23/4/2002
Vectorial Elevation
Artium, Vitoria-Gasteiz
The largest installation of interactive art in the world, 'Vectorial Elevation' by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, will be presented for the first time in Europe at the inauguration of the Basque Museum of Contemporary Art, Artium.
The largest installation of interactive art in
the world, Vectorial Elevation by Rafael
Lozano-Hemmer, will be presented for the
first time in Europe at the inauguration of
the Basque Museum of Contemporary Art,
ARTIUM.
As of April 22, 2002, anyone who logs onto
the website www.alzado.net will be able to
design enormous light sculptures in the sky
over Vitoria, using 18 robotic searchlights placed around
the Museum's central Square. The beams of light will be
visible at a distance of 15 kilometres; every six seconds a
new design will be displayed as it arrives from the Internet.
The designs may include participants' names and
dedications, which will be shown on a large screen in the
Square.
The Web site will include a virtual model of the ARTIUM
Square where the participants will be able to direct the
searchlights and view the dome of light from any angle.
The site will also present a live broadcast from three video
cameras placed around the Square and on a tower of Saint
Mary's Cathedral. A web page will be made automatically
to record the design of each participant.
The installation Vectorial Elevation was presented for the
first time at the Zócalo Plaza in Mexico City for the year
2000 celebrations. More than 800,000 people from 89
countries visited the web site in a two-week period, and
the exhibition at ARTIUM is expected to exceed that
figure. The piece has received a number of prestigious
electronic art awards such as the Golden Nica at the Prix
Ars Electronica in Austria, a distinction at the SFMOMA
Webby Awards in San Francisco and an Excellence Prize at
the CG Arts Media Art Festival in Tokyo.
Vectorial Elevation is the work of the Mexican-Canadian
artist Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, who is assisted by a dozen
programmers, designers and technicians from five
countries. Lozano-Hemmer's speciality, which he calls
relational architecture, aims to transform urban spaces
with new interactive technologies that allow the public to
form an integral part of the artwork.
The piece is sponsored by Telefónica, Dragados y Construcciones and Lagunketa,
and it will be in operation every day from April 24 to May 5, 2002 from dusk
to dawn (9 PM to 6 AM).
OFFICIAL OPENING: 26th of April - the King Don Juan Carlos will preside the
ceremony.
Artium
Basque Museum of Contemporary Art
24, Francia Street 01002
Vitoria-Gasteiz
Tel 945 209000
Fax: 945 209049