ability to adapt to the environment. De-pending on the success, some species have continued to evolve and others have disappeared, the ability to move in search of resources has been in some cases a survival factor.
Mobility still determines much of the existence of life on the planet, inclu-ding human life; this ability conditions both nomadic people that changes settlements with the season and the needs of their livestock, as “modern” society in which mobility, communica-tion and management of resources is fundamental to their existence.
The development of my artistic work has always been linked to the vital moment in which I’ve found myself. Throughout my life I have alternating periods of residence between city and countryside, this has led to incorporate and to develop different concepts and visual languages to the creative pro-cess, contrasting and complementing each other in such a way that has led to new experiments and searches within the field of art.
A very important part of the work ari-ses from photographs taken in the U.S., Puerto Rico, France, Ireland, Norway and Spain, where there is a study of the light over and through bodies in space, to
serve as background or starting point for developing a pictorial work, or as a work itself. Computer manipulation of photographs will result in the work itself and will do the rest.The realization of photography in this series involves the mobility of loca-tions to search resources such as a type of light, landforms, plants or natural environments necessary for the deve-lopment of my artistic work, such as interaction with the culture of each en-vironment; transforming over the years that searching and travels involved in a indissoluble part of my work.
A clear example of this concept, are two of the projects in which I am immersed in recent years: “A look at the Forge of Vulcan” and “Adapt yourself: Extreme conditions. Extreme solutions”. For which, during the months of November and December 2009 and January 2010 and spring 2011, I conducted a series of photo shoots in extreme environments such as the Desert of Arizona, Nevada and Utah, and California’s forests and Wyoming, with temperatures between 35 ° C and - 28 ° C.
Facing climatic conditions, geological and physical demanding at the time to develop my work, I began more aware of the importance of mobility and inte-raction with the environment as a ge-nerator of ideas and situations that may come to influence the creative process.
Caroline Gaedechens
Caroline Gaedechens (drawings), Choleda Jasdany (text collaboration)« I still walk in this house »2012, Hamburg
[email protected]@yahoo.de
www.carolinegaedechens.comhttp://thisroomthisfloor.tumblr.com
& Choleda Jasdany
In this house
i carry my legsunder my armsare these stairsthese are not the stairsi still walk in this house
Never find my way
i can open my eyesand never find my way
i can read the mapand never find it
Home
Home...hard to know what it is if you never had oneHome...I can’t say where it is but I know I’m going homeThat’s where the heart isThis is the way I ever felt. I don’t deny my roots, my family, my home-town. I feel strong the bond, I can feel what they gave me, what they took away from me, all the people together, cultures and places that made me what I am. But it is not where you are and the people you are with that make you feel home, where “home”, I mean, is the place where you feel good and safe. Maybe “lair” or “nest” are the words that express that in a better way.I felt lonely in a dark place, few kilometers from where I live and per-fectly in tune with people and smells of a shanck on the seaside close to Avana. I fought with my neighbours and got friend with a Chinese man who used to play tai chi at sunrise under the Macao’s lighthouse.I don’t even say Hi to some of my fellows, but I never forget to call some of my friends, who live, all over this little big world.I don’t have the concept of “hometown”, “flag”, “nation”. I don’t unders-tand people who believe its race is better, its religion, its own culture.I personally believe that everybody tries to live its life in the better way possible, trying to face the hard job of living, without getting hurt.There is no apprenticeship, there is no one that can show you the right way, there are no true solutions. You, me, us, all, simply, we try. And even if you built your life in ten squared kilometres or going all over the world, I do not think of you as a genius or a fool.We all are here, on a speck of dust of a huge universe, and even if, everyday politics and media try to convince me that all that lines drawn on the maps, that they call borders, can really bound something. No bor-der has ever stop people, even less the single one, even less the ideas.
Resist the migration is like trying to stop the air: you waste a lot of ener-gy and you don’t even stop it for a second. Maybe, would be better if we use this energy to improve travels, exchange of ideas and people.
