Artist in Residence O18


03.07.-09.21.2018
81 days
7 artists
4 nationalities
7 Art Containers

In frame of its residency program, OSTRALE invites artists from Germany, the Czech Republic and the Netherlands to spend 30 days in Dresden as "Artist in Residence", working on different art projects in seven containers. In the second half of the year, the containers will travel all around Europe and will be exhibited in unusual places far from traditional art institutions.

Where is the line between real and fake, the corporal and the digital? How do we perceive reality in our new, digitized present, and how does it change the way we see ourselves and others? What can the notion of art mean in this context, and how can it help us to better understand our present and shape the future? Among others, these are the questions that will be addressed at the former exhibition sites of the OSTRALE Center for Contemporary Art, which will be transformed into a veritable artist village between the 17th of July and the 23rd of September 2018.

Within the confines of the container (5,9 x 2,4 x 2,7 meters) lie boundless possibilities: it can be not only be an artist's studio or an exhibition space, but also a meeting place, a playground, a research laboratory or simply a place to reflect, discuss and learn from each other.

This year, the following artist are taking part in the Artist in Residence program:


Dana Balážová
Daniel Chluba | http://daniel-chluba.de
Stef Fridael & Wim Vonk | http://www.steffridael.nl | https://www.wvonk.nl | http://ontroerwoud.nl
Hanna Nitsch | http://www.hannanitsch.de
Jana Rinchenbachova | http://www.rinchenbachova.com

Read the project descriptions and artist biographies here


Everything that will have been prepared and created by both artists and students will be presented to the public during the Presentation Week between the 18. – 21. September 2018, at the OSTRALE area.

As symbols of mobility, versatility and migration, these objects that can not just be used for transport, but also as emergency shelter, moveable laboratory, artist atelier or exhibition space, the containers also serve the purpose of mobilizing spaces far from traditional art institutions, until they will finally be brought to the main exhibition during the summer of 2019 and enrich the urban space at the new location.

Each in their unique and different ways, all containers reflect on the main theme of the 2019 exhibition, "-ism", which deals with some of the most pressing questions of our time, where with the advent of new media, the difference between real and fake or analogue and digital is more and more difficult to make, leading to the return and invention of new and old "-isms" in our society.

The following projects are exhibited:
Sampler (2018) by Balážová, Dana / 1989 (CZ),
Warum bist du nicht auf der Straße? (2018) by Chluba, Daniel / forever 29 (DE),
Babbelonië, a Metaphysical Installation (2018) by Fridael, Stef / 1957 and Vonk, Wim / 1950 (NL),
meaning of aspects #1 (2018) by Nitsch, Hanna / 1974 (DE),
Whirling Ephemerality (2018) by Rinchenbachová, Jana / 1988 (CZ),
Zirkulation (2018) by Yu, YeonA / 1974 (KR),
Fórizmus (2018) by art students Bábková, Markéta / 1993 (CZ), Čerťanský, Dávid / 1998 (SK), Kolářová, Markéta / 1993 (CZ), Křivský, Dušan / 1973 (CZ), Molín, Štěpán / 1980 (CZ)
under the leadership of doc. akad. mal. Franta, Roman / 1962 (CZ)

Since the artworks were made at the headquarters of OSTRALE, recycling many materials into art, these containers also carry with themselves visual and material memories from their birthplace. As at the moment the future of the OSTRALE is uncertain at its current location, traffic safety is also not ensured on the premises. This means that the artworks exhibited at the OSTRALE area can only be visited and seen at the visitors' own risk.

During the week between the 18th and the 21st of September, the OSTRALE are is open daily between 10 – 19 o'clock, and can be visited free of charge. The artists are going to be present during this time, and guided tours for groups can be booked between 10 – 15 o'clock.

We kindly invite all Dresden citizens and school classes to observe the creative process of the Artists in Residence and to get to know more about the themes and questions behind their work.

After that, the containers begin their grand tour, in which they will travel to various places in Prague, the Netherlands and Saxony, to reach areas where contemporary art is not normally available to the general populace. They are reaching their final destination next year, when they will be part of the OSTRALE Biennale 2019, organized around the main idea of "ism".

