Landart plein air “Between Sand and Foam” – Between the Everyday and the Ephemera

The text focuses on the realization of the plein air as a part of a larger project (ARTguments) implemented with the financial support of the Research Fund of Sofia University. The art form “landart” was chosen not by chance. It is characteristic for artists to “argue”, to transform their ephemeral visual sensations into art installations – materialized in nature, digitally stored emotional provocations, which also rely on the “co-authorship” of the elements. The pictorial focus is on “unnecessary”, discarded, marginalized objects, without utilitarian application, but discovered and recognized as necessary in the process of creating a work of art. This is the so called by Juri Lotman process of renaming “external” to the artistic installation elements in which they “invade” from the outside world implanting themselves in the imaginary space of the visual work. The art event aims to unite different artists as a way of expression, to gather and impose diverse, even dissimilar concepts.The forum realizes conceptual works by traditional artists, materializes the artistic reaction viewed from different angles, meets a random audience with non-randomly created installations, and last but not least, embodies different works as different visual emotion. The concept of the plein air is subordinated to the philosophy of Khalil Gibran and in particular to his sentences from the eponymous edition „Sand and Foam“:“I am forever walking upon these shores, Between the sand and the foam, The high tide will erase my foot prints,And the wind will blow away the foam...”

MEMORI KOLEKTIF, REKONSTRUKSI, DAN REVITALISASI: STUDI KASUS WAYANG CECAK

Wayang Cecak is a Malay oral traditions which is almost critically extinc. This puppet remains only in the memories collective. The problem is how to preserve wayang cecak from extinction? The aim is to preserve the wayang's vitality from extinction. The method is done by reconstructing and revitalizing of wayang cecak becomes a living tradition. This qualitative research used an oral literary approach with primary sources of wayang cecak with text and context analysis. The method used literature study and field study technic observations were carried out with in-depth interviews with traditional artists, the representative community, and stakeholders. According to the eye-witnesses, wayang cecak has its unique structures. Reconstruction of wayang cecak involved the researcher, village leader, and traditional artists. Revitalization were carried out by performing wayang cecak in the community. This revitalization has a positive impact the wayang cecak increase their vitality.Wayang cecak merupakan sastra lisan Melayu yang hampir punah dan hanya hidup dalam ingatan ma-syarakat. Permasalahan penelitian ini ialah bagaimana cara melindungi wayang cecak dari kepunahan? Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk melindungi dan meningkatkan daya hidup wayang itu dari kepunahan. Caranya dengan merekonstruksi dan merevitalisasinya sehingga wayang itu menjadi sebuah tradisi yang hidup kembali. Penelitian kualitatif ini menggunakan pendekatan sastra lisan dengan analisis teks dan konteks. Sumber data berupa data primer wayang cecak. Metode yang digunakan yakni studi pus-taka dan studi lapangan dengan teknik observasi melalui wawancara mendalam dengan seniman pelaku tradisi, tetua adat, dan para pengambil kebijakan. Dari hasil penelitian diketahui bahwa pewaris aktif sudah tidak ada. Pertunjukan wayang cecak mempunyai struktur yang khas dalam pertun-jukannya. Rekonstruksi pertunjukan wayang cecak dilakukan bersama peneliti, tetua adat, dan seniman pemilik tradisi di Pulau Penyengat. Dari rekonstruksi dilakukan revitalisasi dengan mempertunjukkan wayang cecak dalam masyarakatnya. Revitalisasi ini berdampak positif, yakni meningkatnya daya hi-dup wayang cecak.

Art through the Colors of Graffiti: From the Perspective of the Chromatic Structure

Graffiti is a general term that describes inscriptions on a wall, a practice with ancient origins, ranging from simple drawings and writings to elaborate pictorial representations. Nowadays, the term graffiti commonly describes the street art dedicated to wall paintings, which raises complex questions, including sociological, legal, political and aesthetic issues. Here we examine the aesthetics of graffiti colors by quantitatively characterizing and comparing their chromatic structure to that of traditional paintings in museums and natural scenes obtained by hyperspectral imaging. Two hundred twenty-eight photos of graffiti were taken in the city of São Paulo, Brazil. The colors of graffiti were represented in a color space and characterized by several statistical parameters. We found that graffiti have chromatic structures similar to those of traditional paintings, namely their preferred colors, distribution, and balance. In particular, they have color gamuts with the same degree of elongation, revealing a tendency for combining similar colors in the same proportions. Like more traditional artists, the preferred colors are close to the yellow–blue axis of color space, suggesting that graffiti artists’ color choices also mimic those of the natural world. Even so, graffiti tend to have larger color gamuts due to the availability of a new generation of synthetic pigments, resulting in a greater freedom in color choice. A complementary analysis of graffiti from other countries supports the global generalization of these findings. By sharing their color structures with those of paintings, graffiti contribute to bringing art to the cities.

