***  Haus der Kulturen der Welt: Forum1 Archive  ***
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   [Date]: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 00:23:29 -0600
   [From]: Juan JosŽ D’az Infante <jdiazinfante@altamiracave.com>
     [To]: Cultural Exchange via Internet <forum1@hkw.kbx.de>
[Subject]: Saint John has Duende, Viola can not

Christy

Nobody is bashing Viola, he was an unfortunate victim in setting an example
of a failed work. We were actually talking about something else when
suddenly he was brought into a highlight. As a matter of fact he is one of
my favorite video makers too. I have seen his work in the Venice Biennial i=
n
1995 and in Buenos Aires at the II Festival of Electronic Art  also around
that time.More recently I saw some of his work in the Museum of Modern Art
of NY and I have read a couple of books on his work.
Bill=B4s  work of Saint John I use it often as a subject of analysis in the
class that I teach in the master=B4s degree of contemporary art called
"engineering of the image" in which we study the new and old narratives of
images.
That piece is a brilliant use of a gimmick, bring something from another
language, something that already was beautiful and successful, put your nam=
e
on top, put an extra pretty picture and voila! Art. It is also a common
place.

It is like putting music to poems of Jos=E9 Mart=ED, Machado o Miguel Hern=E1ndez=
.
The beauty existed prior to the musical score.

(I tried to post the lecture of Garc=EDa Lorca "Theory and Game of Duende" in
which he explains in detail the quality differences which I am referring to=
)


saludos

Juan