Mapping 2009 (albeit small) wrap up

[ Sonom ] Live at Mapping Festival 09 from Sonom on Vimeo.

Somewhat recovered now from the intense glory that was the production of the 2009 edition of the Mapping Festival. It was quite a ride. A bit smoother then previous years yet still leaving me almost completely exhausted but fully inspired.

One of the continuing benefits of the connectedness of GarageCUBE/Modul8 and the Mapping Festival is how we get to meet people in person who are working with our software in interesting ways. One such project was the work of the Spain based Sonom. I had some contact with Borja Alexadandre prior to his invitation to the Mapping Festival. In fact just before the festival we received a video from him.

The Sonom installation/performance entitled 'Symphonic lighthouse-phony' was a tad tucked inside the Bac but worthwhile to those that made the effort to see both the performance and the resulting installation. The Sonom team consisted of four people including Borja. The center of the room was occupied by a tall, steel skeletal tower outfitted with a projector and a rotating mirror that acted like a light house but one that projects images. Additionally there was a 2nd static projector and a smoke machine that created the etherial atmosphere that was the light house. The result was that the space of the room was redefined into something akin to a native american hot tent minus the heat.

Another group previously covered on this blog and that I was happy to have had the chance to meet is the Stuttgart based Frischvergitung. The energetic duo really enjoyed every moment of the Mapping and the following is their own self documented tribute.


Frischvergiftung @ Mapping Festival '09 from Frischvergiftung on Vimeo.


This same night was quite a deck of cards being the Kompakt night (featuring Chaton, Burger/Voight and Tobias Thomas) along with the refined visuals of the legendary Okinawa 69 and the seasoned Bruno Tait. Added to this was Geneva's own Daschund and Superposition.


electric kettle vs sansculotte live at mapping festival 2009 from sans culotte on Vimeo.

On a less mainstream count the following Thursday featured the high powered punch of the Berlin based VJ duo Sans Culotte with the live Breakcore masher Electric Kettle.

I could go on about all of the little moments. If you have ever organized a festival you probably know how exhausting this can be. Staying up all night and then hopping on a train to nearby Lausanne to do a radio interview and then returning to Geneva to conduct a four hour modul8 workshop. But when you see all the people who come to have a good time and do just that, so happy with the results that they produce nice video clips that capture all those little moments, each in their own unique way? This is where it all comes together.

Festival Fever 2009

Festival season is now upon us. Next week I will be in Vienna to do a Modul8 workshop for the Sound:Frame Festival. This massive festival that is already under way stretches through a whole month with exhibitions, events, performances, workshops and parties hosted in nine different locations. Lets just say that the Viennese like to party and are also going the distance in broadening the public definition of the VJ medium.

My modul8 workshop will take place on Friday, 17.04. It will cover the basics and do some advanced output. As usual I like to focus on what is creatively possible with modul8. With a little bit of luck maybe even a little sneak peak preview of DMX capabilities.

The workshop is free and will take place at wienXtra-medienzentrum (Zieglergasse 49/II, 1070 Vienna). It will run from 16h00 through 22:00. It is recommended that you bring a Mac OS X based laptop running 10.4.11 or higher. A temporary license will be issued for each person who wishes to get hands on experience with modul8.


The following day I will be in Brno, Czech Republic for an almost identical workshop for the Multiplace Festival. I have to say that I am really excited about this. I have seen some really fun and creative work coming out of the Czech Republic. My connection with this festival was through Mapping 2008 veteran VJ Kolouch. A sample of his incredible video work here.

As in Vienna attendees should bring a Mac OS X based computer in order to received a temporary license for use during the workshop. It will take place from 11h00 to 16h00, room 206 at udolni 19, Brno. For more detailed information you can contact akkamiau-at-gmail-dot-com or see the info page on the Multiplace Festival site.


