Contour 2005. 2nd Biennial of Moving Image, Mechelen

The second biennial for video art is conceived again as a journey of discovery through the city of Mechelen. It takes the form of a trail passing unique architectural spaces that trigger interaction with the moving image.

After the successful 2003 edition it was decided to turn Contour into a biennial with a new curator each time composing a program reflecting a unique vision of video art. Current curator Cis Bierinckx chose artists with daring artistic viewpoints, navigating between (independent) film and visual art.

He made a selection from the youngest visionaries of international video-art. Next to Flemish artists, are global participants hailing from Great Britain, Switzerland, Portugal, Turkey, Argentina, China, the United States, and elsewhere. Many artists are leading lights on the video art scene. Others are not very familiar with this scene yet but will definitely surprise.

Most of the collected works are very recent creations. No less than seven artists created a new work especially for this biennial: Dara Birnbaum, Manon de Boer, Anouk De Clercq, Dany Deprez, James Fotopoulos, Gülsün Karamustafa and Katrien Vermeire.

A catalogue including essays and/or interviews by Chris Dercon, Sabine Himmelsbach, Paola Morsiani, Françoise Parfait and Etienne Van den Bergh will be published to document this 2nd biennial.

A limited edition will be available with works by Vasco Araùjo, Dara Birnbaum, Gülsün Karamustafa, James Fotopoulos and Katrien Vermeire.

Ciné Contour is the side film programme of the exhibition. Feature films will be shown by James Fotopoulos (26th Sept), Ana Poliak (24th Oct) and Chantal Akerman (14th Nov). Manon De Boer (10th Oct), Gülsün Karamustafa (31st Oct) and Anouk De Clercq (7th Nov) will compose their own programme featuring personally inspiring films. These screenings further explore the creative complexities of Contour contributors. It is a brilliant opportunity for visitors of the biennial to experience the artists’ point of view in a cinema setting.

Participating artists: Chantal Akerman (BE/FR), Vasco Araùjo (PT), Dara Birnbaum (US), Ellen Cantor (UK/US), Honoré d’O (BE), Manon De Boer (BE/NL), Dany Deprez (BE), Anouk De Clercq (BE), James Fotopoulos (US), Runa Islam (UK), Gülsün Karamustafa (TR), Ana Poliak (AR), Pipilotti Rist (CH), Hito Steyerl (DE), Catherine Sullivan (US), Sam Taylor-Wood (UK), Kerry Tribe (US), Katrien Vermeire (BE), Cui Xiuwen (CN)

Curated by Cis Bierinckx

Pressetext

Contour 2nd biennial for video art
a walking look at 20 present-day moving images
on 13 different venues in Mechelen
a co-production with Mechelen 2005, City in Female Hands

kuratiert von Cis Bierinckx

mit Chantal Akerman, Vasco Araujo, Dara Birnbaum, Ellen Cantor, Manon de Boer, Honoré d´O, Dany Deprez, Anouk de Clercq, James Fotopoulos, Runa Islam, Gülsün Karamustafa, Ana Poliak, Pipilotti Rist, Hito Steyerl, Catherine Sullivan), Sam Taylor-Wood, Kerry Tribe, Katrien Vermeire, Cui Xiuwen