Barcelona will be the world capital of electronic art for almost 10 days. On the one hand, the city hosts from this Friday until June 16 the 27th edition of the itinerant International Symposium on Electronic Art (ISEA)which also irrigates projects in L’Hospitalet, Amposta, Balaguer, Berga, Girona, Lleida, Mataró, Reus, Tarragona and Vic.
On the other hand, on June 16, 17 and 18 Fira Montjuïc and Fira Gran Via will be the venues for the 29th edition of Sónar, a festival that this year accentuates its commitment to its +D section, that is, the confluence between art, technology and science, integrating it fully into the spectacular core of the event, and apparently it is only a preview of what will come in 2023, the year of the 30th anniversary of the exhibition. Likewise, ZIP, a festival that promotes new stage formats, will be at the Teatre Nacional de Catalunya (TNC) from June 15 to 19.
Arts Santa Mònica, La Capella, the Sant Pau Modernista Venue and the CCCB, among other spaces, host part of the ISEA’s overwhelming programme. The art of the future is already here. And it brings shows for singular masses. like the first drone show in the Barcelona sky and a ‘map‘ in Saint Paul. The offer of activitiesmostly open to citizens, is brutal. “Barcelona will be the planetary capital of electronic arts these days”, predicts the director of ISEA 2022, Pau Alsinaprofessor at the Open University of Catalonia (UOC).
It is the first time that the Catalan capital has become the host of this event, which since 1988 has toured the world and returns to Europe after a decade without being held on the continent. The last time it was physically held was in Korea in 2019. More than 1,100 proposals reached the organizers of this edition; of them, more than 600, artistic pieces in different formats. The Catalan event has the involvement of some 50 entities, “with a very social and public nature and a small academic part restricted to specialists from more than 40 countries,” says Alsina.
community battlefield
“Retaking the spirit of modernism as a transversal movement that integrated various disciplines -Alsina continues-, the meeting will explore the intersection between art, design, science, technology and society”. Not just because, but to face contemporary challenges such as the climate changeexcessive energy consumption, artificial intelligence, the power of algorithms and large corporations or the biotechnology and the ethical changes it entails.
Without commenting on whether it is more or less than in other artistic territories, Antònia Folguera, curator of Sónar+D, certifies that digital art abounds with creators with a strong social and political conscience. The ethical, social, political and cultural implications of the use and access to technology, she points out, are for example a battlefield for many artists.
Existing ecosystem
The landing of ISEA in Barcelona benefits from the pre-existence of an ecosystem “very prone to the intersection between art, design, science, technology and society”, in the words of Alsina. With Sónar in the lead, but without forgetting the Biennial of the City and Science, creation factories such as Hangar, centers such as the CCCB, the Canòdrom or the Arts Santa Mònica, nor numerous local creators with international prestige.
Electronic art actually dates back to the 90s. Its beginnings are the subject of the exhibition ‘Orígens’, sample of the Beep Collection which houses the Cal Massó Art Center in Reus. Anyone who wants to catch up on what’s trending today in the world of digital art can immerse themselves in the various proposals in this field offered by Santa Mònica at ‘The irruption’the largest ISEA exhibition in Barcelona with 32 works by various artists.
integrated into the show
In fact, digital art has been much more integrated into the entertainment world for years than one might think. Alba G. Corral is a visual artist in residence at the Palau de la Música Catalan and will create live again on the 14th in ‘Bach & forward’, together with the pianist Marco Mezquida and the organist Juan de la Rubia. Digital art allows you to interact with both musicians by painting from your computer, playing with projections that serve to “add one more layer, although it seems impossible, to a building as ornate as the Palau”, he points out. Transform it without damaging the century-old building, providing a visual representation to the music of Mezquida and De la Rubia, improvising, like them, from Bach.
“I really want to return to the Palau with the experience gained last year,” says the artist, who uses numbers and algorithms instead of brushes. She, who lives in La Ràpita (Tarragona), also collaborates with ISEA with a ‘mapping’ at Casa Navàs in Reus, a modernist estate designed by Lluís Domènech i Montaner, the same architect of the Palau. “Building something on top of a building is pure craftsmanship,” he stresses. And collectors value it, just look at the 1.3 million euros reached at auction for ‘Casa Batlló: Living Architecture’, the recent living NFT created by Refik Anadol.
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For G. Corral, one of the highlights of the symposium is the presentation of Google DALL.E, that allows you to create images from the search text. “It’s a revolutionary tool,” she says. Its creators were interested in participating in ISEA to connect with the artistic collective. Your ‘feedback’ is key to continue researching and improving new versions.
After Barcelona, Paris will take over next year as the headquarters of the ISEA.