Screenshot: “Stop Peeping” by Ping Wong in the Pop-up Cinema of the Content Lab © Videotage
The non-profit organisation Videotage in Hong Kong invites people to reflect on the consequences of the pandemic for art and culture and to take action. Against the background of the current challenges, Videotage is initiating the Content Lab project.
In the context of rethinking the perception of art and the question of how it is able to make an impact through online initiatives, Videotage asks “how can we democratize art from a system in which artistic value is largely determined by a handful of galleries, collectors and museums and how can we disrupt artistic presentation beyond the 1990’s notion of “virtual gallery” in social media?” The manifesto also states that “There are no easy answers to question of how the artworld could survive in the post-COVID-19. Instead of returning to the old normal, revealing what was “abnormal” and finding ways to operate differently is the way to go.”
The Content Lab is intended to serve as an incubation program for a new generation of creatives covering a wide range of disciplines, from film directors, social media filmmakers, meme-makers, gamers, visual artists, sound engineers, instagrammers, and loop makers. Through the process of creation, the project aims to use art to discover identities, find faith in humanity and create a positive attitude towards life.
Content Lab includes seven different projects on a dedicated website and in several pop-up windows:
MADE BY ARTISTS presents works by commissioned artists that have been made especially for social platforms.
MADE BY THE LAB is designed by Videotage members and aims to dissolve the boundary between curator, artist, administrator and content author in videos, memes and short texts.
MAKE A CONVERSATION aims to initiate a dialogue between the audience and artists through a series of live events.
MAKE YOUR CONTENT gives the general public the opportunity to produce self-made VR and video content.
MAKE WAVES – POP-UP CINEMA is a film series in which time-limited moving images are presented online.
Other projects include an unconventional educational program on the history of media art and a digital residency program that blurs the line between the digital and the physical world by involving artists in collective content sessions and on various game platforms.
By using the Content Lab to test innovative strategies and technological applications, Videotage aims to promote resistance to adversity through artistic means and to contribute to making art possible in the post-Covid-19 future.
URL: www.contentlab.hk/manifesto
URL: Pop-up Cinema on the subject Social Distancing
Picture credits
Index page: a still image from the trailer of the Content Lab © Videotage Hong Kong
Above: “Stop Peeping” by Ping Wong in the pop-up cinema of the Content Lab © Videotage Hong Kong