Large Screens and the Making of Civic Spaces

This interview occurred on the occasion of the launch of Tomorrow City Plaza, Songdo, Korea August 7th 2009

Few screens that are actually not commercial. Screen displaying art from all over the world. Creating a public space where contributors can express opinions, wishes, desires and interact with each other.

[What's the interaction? Digital interaction?]

"With interactive technologies the possibilities are wide open for new ways of experiencing time, space and community....Artists, curators, and art administrators can no longer exist in enclosed spaces."

The screen can take not only video but files that are played on the computer.

"...connected to the Internet and mobile networks for live web streaming and interactive telematic events".

Making content appropriate:"For that our curatorial team discusses with various artists until they together come up the suitable ideas. Then we discuss them with the city council that is in charge of administering the large screen and the public space. Usually they say OK unless they see some nudity or obscene languages. They seem to apply similar standard as that of public TV stations, though they haven’t come up with certain set of rules and regulations". <---- Still limitations. Art must be scanned first before they can be aired.

Comments about the audience: Technological projects always grand?
Appeals to the younger audience. Older audience "perplexed" because of new setting. Audience seemed passive.

[Was this actually an interview? Seems more like a discussion...]

Content my be cleverly mixed as to appeal to all types of viewers.

Inspirational text or posters have somehow come up in daily conversations. ... the aim is to make something that enters the public domain.

Public art

Emotion is a mystery...a black box in the study of humans...

"Art is at the forefront of studying and understanding humans because it almost always stirs emotions, new and strange."

Def "civic": "the culture of the city, the way in which the values of the city are built, how people behave and feel a sense of responsibility about their place, and how, through that feeling for that place can clarify both a personal and social identity.

What if the content offends the viewer? There is no choice of going or not going?
[But there is a choice of not participating.]

Controlled by government...so they have to handle the complaints.

[Control from the government is good in terms of regulating the artistic material that is shown. However, isn't it still limiting creativity?]