Because we all are different, and we all know that. We, luckly, are diffe-rent in languages, traditions and colours. And diversity is our wealth. This is not rhetoric, it is statistic:When different intelligences and personalities meet is where the best ideas born.When there is much genetic diversità is where the cutest and most resistano people born.When a lot of cultures meet is where big civilities born.When you stop trying to stop the air, the sails set and the air takes you wherever you want.Even at home.
Valerio [email protected]
www.valeriocoscetti.com
Valerio Coscetti was born in Pontedera, near Pisa, in 1973 and lives in Calcinaia. His passion for writing, and art in general, ranges from wri-ting stories and poetry to compositions of music and lyrics for songs. The desire to write freely led him to try a larger project, where he found his true size. Adattarsi all’ambiente (Adapting themselves to the environment) is his first novel. An intricate affair of power and corruption is hidden behind the blue eyes of a fascinating biologist, that breaks into the normal and boring life of a sales agent. A young man that lives alone in a little village in Tuscany, with a normal job, a girlfriend that asks for attention and a lot of desires to satisfy, but with no money to afford them. A realistic story where an ordinary man faces an incredible si-tuation. A dangerous game in which to survive you have to adapt yourself.
“The world belongs to people who understand it, not to those who want to change it.”
ACROSS DAY HAMBURGFollowing Across Day Pisa on October, 6th 2011 and Across Day Bilbao on April, 13th 2012 the Across As-sociation is planning to organize another cultural event in the city of Hamburg. Across Day Hamburg will presumably take place in spring 2013. After invi-ting video artists to participate in Pisa and illustrators and graphic artists to present their work in Bilbao, Across Day Hamburg will focus on photography. Once again the association invites artists from the four European cities Pisa, Bilbao, Girona and Ham-burg to hand in their works on the topic of migration as a cultural exchange. From all the entries a com-mittee will select artworks that subsequently will be shown during an exhibition in Hamburg. In addition to the exhibition of the photographs, there will be various events, among others photography work-shops for students, panel discussions and the publi-cation of a magazine. The association is planning to collaborate with a local art gallery and/or local artist collectives for Across Day Hamburg. This way the Across Association will be able to integrate the event into the cultural scene of the city of Hamburg more easily. Moreover it will approach its goal to inspire a
vivid exchange between artists from the collabora-ting cities, their cultures, artistic expressions and the-refore become a part of cultural migration itself.
One photographer that has already shown her work to the Across audience is Hamburg-based Silke Sch-midt. In her photo-series “Carpe Diem – Prescribed by the State” Schmidt has dealt with the life of unac-companied juvenile refugees that have fled to Ger-many without any adult guardians. Those young people live in shared apartments and have a life that is dominated by uncertainty and a constant threat of deportation. In her series Schmidt has sensitively and carefully tried to portray the young people's wishes associated with a new beginning in Germany: What do they hope to realize? And what is important for them? Is there any concrete idea or is the belief in a prospect of a state of tolerance ever possible? The image design addresses their needs. In the portraits, the wishes expressed by these youth and the asso-ciated feelings are metaphorically represented. See portfolio.
Two shots from the portfolio “Carpe Diem – Prescri-bed by the State” accompanied by short Interviews (both names have been changed):
Zahir, Bangladesch
Germany? I never heard of it in Bangladesh. And then I was there. In Ham-burg, all alone. I have been here for four years now and the once fo-reign has become my home. In Germany one can live free and safe and I have found many good friends here. I feel comfortable here. When I
could wish for something it would be this: I want to stay here fore-ver. My status is that I am only being tolerated here. But I hope that I will get a permanent residency and a work permit once I finish school. I don’t need millions on my bank account to be happy. I only want to have a normal life: I want to work, have a family and may-be someday I can afford an own house with a small garden. I would also like to stay in Hamburg. I really like the city, even though if it is always cold here.
