FLAG METAMORPHOSES
Next deadline: August 30, 2008 (and ongoing)
A participatory art project - a continuously growing series of animations with many authors:
The flags of every nation in the world will transform into each other through flash animation.
Between each two flags, scenes appear that show an aspect of the relations between the two countries and their symbols. This series of animations is an exploration into the meaning of imagery on flags, aiming to create interrelated associations through questioning, reassessing, fluidizing and re-mixing of diverse national iconography.
FLAG METAMORPHOSES lays stress on the relations between nations and identities as changing ones: Only in the permanent re-creation of values, symbols and ways of life, in mixing with others and differing from others, cultures and societies stay alive. Even national flags arise and disappear - everything changes, occurrences influence each other worlwide. Each artist who creates a flag animation expresses such a relation in his / her own way.
Basis for the visual realisation of the flag transformations: The symbols displayed on the flags and their meanings and the relationships between countries - historical, cultural, political, religious, economic.
Research
Although the symbols on flags are related to the real history of a country, they often more clearly express specific claims or aspirations – such as strength, independence, beauty or the greatness of the country and its achievements. This makes working with the symbols more complicated, but at the same time elevates the issues under consideration onto a more abstract, philosophical and cultural/historical plane. The Myths “hidden” in the flags can be revealed through research and be productively employed in the animation. We examine relationships between the countries and their symbols -
neighbouring countries, colonial relationships, cultural influences etc.
Artistic realisation
Whereas most flags have predominantly simple geometric forms such as stripes, circles, stars, moons, triangles and crosses, in the transformation phase irregular, amorphous, organic and symbolic shapes can emerge (and disappear again). The aim is therefore not only to transform and disrupt the visual composition but also to add shapes and figures to it which express some connection to the country of the next flag.
The transition between two flags can vary greatly, depending on which aspect of the relationship between the two countries the authors choose to accentuate. This is then in effect a never-ending project: every flag could be transformed into every other flag, in both directions and in many different ways.
Call for Participation: Realization with many authors!
Based on this concept, I would like to invite any interested parties from as many countries as possible to develop and design an animation for this series.
If you are interested, please send me an email to [email protected] saying which flags you would like to animate. I will provide you with the desired flags as Freehand or Illustrator files, ready to import into Flash.
Each author will research the connections between her/his two chosen countries, develop an own storyboard and independently realise the animation in Flash and send me their Flash scene as project (.fla).
Technical requirements:
Pure graphical flash image and animation, no text, photo or video.
No action script, please!
With sound preferred.
Duration: minimum 30 sec. (or longer).
Format: 768 x 576 pixel, 15 frames per second, black background.
Critical statements are welcome, but discriminatory content will not be accepted.
Public presentation
All accepted animations are presented in the internet - the series will grow continuously with the addition of new animations. In the website, each author is named, with synopsis of her / his animation and with link to her / his website.
Each author keeps the copyright and intellectual property right for her / his own animations, but has to name Myriam Thyes as author of the concept.
This is a longer term project which is and will be shown in festivals and exhibitions. Before each presentation, all participating artists / all contributing authors are informed and will be named in the presentation.
Flag Metamorphoses is an uncommercial public art project. If it should ever win an award including a money prize, or if the animation series should ever be sold, the money would be distributed equally between all authors, corresponding to the amount of animations they have contributed.
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