Kaspar König & Lydia Lake
Next to lecturing and creating educational open Research and teaching formats, Kaspar Königs artworks advocate „creating momentum for social and environmental sense“ in the realm of design and soundart. He is based in Zürich and in the Emmental in Switzerland. His works emmit transitory holism by the means of sound, objects and performance, invite the observer to reflect on the relationships of the local context and the universe.
Therefore he is lively exchanging knowledge with the Harrisons (centrefortheforcemajeur, Santa Cruz), the Cradle to Cradle Foundation (prof. Braungart), and engages in grassroot movements such as Hackteria, Carbonkarma, Urbanstreetforest, share and repair, to work together and design towards a positive footprint.
Due to his interest and research in acoustic ecologies, Kaspars works trigger sometimes a greater understanding of natural forces such as the wind, or water. In 2020 he lectures on “the sound of sustainable transition” at the Leuphana University (D). Since April of 2018 Kaspar König started to work as an artist for the rectorate of ZHdK (University of the Arts, Zürich) and moves the sustainability dossier towards a fundamental academic strategy.
Since the fall of 2017 he has been working as an interim Prof. (Prof. Peter Kiefer) for soundart and compostition at HfM (Mainz) where he teaches the artistic practices of soundart.
Since 2012 he has been working as an artistic/scientific researcher at the University of the Arts Zürich (ZHdK) in the research focus transdisciplinarity led by Prof. Florian Dombois, where he build several Windtunnels for the SNF research called “Size Matters”. More information on http://blog.zhdk.ch/windkanal/.
Kaspar works together with Lydia Lake.
Writer, director and actress. Born in Spain from Swiss parents. Her first short film Biorxa, is now part of the collection of the Centre de Cultura Contemporánea de Barcelona (CCCB). She has written and directed shortfilms: The silence of Robert Capa, House of Hope and Wake (Best Short Film at the International Film Festival of Bilbao). She is the co-director of the feature film Aro Tolbukhin, in the mind of the killer, a co-production between Spain and Mexico in which she explored the combination of narrative and documentary languages (Best Script & Best Film in the Ariel Prizes 2002). Between 2003 and 2006 she directed for the Catalan TV3 two TV movies: Woman of Ice and Second Skin. As a documentarist and producer: Moving of the Circle (2009), Felix & Nati (2011) and Maria Talks (2017) in co-production between Artisan Films GmbH and Testamento Producciones. From 2011 to 2013 she worked funding Cine Institute, the first local film school in Haiti. During this period, she combined her pedagogical activity with the production of a filmic essay, Stand-In, an experimental de-construction of the cinematic language. In 2013 she moved to Zurich, city of her ancestors, to teach at the European Film Actors School (EFAS) and where she did a research at the University of the Arts (ZHdK) on non-linear narratives. She has also worked as a camerawoman and editor for other artists (Kaspar König, Futura Fundation, Ursula Biemann). Therese in Bits (2015-2019) is a filmic trilogy inspired by a character missing in the painting ‘Le Radeau de la Méduse’ (Géricault, 1819). L‘Horizon en Equilibre (Barcelona, 2015), Notes pour un Radeau Africain (Ouagadougou, 2017) and Therese & Thomas (Burkina & Switzerland, 2019). The latest has been shown at the Helmhaus Museum in Zurich. For each part of this trilogy she has worked along with migrants, students and non-professional actors. Her most recent project, Ayenan (2020) is a documentary film and a filmic installation that will be opening in Kaserne, Basel, in November 2020. It has been made in collaboration with the Colombian Indigenous communities of the Inga, Quillacinga and Siona people.
Lydia Zimmermann is also Lydia Lake. She currently develops film projects for Artisan Films (Switzerland) and Principal Films (Spain) and curates the art gallery Curtidos bcn, a space for artistic research and residencies.
Surrender to COII
The performance, taking place on the building of the former KUONI transport company near Zurich’s main train station and permanently altering the building’s appearance, submits an official surrender of the remaining oxygen we breath to be transformed into CO2 (CO II).
‘We will try giving up breathing for good! The last hopes of our superhero die facing an unbeatable enemy: the invisible molecule structure called carbon dioxide. Surrendering as a gesture to start taking the invisible threat serious. Is there any hope we can solve this manmade madness?’
Auf dem Gebäude der ehemaligen KUONI Transport Gesellschaft in der Nähe des Hauptbahnhofs in Zürich verändern die beiden Künstler:innen mit ihrer Performance das Erscheinungsbild der KUONI-Leuchtschrift. Das Statement: Wir verpflichten uns hiermit offiziell dazu, den verbleibenden Sauerstoff, den wir einatmen, freizugeben und zu CO2 (CO II) zu machen.
«Wir werden versuchen, das Atmen für immer aufzugeben! Die letzten Hoffnungen unseres Superhelden sterben angesichts eines unbesiegbaren Feindes: die unsichtbare Molekülstruktur namens Kohlendioxid. Die Kapitulation als Geste, um die unsichtbare Bedrohung ernst zu nehmen. Gibt es irgendeine Hoffnung, diesen menschgemachten Wahnsinn zu beenden?»