Junebug Productions and Roadside Theater

Junebug/Jack is a joint theatrical production of Junebug Productions of New Orleans and the Roadside Theater of Whitesburg, Kentucky, professional, community-based theaters whose mission is to speak for the historically marginalized and exploited communities in which they are located. Junebug Productions was founded in 1963 under the name Southern Free Theater as part of the cultural wing of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), the influential civil rights organization. Roadside Theater was founded in 1975 as a component of Appalshop, a media production company in the Kentucky coalfields that was begun as a youth job-training program in film and a way for Appalachian people to take control of their own story. Junebug and Roadside began performing in each other’s communities in response to an increase in Ku Klux Klan activity in 1981. The companies have also partnered with grassroots theatrical groups such as Teatro Pregones from the Bronx (1993–2018) and, independently, with traditional artists from Native American communities and theater ensembles from the Czech Republic and elsewhere....

Analisa Semiotik Terhadap Ragam Hias Rumah di Daerah Between Two Gates, Kampung Alun-Alun, Kotagede

Indonesia consists of diverse cultures that have interesting backgrounds. One of them is Javanese culture which until now can be seen through one of them is decorative ornaments from several old houses in the Kotagede area of Jogjakarta. Traditional artists express aesthetic values and communicate messages through the design of house ornaments. This research attempts to read the message implied through home decoration in Kotagede, Jogjakarta with the semiotic method. When traditional artists make decorative ornaments, it seems he is giving a message through visual images or carving. This message seems to originate from their view of life as a result of their interaction with the environment which gives them a way to not only survive but also develop.

Research on Field Reconstruction and Community Design of Living Settlements—An Example of Repairing a Fish Stove in the Hua-Zhai Settlement on Wang-An Island, Taiwan

The Hua-Zhai Ancient Settlement is located in Wang-An Township, Peng-Hu County, Taiwan. The Ministry of Culture of the Taiwanese government announced that the Wang-An Hua-Zhai Ancient Settlement had been registered as an essential settlement construction due to the integrity of the settlement and the migration history of the Hans. Afterward, the housing lacked maintenance and was destroyed due to the huge population migration. After years of restoration of the housing, the activation plan was first launched in 2015. The initial idea was to build a settlement brand, but this failed due to difficulties in promotion. Even though the executive team reflected on the specific layout of the settlement space and the problem was apparent, the team had no idea where to restart. Therefore, the team decided to live in the settlement to learn about local living and explore possible issues. It was not until the start of the “fish stove repair” that the settlement changed; that is, the original disorganized settlement network became clear. This research analyzes the social network construction and the expansion benefits involved in the fish stove repair process to design the implementation rules of designing a settlement-based community. Based on participatory observation and interviews with the main actors who participated in the rehabilitation operations, the analysis results indicated that the community design method based on a selected site over a long period of time could largely increase the opportunity of encountering issues, finding appropriate disturbances in the cultural context and habits, and connecting these issues with real life values. Besides, this also encourages prioritizing local issues, helping traditional artists increase the value of their roles, and enabling them to be treated equally at the end of knowledge acquisition. The research case includes a breakthrough in the limitations of spatial activation after the restoration of the ancient settlement that Taiwanese scholars have always been focused on and continues the sentimental memory of the residents. The results of the study can be used as a reference for the future activation of the settlement.

Acting, Movements, and the Three Important Components Configuration in Marginalizing Randai as an Entertainment Show

The purpose of this research is to reveal how marginalized Randai as a performing art in the life of Minangkabau’s people and their social culture in West Sumatra. This research is based on qualitative methodology with a descriptive method; this research is focused on the marginalization of Randai as the consequences of its lack of acting techniques, movement, and configuration. This research involved traditional artists, dance and Randai artists, indigenous elites, and the people managing the show. Data collection using live monitoring on the Randai performance and doing many interviews related to Randai as an art performance in Minangkabau’s people’s life. Besides that, the data also collected from documentary and literature studies. Data analysis was done using the ethnography method. The results showed that, in reality, the weakness of the Randai show is located on the acting, movement, and its configuration. The weakness of those three key elements is marginalizing the existence of Randai as an art show in social culture life. The lack of acting, movement, and configuration in the performance does not match the current demand of the people.

An Interview with Frieder Nake

In this interview, mathematician and computer art pioneer Frieder Nake addresses the emergence of the algorithm as central to our understanding of art: just as the craft of computer programming has been irreplaceable for us in appreciating the marvels of the DNA genetic code, so too has computer-generated art—and with the algorithm as its operative principle—forever illuminated its practice by traditional artists.

The Place of Traditional Artists in the Preservation of Nigerian Art

Human beings have always left signs of their activities behind them. These signs take both tangible and intangible forms, including buildings, sites, sculptural works, antiquities, rock art paintings, belief systems, and traditions. The people of this millennium have recognized the remains of our fore-bears namely archaeological, architectural monuments, sites, and cultural works as an integral part of the cultural heritage of all humanity. They also recognized the fact that heritage is an invaluable source of information about the lives and activities of human beings and their artistic and technical capabilities over the centuries. The Nigerian Ancient Art Tradition which spans eight thousand years is a product of diverse artists from Dufuna, Nok, Igbo-Ukwu, Ife, Owo, Benin, Tada, etc. Also remarkable are the sculptural works created by late Susanne Wenger (an Austrian) and her New Sacred Art Movement in Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove, which gave meaning to open spaces within the grove. This paper examines the role played by these artworks to project Nigeria to the global art world. The benefits to Nigeria and the global art traditions and recommendations on how to revive this dwindling economic resource will also be examined. The approach used was to study the artworks produced by some of these artists. Some of the findings were that the works were carefully done with suitable materials that have withstood climate change.