THE FIRST IBERIAN-AMERICAN CONGRESS ON RECENT TRENDS IN ART AND TECHNOLOGY

Claudia Giannetti

The field of media art is assuming greater relevance all the time on the contemporary art scene. There are currently a number of important international events (congresses, festivals, symposia…) dedicated to art and technology, such as Ars Electronica in Linz (Austria) and the DEAF Festival in Rotterdam (Holland). Nonetheless, if we peruse the invitation lists of the principal international events, it's surprising the scant or zero participation of Spain, Portugal or the countries of Latin America. In North America and central Europe there reigns a near total unawareness of the production and theory being developed in these countries. Then too, among the different Latin American countries, as well as between them and Spain and Portugal, contacts are not as fluid as would be desirable.

In view of this situation and the need to encourage more contacts among and promotion of artists, specialists and institutions active in these countries, MECAD/Media Centre d'Art i Disseny (Media Center of Art and Design) at ESDi, together with the Mediateca of CaixaForum, and the Fundació “la Caixa,” with the participation of UNESCO, organized the Symposium on Art and Media. The first Iberian-American congress on recent trends in art and technology, in Barcelona. As the name itself indicates, it's the first event that attempted to assemble Iberian-American artists, theorists and curators who are playing a crucial role in their countries in the creation, education, reflection and diffusion of media art.