Moussa, Guinea-Conakry
When I lived in Africa I spend the whole day outside tinkering with something. Together with my dad, my brother, friends and neigh-bors I have built entire huts and furniture, and fixed roofs when they were damaged. It is common in to do everything by yourself. Because there is no money but foremost because it is so much fun. You are always surrounded by people and together you try to figure out how to improve things. When in the end the roof is fixed you are
proud to have accomplished your goal. Together. When I came to Germany all the streets were empty. Nobody was building furniture. Here you buy everything. And throw it away immediately once it is broken. I don’t understand why one would give up the fun of fixing stuff together with friends. Right now I am looking for an appren-ticeship as a craftsman. I already learned the practical side of the work in Africa. I hope to learn the theory soon in Germany.
See entire portfolio here: www.photo-blick.de
Moussa, Guinea-Conakry
The University Master’s Degree in Migrations: Knowing about and managing migratory processes has its origin in the one-year University Specialist in Migrations postgraduate course which was taught for five consecutive years, from 2002 to 2007 at the UVP/EHU’s Faculty of Social Sciences and Communication.
Building the experience gained over those years and taking advantage of the universi-ty change process promoted by the Bologna Accords, the new Master’s Degree course has been designed within the Postgraduate Official University Studies Framework. The Master’s Degree represents a new phase in the process of designing quality university courses to provide a firm base of knowledge about the phenomenon of migration and useful tools for working in this sphere.The course sets out to provide a new and more professional and practical approach to the university education which we offer, in three ways:
- By taking as our basis the idea of management, both outwards (international ma-nagement of flows and co-operation) and inwards (management of the cultural diversity produced within receiving societies).
- By using the resources which have been made available by international experts in the field, and the support provided by the international Organization for Migration.
- By entering into work experience agreements with national and international agencies, universities, administrative authorities and organizations and associations.
PRESENTATION
AIMS
General.- To prepare professionals to work in the sphere of planning and managing Inter-national migratory movements, while they study together in an environment of growing cultural Diversity. The guiding principles of the course will be a sound academic founda-tion, a thorough scientific approach and professional excellence in applying the knowled-ge gained. Specific.:
1. To introduce student to knowing about the phenomenon of migration and its effects on society. The course will offer students a multidisciplinary education, with an historical perspective and a broad view of the field of study.
EVALUATION PROCEDURES
Each subject shall be evaluated separately and will have a result in order to complete an university student record. That record will include the work experience report and the end-of- course project.
2. To provide a knowledge of the basis tools of managing both migratory flows and cultural diversity, in order to give the studies a practical, working emphasis.3. To make students skilled in using those tools, by selecting a diversity of spheres of action and offering periods at, and working experience in, universities, agencies, associations, institutions and administrative authorities.
Compulsory subjects: Each compulsory subject will have its own evaluation sys-tem which will be established by the responsible lecturer. The procedure will be set and determined at the beginning of the subject.
Optional subjects: At the end of the module the student will hand in a reflexive and creative project for each chosen subject concerning any topic discussed in the lecture room. There will be a maximum of 3 or 4 projects. In case of choosing the in-vestigation subject, the project will consist in the elaboration of a pre-project (inclu-ding the theme, objectives, theory framework and methodology)
Work experience: To evaluate the work experience period in organizations or insti-tutions, the student will elaborate a report.
METHODOLOGY
The Master’s Degree course, 60 ECTS credits, is structured around four modules each of which aims to start from a basic common level and guide the student step by step in crea-ting a profile for him- or herself that reflects his or her interests and plans for the future.
While the subjects of the Module I aim to provide all the students with a Basic and com-mon knowledge of the migratory phenomenon itself, the subjects of Module II aim to give the students an opportunity to choose specific subjects to study within the wide-ranging field of migratory processes and their social implications. Both modules are given in face to face classes which can be seminars, theoretical and practical classes.Module III provides continuity with the previous ones, by enabling the student to develop the job and/or professional profile that interests him or her most. In this module the stu-dent must gain experience in the field in which he or she wishes to specialize.In Module IV the student writes and original and personal paper on the subject-matter and within the sphere chosen Turing the earlier process in order to demonstrate the abili-ties, knowledge and skills acquired during the course.