That very evening I will return to Vienna to VJ at Ragnarhof for a party arranged by the Do.Phunk DJ team. It is a birthday party for a friend of my friend Nick Worthington who is one of the organizers of monthly party at this location. I really like the concept of Do.Phunk. They are a group of DJs and party people who really love getting together once a month and decided to make it an official non profit to keep things organized and flowing consistently. Reminds me a bit of our friends Broken Beat.


Just when you thought that things are relaxed and that there is plenty of time to prepare for next weeks adventures then stop. A whole bunch of us Geneva VJ crew people will be busy lighting up this years Electron Festival. The festival as is the title implies a rather large electronic music festival. I have been on deck for this festival for the last two editions. Always a lot of fun. This year is exceptional for me because a) I got to choose what nights I would play b) what artists I would mix for and most importantly c) all the participating VJs are credited on the website for their respective nights and venues.

Just to make it really easy for VJ enthusiasts who will happen to be in Geneva for this here is the VJs teams nights and venues:

Thursday April 9th:
Palladium - KRMT + Tchernoboy
Zoo - Decrepticon
Kab-Ptr - Sigma6
Theatre De L'Usine - La Loutre + Akinetik

Friday April 10th:
Palladium - KRMT + Tchernoboy + POSTBABYLON
Zoo - Matt
Kab-Ptr - Decrepticon

Saturday April 11th:
Palladium - Azadeh + La Loutre + Akinetik
Zoo - Matt
Kab-Ptr - Decrepticon

Sunday April 12th:
Zoo - Azadeh
Kab-Ptr - POSTBABYLON

If you are wondering what the burnt weenie is about this is part of the concept developed by the founders of Electron that every edition would have the theme of the table of elements. This year is 'carbon.' Get it?

Profile: motiongraphics.ch

On the first evening of my second trip to Switzerland back in 2007 Boris and I hopped into his little red car and drove to the picturesque city of Lausanne to see an audio visual performance by a duo called 'Dynamo.' A violinist and visualist dressed in white clothing stood on a stage in a small lounge like theater. There were two projectors aimed at the violinist. One, the traditional back backdrop projection and the second, smaller situated off stage left.

As the visualist was using modul8 he was able to manage both this 'foreground' image and the backdrop image simultaneously. As he was aware that this secondary projection upon the violinist would produce a shadow he used the grid function of the transformer FX combined with a live camera feed of the violinist to produce a faint feedback that augmented the existing shadow. Smartly this effect was not used throughout the entire performance. To be seen was footage of industrial machinery and factories in dark settings that complimented the electronically augmented sounds of the violin and electronic music sequences that was the accompaniment.

I would later be introduced to Nicholas Wintsch who was the collaborator with the violinist Patricia Bosshard. Based on their performance they were invited to perform in the 2007 edition of the Mapping Festival.

Later I would meet with Nicholas during my frequent visits to Switzerland where I learned that he is a partner in a graphic design firm called motiongraphics.ch. While the name may imply simply video and graphics for commercials and promotional use the projects of motiongraphics.ch demonstrate a departure from this narrow view. In fact the partnership of Nicholas Wintsch, Jean Pierre Fonjallaz,
jean-pierre kazemi began as a motion graphics company. However with time the appetites of both motiongraphics.ch and their clients started to change as tools like projectors and modul8 started to take them away from creating graphics in a 4:3 format and into the realm of events in architecture. Because of this they are able to strike a balance with projects that are both fun and monetarily rewarding.



Examples of their approach: The Paleo Festival in the outskirts of Nyon, Switzerland is one of the largest outdoor music and cultural festivals in Switzerland. In 2007 motiongraphics.ch a public awareness installation for Romande Energie called THINK GLOBAL, ACT LOCAL, an installation in one of the central grounds of the vast encampment of stages and concessions. The installation consisted of a circular screen situated on top of four trusses that allowed the public to walk around and under the circular screen. Projections containing google earth zooms and recordings of a camera attached to a balloon that was was anchored to the installation provided the public with a sense of orientation to the world around them.



Another project of interest 'THE SWIMMING POOL' where motiographics.ch was asked to create a special permanent video installation for an indoor pool in collaboration with Adeli & de Rham interior architecture & design LTD. The challenge here is quite different from that of the BASTIONS as it does not need to be informative and but contemplative.

