[spectre] vague terrain 08: rise of the VJ: call for work

[Greg J. Smith]

vague terrain 08: rise of the VJ: call for work

There has been a distinct upswing of activity in the realm of 
audiovisual culture over the last few years. Specifically, the role of 
the VJ has become noticeably more prominent in audiovisual 
collaboration, whether it takes place in galleries, electronic music 
festivals, nightclubs, noise shows, academic institutions, public 
intervention art, online, or other places altogether. This growing focus 
on the live mixed projected image begs the question of the relationships 
between moving image, sound, body, environment, economics, and 
technology. Since this field is relatively new, and moving along at such 
a brisk pace, it is wise and exciting for us to critically consider the 
role of the VJ in audiovisual culture.

For this issue of vague terrain: Rise of the VJ, we are seeking three 
types of submissions: audiovisual collaborations (in the form of a video 
to be streamed on the vague terrain site), critical writing, and interviews.

Suggested topics include (but are not limited to):
-economies of VJ technology
-art historical takes on the rise of the VJ
-haptic cinema and synaesthetic approaches to live video mixing
-semiotics and/or aesthetics of contemporary audiovisual collaboration
-possibilities for using VJing for social change
-human-computer interaction
-the role of festal culture in promoting VJ culture
-mapping, precision, and subjectivity in relationships between visual 
and aural elements
-interactive video installation
-collaboration strategies, processes, and concerns
-working conditions of the VJ
-critiques of VJ performance content
-copyright, Creative Commons, file sharing, and sampling
-crowd-based interaction techniques
-writing custom VJ software with programs like Max/MSP/Jitter and Pure Data
-alternative user interfaces (e.g. biofeedback, MIDI controllers, Google 
Image search, etc.)
-relational aesthetics
-the role of the Internet in facilitating critical dialogue between VJs
-gender, race, age, and class concerns
-generative video
-vintage equipment vs. emerging technologies on the market
-education and information-sharing vs. trade secrets
-why VJing is so darn fun
-future movements in VJ culture


Vague Terrain is an emerging quarterly web-journal which solicits and 
showcases works from a range of international artists, musicians, and 
writers. Our intent is to stake a claim which samples the focus and 
methodologies of academic and art journals while commissioning parallel 
excursions into the sonic realm. Content usually consists of a mix of 
visual art, audio, and text curated by Neil Wiernik and Greg J. Smith. 
On this occasion, for issue 08: Rise of the VJ, guest curator Carrie 
Gates has been invited to select content for vague terrain. Heading into 
its eighth issue, www.vagueterrain.net is currently attracting an 
audience of about twelve thousand visitors a month and has been 
receiving press and support from a diverse range of online communities 
and print publications including rhizome.org, we-make-money-not-art.com,
Wire, and earplug.

Each issue of the quarterly examines a specific theme and all invited 
artists have been asked to submit work pertaining to this topic. Since 
www.vagueterrain.net is a non-profit, unfunded entity, all submitted 
work will be published without compensation. We understand that everyone 
has bills to pay and a fixed amount of time they can dedicate to 
pro-bono work. With this in mind we are open to recontextualization or 
showcasing of past projects if they relate to the quarterly theme. 
Ideally, we would prefer that some new work is done specifically with 
our invitation in mind.

As a general rule of thumb for all submissions, vague terrain welcomes 
the recontextualization of past work, but the onus is on the contributor 
to obtain permission to (re)publish material online if the rights belong 
to another publication, label, journal, etc.


about the curator:
Carrie Gates is a VJ, sound artist, educator, and academic from 
Saskatoon who has been producing work over the last 12 years for 
independent electronic music events, public galleries, artist-run 
centres, festivals, conferences, academic institutions, and symposia. 
Her work often deals with subjects such as synaesthesia, situationism, 
and the fantastic, using/abusing technology as a means to tease out 
diverse perceptions of social and psychological space. With the 
assistance of a Production Grant from Soil Digital Media Suite, she is 
currently working on an interactive installation work utilizing EEG 
biofeedback as a controller for a Jitter-based video system, 
investigating the paradoxical relationships between consumption, 
capitalism, and human-computer interaction. Her artwork and academic 
research has been shared with audiences across Canada, as well as in 
Germany, New Zealand, and the United States. Gates also is a Co-Director 
of the BricoLodge net.label, and is employed at the University of 
Saskatchewan as a Multimedia Programmer.

http://www.otherartists.com
http://www.youttube.com/carriegates
http://www.myspace.com/thesoundsofcarriegates
http://byteme.net.au/spea05.html
http://www.notype.com/bricolodge
http://www.vinylinterventions.com


submission deadline:
If you are interested in participating, please send a brief email 
describing the audiovisual project, critical text, or interview you 
would like to propose to Carrie Gates at otherartists at gmail.com by 
Wednesday, November 14th. Please also send a weblink to any other 
related work of yours that is relevant to your proposal.

Selected creators will be confirmed via email on Saturday, November 17th.

The submission deadline for vague terrain 08: Rise of the VJ is Sunday, 
December 30th . The issue will launch in mid-January.

technical specifications:
For more information about technical specifications and legalities, 
please see:
http://www.otherartists.com/vagueterrain

Vague Terrain:
http://www.vagueterrain.net/