Transdisciplinary dialogue between Cuba and The Alps: think locally, act globally
Not only the worldwide recession but also, most notably, the climate change is providing our planet with new challenges.
In Cuba the global warming becomes tangible locally through the meteorological changes, provoking an increase of hurricanes in numbers as well as in force.
The future perspective - beginning today - needs to deal with embracing our growing knowledge. Which values need to be redefined, conserved or rediscovered? What needs to be changed regarding the limitations of our resources, the changing climate and the threats of globalization? How are innovations and new ideas implemented in today’s economy? And what level of personal responsibility do we take for our local and international actions?
Panels and discussions with local participants took place at Cuba Energía, as well as lectures at the University.
Individual presentations on questions about renewable eneregies, climate change and its impact on our societies were given as part of the Overtures 4 event at the UNEAC, the Cuban writer's and artist's union.
A special excursion was made to explore Las Terrazas, the self-contained eco-community about 80km west of Habana.
At the heart of the discussion are the works »Agua Benita« by the cuban artist René Francisco, as well as »Calling the Glacier« and »Ethics Disco« by the german sound artist Kalle Laar.
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René Francisco: Agua Benita
Benita Rivera is an old lady who lives in an alley of the 60 Street between 19 and 21, Municipality of Playa. The roof of her small house has been damaged for many years and had serious troubles with filtrations so the rainy seasons have terrible consequences for all Benita’s belongings: household furnishings, appliances, many of them lost because of this situation.
Benita is retired; this and her illness (rheumatism) make her life to elapse in the interior of her home. Rene Francisco and a team of ingenieurs and workers reconstructed the house and water system that solves Benita’s troubles.
A video documents the working process. Rene introduced a little of that fantasy mentioned before. As a deliberate fairy tale the angel of the painting appear to Benita in a day of torrential rain, opening the works and the repairs of the roof, conducting the water that arrives every now and then.
Agua Benita was presented at the house of Mrs. Rivera, other works of René Francisco were presented at the Galería Villa Manuela as part of the Biennial.
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Kalle Laar: Calling the glacier
... is a direct telephone connection to a glacier. A microphone installed on site transmits sounds from nature, directly and without editing, to the caller ...
Pure information transfer is is not the main issue. Much more important is the individual emotional contact created by listening live to the sounds, unobtruded by any visuals. To activate this perspective and connecting it with social, political and scientific aspects, is the aim of Calling the Glacier.
Call me!: +49 89 37914058 (Vernagtferner/ Austria)
www.callingtheglacier.org
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Kalle Laar: The Ethics Disco
From the vast collection of The Temporary Soundmuseum dj Kalle Laar presents a selection of political, spiritual philosophical and other records of Karl Jaspers, Pharoah Sanders, Malcolm X and Noam Chomsky, Last Poets and Captain Beefheart, Romano Guardini, Dead Prez: The Ethics Disco. An imaginary discourse on vinyl, a live-radio-play, sound cinema or sound museum.
Kalle Laar performed as part of the Overtures 4 event at the UNEAC.
www.soundmuseum.com
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