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Audiovisual arts
Audiovisual art is one of the most characteristic art forms of today. Museums and galleries exhibit more artist films, video installations, computer-based works and NetArt alongside paintings and sculptures than ever before. But will future generations still be able to view these special art works?
Audiovisual art works are stored on carriers that – more than, for example, canvas and marble - are vulnerable to faulty use and wear and tear. One day these carriers will also encounter mechanical and/or electronic failure. And the playback formats and the necessary playback and display equipment become obsolete through the rapid technological evolution.
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Archiving and preservation
How can we prevent this important part of contemporary art production getting lost through its dependence on technology? And how can we ensure that such art works may be exhibited in the future and remain accessible to the public? How can the intention of the artist and the experience of the public be respected? And what is the role of both the museum and the artist in the preservation process?
PACKED tries to answer these questions. Its activities focus on the different steps in the preservation process: the cataloguing, condition inspection, re-formatting, restoration, storage, …
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Platform
Since its foundation in 2005, PACKED has developed into a knowledge platform. On this website you will find information on the archiving and preservation of audiovisual arts (and other audiovisual cultural heritage). It also offers you the possibility of asking for advice. Through collaboration with Belgian and foreign organisations, PACKED is part of an international network. Together we aim to develop and exchange methods for the archiving and preservation of audiovisual arts, without losing sight of the broader cultural context.
PACKED is an initiative of argos – centre for art and media, Museum Dhondt-Dhaenens (MDD), Museum van Hedendaagse Kunst Antwerpen (MuHKA / Museum of Contemporary Art Antwerp) en Stedelijk Museum voor Actuele Kunsten (S.M.A.K. / Municipal Museum of Contemporary Art - Ghent).
PACKED receives public funding from Ministerie van de Vlaamse Gemeenschap / Ministry of the Flemish Community.