Ars Electronica 2012 Interim Results:
Significant Increase in Project Revenues; Attendance at the Ars Electronica Center Remains High
(Linz, July 1, 2012) At the conclusion of the first half of 2012, Ars Electronica Linz GmbH is pleased to report excellent year-to-date results. Two particularly notable bright spots are the project revenues generated by the Ars Electronica Futurelab and AE Solutions. “For the current year, we’re projecting 70% higher revenues from these two divisions. In other words, we’re now estimating gross revenues from projects at €5.9 million,” said a delighted Diethard Schwarzmair. With a total of 74,500 visitors thus far in 2012, the Ars Electronica Center is maintaining last year’s record pace. And work is underway on the next big attractions: the voestalpine Klangwolke at the end of August and the Ars Electronica Festival in early September. Preparations have already been wrapped up for the “Impetus and Movement” exhibition opening on July 11 at Automobil Forum Unter den Linden in Berlin.
Project Revenues Up 70%
Ars Electronica Linz GmbH’s revenues from projects will show a 70% increase over the prior year. The driving force behind this growth is the Ars Electronica Futurelab, which has just wrapped up a series of major projects and has several more in progress. Among those completed and successfully launched are the “TimeSpace” installation at Vienna International Airport’s new Check-In 3 terminal, the immersive presentation setup for Swarovski in Wattens, Tyrol, the Inspiration Pavilion at SAP’s corporate headquarters in Walldorf, Germany, a 3D Lab for Schattdecor AG and mobile terminals for Austrian flooring manufacturer Kaindl. Works in process include projects for MED-EL, the Chamber of Commerce of the Province of Upper Austria, Volkswagen AG, the Toshiba Corporation Design Center and Linz’s Musiktheater.
More Extensive Research Activities
The Ars Electronica Futurelab’s R&D has been more wide-ranging than ever. Together with the Salzburg University of Applied Sciences, the Futurelab has launched the Center for Advances in Digital Entertainment Technologies dedicated to enabling the entertainment industry to create even more realistic situations, livelier impressions and more profound emotions. Staffers are collaborating with internationally renowned media artist Klaus Obermaier on “(St)age of Participation,” a project that’s developing innovative forms of audience participation in stage-based media art. This initiative is being funded by the FWF–Austrian Science Fund’s PEEK arts development program. Beginning this autumn, the Futurelab and Linz Art University will jointly offer a Ph.D. program that will deliver additional impetus to the lab’s R&D activities.
Excellent Attendance at the Ars Electronica Center
Since January 1, 2012, 74,500 visitors have toured the Ars Electronica Center, exactly equaling attendance during the same period in the prior year. This ongoing popularity is attributable to, among other factors, the numerous and very well-received activities and programs the Center offers. The lineup has included the KET – Kids Experience Technology exhibition (January 31-March 4), presentations in conjunction with the Long Night of the Stages (June 2), the Out of Control – What the Internet Knows about You exhibition (running since April 19), the weekly Deep Space LIVE events, and the preparations for this year’s Klangwolke going on in the SoundLab, the AEC’s in-house sound studio, as well as in the ABC Workshop. The next big attraction will open later this summer: an exhibition about typography that dovetails nicely with the ABC Workshop and the Klangwolke font. Coming in autumn: an update of New Views of Humankind, the permanent exhibition in the BrainLab.
Workforce Growth
Ars Electronica’s expanding radius of action has had a positive impact not only on this enterprise’s bottom line and this institution’s worldwide reputation. “Our workforce has increased every year since 2009, so we’ve been successful in job creation too,” said Diethard Schwarzmair. “Including the temps we hire in conjunction with the Festival and the Klangwolke, we now have a total of 291 employees on staff. That’s the equivalent of about 151 full-time jobs on an average annual basis, and represents a 10.8% increase over 2011.”
voestalpine Klangwolke: Several Steps Ahead
The voestalpine Klangwolke kicks off at 8:30 PM sharp on September 1. Artistic directorship of this year’s open-air spectacle has been entrusted to the Ars Electronica Futurelab, and the dramaturgy is correspondingly ambitious. Work in front of and behind the scenes has been moving full-speed ahead for weeks. Staffers are tinkering on high-tech effects in collaboration with experts worldwide; meanwhile, Upper Austrians of all ages and walks of life have been creating their illuminated letters and soundcloudminiatures. Letters are also being turned out at OTELO open technology labs in Gmunden, Vöcklabruck and Kremstal, and at voestalpine’s apprentice workshop. The music schools of the City of Linz and the Province of Upper Austria, the Linz Fire Department and volunteer squads throughout the region, water sports associations in Linz and vicinity, the local model airplane club, whip-cracking equestrians from Abtenau and lots of other groups are also hard at work on their contributions. In short: the voestalpine Klangwolke is rapidly assuming impressive dimensions.
pdf Ars Electronica 2012 Interim Results
http://www.flickr.com/photos/arselectronica/4749277900/
Ars Electronica Center / Nicolas Ferrando, Lois Lammerhuber / Printversion / Album
http://www.flickr.com/photos/arselectronica/7159434483/
ZeitRaum / Pez Hejduk / Printversion / Album
http://www.flickr.com/photos/arselectronica/5533892501/
CADET Pyrat / Ars Electronica Futurelab / Printversion / Album
