Video Art on the Flat Screen

The visual-arts channel “souvenirs from the earth” broadcasts video art around the clock. Its schedule consists of “video paintings” running from ten to 60 minutes: often very slow, colour-rich films produced by visual artists specifically for large flat-panel displays and designed to exploit the new capabilities of those screens.

As a platform for video artists, musicians, designers, fashion labels, filmmakers and sound designers, the programme can be used for late-night relaxation, as audiovisual accompaniment to a dinner party, in waiting lounges or as an active element in modern interior design.

The material ranges from slowly rotating ice skaters in Central Park to an office-chair ballet performed by secretaries in an open-plan office.

From 1 April 2008, “souvenirs from the earth” will broadcast avant-garde music clips and scored art films every day from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. The proportion of music in the schedule is expected to increase to as much as 50 percent by the end of June 2008.

Frankfurt electronic label Elektrolux has primary responsibility for selecting the music programme and has long been a pioneer in ambient music on television. Elektrolux is responsible for the soundtrack to “Spacenight” and spent six years providing “Flowmotion” to Hessischer Rundfunk’s overnight schedule, creating a model for the new format. Pop musician Eric D. Clark is also contributing to the channel’s musical positioning.

A co-produced DVD containing extracts from the “souvenirs from the earth” schedule will be released in May. Videos from the channel are now available as HD podcasts for Apple TV in the iTunes Store. Individual short clips are also expected to become available for download.

In June 2008, “souvenirs from the earth” will provide a live special-programme visual presentation for the world premiere of Peter Gabriel’s new album in Aachen, presented by the Ludwig Foundation. The channel also regularly partners with cultural events including Cologne’s Passagen and ART.FAIR.

The channel also offers interactive features through its website. At http://www.sfte.tv, viewers can insert four-line poems and haiku directly into the television programme.