Flash is the first contemporary art and music project presented by the Bifrons Foundation on 9 DVD's, in collaboration with the BALTIC, Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead (UK). Visual artists from home and abroad are collaborating with contemporary composers and musicians.
Maarten Altena/Ger van Elk, Louis Andriessen/Marijke van Warmerdam, Eric Calmes/Henk Peeters, Roderik de Man/Maura Biava, Chiel Meijering/Jaap Kroneman, Maarten van Norden/Annette Messanger, Martijn Padding/J.C. Ruggirello, Paul Termos/Ansuya Blom, Vodershow/Liza May Post
The DVD, which stands for Digital Versatile Disc, is a new high-quality disc on which music and images can be recorded in optimal form. Flash seeks a dynamic short-circuit between image and music, between artists from different disciplines, and between strictly segregated circuits with their own public. Contemporary composers and musicians gain a platform in an art context, and visual artists are offered a platform within the music circuit. Instead of making a video clip the Bifrons Foundation decided to have two autonomous art pieces made every time by one composer and one visual artist. In video clips the visual part is no more than an illustration for the music and the other way around, like in the movies. In ‘Flash’ both disciplines have been brought together equally powerful. It concerns two autonomous disciplines; if the music is turned off the image stays and if you switch off the image, you will hear an independent music piece.Together they form the third art piece, i.e. the ‘Flash’-DVD of the Bifrons Foundation. Thora Johansen says: "One cannot speak anymore about the spectator or the listener, but most of all about a receiver." Diversity was one of the goals the Bifrons aimed at. There are compositions made by Louis Andriessen as well as DJ music by the Vodershow from Glasgow. In the visual sense there are contributions by Marijke van Warmerdam, Ansuya Blom as well as by the Nul -artist Henk Peeters who never made a video work before. "Some films are cut on the rhythm of the music, but also the images which have not been rhythmically edited, react in one way or the other on the recorded sound." Not only in the way of development but also in technical sense ‘Flash’ has been innovating. The art pieces have been issued on DVD, which enables one to distribute the pieces to different venues, like e.g. concert halls, in which also live concerts will be held. In this way we create a platform for composers within the art context and we push visual artists into music circuits.
Flash is een initiatief van Bifrons Stichting, Amsterdam, in samenwerking met BALTIC Centre for contemporary art, Gateshead, UK and is supported by: Ministry of Foreign Affairs, NL; Ministry of Education, Culture and Welfare, NL; Mondriaan Foundation, NL; VSB Fonds, NL; British Council, NL; Caleidoscoop, European Community, B; PIMC, B; EMI, NL, Fonds voor de Scheppende Toonkunst, Amsterdam, Sony, Nederland.