Most recently motiongraphics.ch called upon the skills of the GarageCUBE team to create an installation in the BASTIONS University's main entrance hall in the center of Geneva. Consisting of three large projectors, one in each arm of the hall, the installation will be in place for the next two years. The system required a custom solution where content could be sent to modul8 via a server. Additionally a webcam link to the site was created so that the person uploading and changing the graphics could see the results instantly. The project has received its start as a method for the press service of the school to keep the public aware of its activities as well as act provide a canvas for motiongraphics.ch to explore the bathing the classical architecture. In the most recent scenario it was the desire to bring some vegetation into the space. motiongraphics.ch created compositions using photographs of vegetation.







Being that this installation will be in place for the next two years motiongraphics.ch hard at work on other approaches for the space. For them this is an extraordinary opportunity to be able to work with a space in the long term.

I recommend browsing around the site for video footage of the projects described above and to see some of their other projects that I have not mentioned here. Despite the fact that all of it is written in French the images provided speak volumes that words cannot provide.

As you may know this years Mapping Festival will feature outdoor projections. As it so happens Dynamo will return to the Mapping this year with a performance project that will take place on the exterior of the Usine. I do not know too many details other then something relating to Patricia playing violin in a harness. Combine that with some projections and that should definitely be an interesting image.

Weekend (March 6/7th 2009)

TripleHead2Go VJ set. (Micro Edit.) from Novak Collective on Vimeo.

Back in Geneva for the weekend for more Mapping Festival 09 duties as well as the fundraiser party at the Le Zoo. For this all VJs in and around Geneva get together to support the night. This is really nice for two reasons. First because we all inspire each other with our work and second each of us only does about an hour of VJing and sometimes that is just enough.

On deck were Intizart, G33kConnection, Sigma6, Jehanne Zaki, VJ Lupin, Post Babylon and the very special guest presence of Superposition.



Superposition's real name is Vincent Chambacher. He is a very talented print graphic designer living and working in Geneva. He also happens to be a VJ now and then and is very good at it. On top of that he was also on of the very early supporters of modul8 contributing the modul8 logo, the Mapping logo, sticker and poster designs. He was also frequently VJ'd with one of my favorite Geneva based DJ's Dachund. He spends much more of his time just designing for print these days so it was a real treat to have him amongst us. Jehanne Zaki is a designer as well. Also one of the more seasoned VJ's of the crew she currently lives and works in Zurich and occasionally comes down to Geneva to VJ. Says something about the scene in Zurich don't it?



Intizart went all out creating special material for the MC duo 'Yo! Majesty.' Two days before the show she goes out onto the street and asks some girls if she can shoot material with them dancing and licking lollipops and stuff. She also put together a fun graphics package.


Isn't it cool that he is using a Trigger Finger?

VJ Lupin (who happens to be the author of some of the best non-GarageCUBE authored modules under the VS moniker) delivered his full body suit action along with some really tasty animation loops. He gets his materials from a lot of different sources. I don't really care where actually. I always have a soft spot for straight up fun images that will work with any moment in a club.



The highlight for me though was the mixing of Sigma6 six and GeekConnection. Both of these teams usual partners were absent so Florian (sigma6) and Vincent (GeekConnection) switched between Vincents' hand drawn concoctions and the vector/polygonal de constructions that are a signature of Sigma6. I thought they complimented each other quite nicely. Also I was really impressed at how the both of them applied themselves physically to the task.



Post Babylon is Roman Urodovskikh. I don't have any images from his VJing but he is a regular of the past two Mapping Festivals. His work is usually a mixture of 2D and 3D that occasionally converges into abstraction. One of his strengths is that he also has a sense of rhythm and knows how to mix with others. Calm and laid back he is always a pleasure to work with.