Further projects in the program:

„THE CREATIVE BRAIN" – internal Symposium

On the 21st of September from 19 o'clock in the frame of a roundtable of international artists, researchers and experts from various countries and fields, the possible connections between art and science will be discussed through the presentation of previous examples and findings from the sides of art theory, sound and brain research as well.

The starting point of the one day conference was the work meaning of aspects #1 of Hanna Nitsch. During her stay at the OSTRALE Artist Camp, she was working on the development of a sort of digital self-portrait based on her recorded EEG data. This artistic endeavor will be complemented by a research project in collaboration between the artist, OSTRALE and its partner institutions for the visually impaired and the hearing impaired, to observe and demonstrate how differently people with different sensory potentials and perceptions react to artistic experiences and encounters.

Hanna Nitsch (Germany) is an artist who works on the theme of self-perception and self-representation in various medias. She is presenting the results of her EEG-Project she was working on during her time as Artist in Residence. http://www.hannanitsch.de

Udo Wid (Austria) is a painter, concept artist and biophysicist. He is mainly interested in the connections between art, philosophy, science and everyday life. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Udo_Wid

Violka Kuś (Poland) is a visual and installation artist who often deals with questions of neurocognitive science, like the observation and analysis of the neuro-psycho-physical aspects of the human condition. http://violkakus.pl/

Marek Chołoniewski (Poland) is a composer, music performer and music teacher, who integrates the newest technologies into his compositions and interactive sound installations. http://www.studiomch.art.pl/

In the field of brain research, we are planning to invite further experts from the Technical University of Dresden and the University Clinics of Dresden and Chemnitz. The discussion of these themes will continue in the next year as well, when in the frame of the OSTRALE Biennale 2019, further podium discussions and events will be held at the crossroads between art and science.

Dance workshop

Between the 12th and 17th of August 2018, the Korean dancers of Cie Yu Dans are visiting us to work on a performance concept for the opening ceremony of the OSTRALE Biennale 'O19 together with Dresden dancers, under the leadership of choreographer YeonA Yu. On the last night of the dance workshop, on the 16th of August 2018 at 19 o'clock there will be an official preview of the dance performance of Cie Yu Dans.

Workshop program
Through the international summer project „Echo_Chamber" and "Kinderblicke kunterbunt", the residency program is complimented by an art education part for children, young adults, and students between the ages of 7-21, interested in arts and technology, who can participate in various workshops.

During these, the artists and other experts from Germany, the Czech Republic and the Netherlands come together to explore our digital present and future, to prepare the way towards "ism" – the main theme of the 2019 exhibition –, and to establish new ways of artistic cooperation. The young participants will be introduced to the practical aspects of media consumption and production through a mutual exchange of ideas and experiences, discussions, and the preparation of a visual project.

Vacation program Summer Art Gallery (Sommer-Kunst-Galerie)
between 03. – 08. July 2018 and 17. – 22. July 2018

In the first project phase between 03. – 08. July 2018, OSTRALE invites children between the ages of 7-14 to a "Summer Art Gallery" free of charge, in frame of the holiday pass program of the city of Dresden.

In the second project phase between 17. – 22. July 2018, participants will create a DaDa Demonstration or an artist book on the theme of digital media. Together with artists from Berlin and the Czech Republic, the children and young adults will explore questions of the future in context of their own perceptions and digital media.

This project is integrated into the art education project "Kinderblicke kunterbunt – WIR, die Friedrichstädter", initiated by the OSTRALE – Centre for Contemporary Art, which is made possible by the funding of the European Social Fund (ESF) in the Free State of Saxony, for sustainable urban development in the Friedrichstadt district of Dresden. Children's artworks created in frame of this project will form an atmospheric gallery space, in which the works will be publicly displayed for the first time. The main idea is to always be creative in "unusual" places, and to use art as a form of mediation that supports the process of identity building of young people.

Kultur macht STARK Project
between 06. – 11. August 2018
In the third project phase, educationally disadvantaged children will work together with selected Artists-in-Residence. By the end of the workshop, they will prepare a multimedia presentation on the theme of communication and digitalism. Through a visit to a local free radio- and television broadcaster, participants will also be introduced to the vocational side of media work and the corresponding aspects of communication.
PLEASE NOTE THAT THE LANGUAGE OF THE WORKSHOPS IS GERMAN.