August 4- 24, 2008
DIGITAL ART PROJECT RESIDENCY

(Application Deadline: April 4, 2008)

CARSTEN NICOLAI, visual artist

Carsten Nicolai, born 1965 in Germany Karl-Marx-Stadt, is part of an artist generation who works intensively in the transitional area between art and science. As a visual artist Nicolai seeks to overcome the separation of the sensual perceptions of man by making scientific phenomenons like sound and light frequenzies perceivable for both eyes and ears. His installations have a minimalistic aestehtic that by its elegance and consistency is highly intriguing.

Further aspects of his works consider the integration of chance as well as the inspection of the interchanging relations of micro and macro structures. Special interest he also puts on so-called self-organizing processes, which for example occur when snow crystals develop.

"In my opinion the emphasis of self-generating processes is a reaction to the claim to plan everything. Many of my works underlie a rule and introduce a model as organiszing sceme to recognize chaotic movements. I am interested in both moments, they lie really close together. (...) A major impact on my work had the article Active mutations of self-reproducing networks, machines and tapes (1996) by Takashi Ikegami and Takashi Hashimoto. They wrote about loop strcutures and self-organisation. Loops get ceated by mathematical processes whose results at the same time are the source for new calculations. By constant re-calculating mistakes occur, build up changing patterns and become the origin of new intelligent processes." (CN)

After his participation in important international exhibitions like documenta X and the 49th and 50th Venice Biennal, Nicolai's works were shown in two comprehensive solo exhibitions at Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt, Germany (anti reflex) and at Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin, Germany (syn chron) in 2005. In 2007 he will have further extensive shows in Hamburg, Zurich and New York.

For several years now Carsten Nicolai experiments with sound under the pseudonym noto to create his own code of signs, acoustic and visual symbols. As alva noto he leads those experiments into the field of electronic music.

Among others, Nicolai already performed as alva noto at Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York, at San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, at Centre Pompidou in Paris, at Kunsthaus Graz and at Tate Modern in London. Additionally he has projects with diverse artists such as Ryoji Ikeda (cyclo.), Mika Vainio or Thomas Knak (opto); recently he toured with Ryuichi Sakamoto through Europe, Australia and Asia.

RESIDENCY STATEMENT

I look forward to meeting and working with artists who have experience with digitally produced visuals. The emphasis of the residency will be on mutually exploring possibilities of the interplay of video and sound, therein especially considering and relying on the experience and work of the Associates.

During the residency, I will be working on an electronic music project with William Brasinski (www.mmlxii.com). I would like to invite the Associates to work with William and me to develop a visual score for the piece. I hope this will result in the interplay of this musical project with visuals, optionally presented in a performance at the end of the residency.

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

Applicants interested in participating in develop a visual score for this piece should be experienced in processing of real-time visualization, max / msp / jitter, C++ or similar.

They should submit a resume, work examples and a short letter of intent.

* For more information on Carsten Nicolai please visit www.alvanoto.com or www.carstennicolai.de