Speculum Artium 2021
The 13th edition of the Speculum Artium 2021 new-media festival intertwines past realizations with current events and visions of a distant future. This year, the festival outgrew itself and is undergoing a transformation in regard to its content and representation. The festival program, intended for laymen and the professionals alike, focuses on five basic topics: art, technology, science, economy and tourism – all of which have served as a foundation to our work ever since the beginning. It is our aim to intertwine and interconnect them even more in the future.
In the past few years, the Revolution of digitalization and the proliferation of online and digital content in all sectors and in all areas of activity have brought together civil society, academia, the public sector and the economy. The Speculum Artium Festival also reflects these changes and connections and tries to incorporate them into the vision of Delavski dom Trbovlje.
The festival program consists of five thematic sets. Under the spotlight this year we find the Senster, the oldest cybernetic, computer-controlled sculpture which dates back to 1970, and can be placed into the artistic and historical context of the first beginnings of intermedia and contemporary art. Along with Senster, the first thematic set also includes works of art selected in a public contest. The second set is a collection of works from the student competition program, while the third presents projects designed under the brand “Made in Trbovlje” and includes a presentation of activities carried out within the project RUK – Network of Art and Cultural Research Centers, as well as some other local projects.The independent set comprises the 11th edition of DigitalBigScreen, an international festival of video art which, in addition to the videos selected in a public contest, also includes several other artistic VR projects. The extensive accompanying program features concerts, performances, workshops for children and youth, talks and guided tours of the exhibition, while the online part of the program further enriches the festival events.
