Laurence Gartel - Recent Press Releases

Recent Press Releases

FOTO MENTOR AWARD Given to Laurence Gartel during Fotofusion, January 2009

The Palm Beach Photographic Centre Awards Committee and Executive Director's Office have chosen Laurence Gartel to receive the FotoMentor Award at FotoFusion 2009. The decision has come acknowledging Mr. Gartel's lifetime achievements pushing photography and image creation to new horizons. As a true pioneer of the digital aesthetic he will be honored at the FotoFusion banquet and will be highlighted as a role model for a new generation. