Mediterranean ring / MayLand > My Land (working title)
>22. 3. 2012<
Expressing the identity, (“Back-ground”)
Proposed by: Bojan Brecelj /Slovenian artist, Photographer
Keywords: art (research) project, self-portraits, identity related to space, photography, photography, group work.
As a photographer worked throughout the years in Mediterranean region, mainly on reports about culture and economy for French and Swiss publications.
Short description of the project:
My aim for this project is to do a work of art (media photography and sound) which would express the identity of Land of Mediterenian countries through the people who live and work in the Mediteranian region.
Focal point is to get NEW data of identity and potential of Mediterranean countries separatly as well as a region which is united with Mediterranean sea, actually is fusing three continents, Asia, Africa and Europe ! together.
a chain of different projects to be carry out on different locations in Mediterranean countries
The body of work would be photographs – self-portraits done on different specific locations in the town or in other places in the country (each related to the person) and short interviews with portrayed people.
Portraits and interviews would be done with addressed citizens, willing to participate in the project by expressing themselves visually and verbally within the context of their relationship with The Land they live, and brother, Mediterranean space.
The results of this project would be presented in virtual space- online as well as in physical form as an exhibition; photography (and sound ) installation as well as in printed publication – photographs and text from the interviews.
The Tool:
- The tool developed for self-portraying, where person view her/himself in the mirror and trigger camera (which is behind the mirror) in its own moment, gives unique results reflecting creativity and open-hearted being. NEW, portable Self-portrait Set up is designed for use on location, outside or inside any location, under professional light conditions. Person can see and create his portrait by seeing her/himself with realistic background .
- The official site of self-portrait by this system is www.selffishstudios.com. The system that is an invention by itself is developed by Bojan Brecelj. The intellectual rights- the principal of doing portrait photography through the mirror is registered by cc rights. It is an open code logic, which means that everybody can use and develop the system under conditions that all can be copied and developed on.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS: The exhibition is actually a Group exhibition:
Since portraits are actually at least co-created by those who would make self-portraits, and tell their story, the project is actually a group work of many unique peaces and everybody participating would be named as an author.
“The Land of Lebanon, Turkey, Greece, Israel, Egypt, France… “each is project in itself that should be in the future integrated in a larger project, “Mediterranean ring“, researching the identity of Mediterranean as our larger common living space.
How to start it ? I am proposing to do a pilot project – a shorter trip through majority of the countries and already working on the project (in each country 5-7 persons : on location self portraits + interviews ) to gain certain respond /material, connections,local interest and support for complete project in the country. The main purpose for pilot project is to have concrete results to address interested for contribution and cooperation in Mediterranean Ring projects. Experiences and results from pilot trip would also be useful foundation to develop and work on Mediterranean Ring projects.
—————————————————— Additional info:
Locations:
Ideally I am thinking that actually almost everybody should be photographed in her/his location that has context to the person, so to say set up should move almost for everybody .
How to get people to participate:
“Fiend of a friend”: everybody participating would recommend another 3, 4 to be invited in the project.
Interview -words-sound:
«Interviews» could be short and sound recorded where everybody would in short describe himself and tell how she, he would like her/his country (or more local area) to be now and in the future.
Recorded interviews could be played on the exhibition and in online multimedia presentation. In print version, written short interview should accomplish each self –portrait.
Plus Documentary images or AIR photos! :
Alternatively part of the project could be documentary images from the place,
AND IDEALY, especially if I think of Mediterranean as a whole, photos from the air as portraits of the land – would accomplish the identity project (of the natives, expressed through self-portraits and words ) in the very intriguing way.
References :
keywords :
- identity of Mediterranean space
- consciousness of Mediterranean space, expressed through the people that live and are active in the Mediterranean countries
- co-producing with art, media education institution **
- reference anthropology project **
- local project, connected to regional (Mediterranean) project **
- media : photography, (documentary video), sound recording, written material
- self-portraits plus words (sound recording interviews)
- material should be openly shared between all production related partners – for their research, exhibition etc. projects…
**MAYDAY([venez] m’aider, come to help me”; note that aidez-moi means “help me”) the following is a message of extreme urgency, the highest level of danger. (MAYDAY is used on voice channels for the same uses as SOS on Morse channels.)
PS : Complementary project that could be incorporated in second stage : FC :Floating Container :FC /NOMAD (art) PROJECT (living) BASE :
project aim is to develop and construct :
– temporary movable space which can “follow the project” / art project, living exploration project, science project
– space : logistic base/ living base for on location temporary projects
– FC : floating container, amphibian that can be also alternatively on land or close to water (to use water facilities..)
– basic characteristics ; can be transported by land and see as normal container > strong / metal/ structure,
NEW space use concept : water environment / house+boat bread for nomadic&temporary use /
materials and design : low tech( easy to produce ), organic-friendly for living -recyclable materials,
energy from water
water from water
modular system / extended parts/ assembling systems; two – catamaran