I take great pleasure in working with these people. They are sort of like family. I have inspired them and they in return have inspired me. I recall a VJ set that Intizart did with photographs of herself. It was one of the first times that a VJ set made me laugh. So I have been given this wonderful gift in that I have watched these artists evolve. This an experience that does not come with a price tag.So you are probably wondering what the video at the beginning of this post is all about? It pretty much speaks for itself. The Novak collective from the UK posted this on the forum so I thought it might be fun to add that. It did not take place on the same weekend but the video itself went 'live' right after this past weekend. Nice rear projection fun with a good Benga track always makes me happy.

Interferenz Part 2

Photo credit: Ilan Katin via flickr

I returned to Geneva for a few days to VJ for a Drum & Bass party at the KAB in Usine along with my colleagues Sigma6. At the same time I was also helping with the curatorial selection process for the Mapping Festival. So it was very much a weekend for live visual endeavors.



As I may have mentioned in previous posts the Usine/KAB/Zoo in Geneva is one of my favorite places to VJ. One of the main reasons being that the people who operate this venue understand the value of having projections in their parties. A prime example of this is the motivation of organizers in creating setups that, in small increments, depart from the usual one screen approach. The results are satisfying to everyone involved. For this particular party the technical point man was Fred who designed these half circle screens that framed the DJ's of the evening nicely. Eric of Sigma6 was kind enough to send me a diagram of the setup so I could get an idea of what it looked like before I arrived.


Photo credit: Ilan Katin via flickr


Photo credit: Ilan Katin via flickr

The video setup for this was a bit tricky. Projections were also repeated, encircling above the dance floor. This meant that the mask used to fit the projections onto the stage had to be applied to the composition separately from the source computer (the computer where the actual live compositions in modul8 were being created). For this Sigma6 commandeered a Mac Pro rigged for 3 outputs using the Advanced Output where the mask, a custom still image file, was set in place. Out from our laptops, into a V8, from the V8 into a analog to DV converter, FireWire into the Mac Pro. The live feed was set a layer and the matrix transform was applied so that the image was repeated in each of the three output clips. That only the top half of the output was displayed on the half circles on the stage was not really a disadvantage because the images were repeated above and around the dance floor. This meant that when using a circular image/loop I did not have to make any adjustments to my composition so that it would create a 'halo' behind the DJ.


Photo credit: Francois Moncarey via flickr


Photo credit: Ilan Katin via flickr


Photo credit: Francois Moncarey via flickr

Fun did not stop there. Sigma6 brought in their own lighting, a series of light yellow incandescent lights were placed on the edge of the DJ table. With the help of a custom application created by Sigma6 was used to analyze the audio coming from the sound board and this controlled the incandescent lighting. The result was the visualists were able to compliment the lighting system already in place and the transformation of a Drum & Bass night that was immersive and exciting.

A year ago last spring...

NO MAN'S
Uploaded by TCHERNOBOY

I am attending Club Transmediale this week so my regular Wednesday post is brief in preparation for a more extensive post tomorrow about modul8's presence at this festivals 10th anniversary.

For now you can transport yourself back to the warmth of early spring 2008 when the above video was shot. Comprised of Krmt and Tchernoboy, the always enthusiastic duo are frequent VJ's at Le Zoo in Geneva, Switzerland. Le Zoo is the type of venue that is always open to finding new and inventive ways of using projectors opened up the night for Geek Connection to create an object that somewhat resembles an abandoned underground city from a video game. Thanks to Boris for the link. I recommend browsing around the other videos on their Daily Motion account for more documentation of VJ sets that take place regularly at Le Zoo.

Mapping Festival 2009 open call for submissions!

Mapping 2009 edition call for submissions are open now!

The dates are set for May 8th through the 17th 2009. Join us for our 5th anniversary.

We expect your projects and proposals for the following sections:
- VJing
- Audiovisual performances
- Installations
- Outdoor projections/performances
- Lectures/Workshops/Presentations/Demos

The deadline for all submissions is January 26th 2009. The letter must be postmarked by that date.

To download the english version of the application please point your browser to:
http://www.mappingfestival.com/mapping2009/inscriptions/

We look forward to your submissions!