[caption id="attachment_1171" align="alignnone" width="560" caption="Marina Fokidis at PULSE"][/caption]
Marina Fokidis, an independent Greek curator and critic based in Athens, was chosen to curate the video art lounge at PULSE NY, PULSE PLAY. Sitting in the lounge, she told me about the show "Random Rules: A Channel of Artist’s selections from You Tube," and discussed the complexities of curating video successfully.
WHITEWALL: What is the show about that you curated for PULSE PLAY 2009?
MARINA FOKIDIS: The idea had been in my mind for a while. When I was with artists, they were often showing me what they liked on You Tube. Lots of people do this of course, but I found that what artists chose to show me was especially interesting. So I decided to ask some established artists to select their favorite videos from You-Tube: artists such as Rodney Graham, Jeremy Deller, and Dominique Gonzalez – Foerster. They each chose videos that related to their unique personalities. For example, Rodney Graham’s choice is concerned with music and Jeremy Deller’s choice focused on Iraq. My curatorial work for the show became choosing the artists who would pick the videos. I was interested in the topic of You Tube because of course it specializes in video. I believe it is a very important step for the moving image. Some people are afraid that amateurs will take over from artists. I do not believe this will happen. I see it as an alternative model. If it is curated well then it can be an incredible insight into our society.
WW: When you were asked to curate the show, did PULSE specify a framework for you to work within in? Or did they give you complete freedom?
MF: The only requirement was that I had to curate a screening process. I thought that being in a fair it was a bit difficult to follow a museum screening process. But besides that I had total freedom, and PULSE was very supportive when, because of recession, I thought it would be interesting to show nothing that was for sale.
Someone who curates video should create a walk through the space to see different videos.
WW: What made you become interested in curating video?
MF: I feel that in the last few years the most interesting art being made is video. The evolution of video since the sixties has been very important within the context of contemporary art.
WW: Often, even within the art world, I find that people will say they don’t really like video art. Why do you think it is that people may have a more difficult time connecting to video?
MF: It is very difficult to curate videos. Often in condensed spaces we see video programs. This is not good because video works do not always have a narrative. They are often meant to be watched separately, and not one-by-one. I think that’s the problem. Someone who curates video should create a walk through the space to see different videos. There is a lot of debate about this, but I totally believe that they need to be screened in the same way that other art is shown. In the PULSE show there is about ten – twelve hours of screening. But you don’t have to watch the whole thing, because here one can take the address and watch the videos at home.
WW: Do you have any interesting projects that you are working on in the upcoming year?
MF: I am actually pulling together funds to initiate a Kunsthalle in Athens. I am very excited about this. It should be open in about a year, but I believe I will be launching some events throughout the year.
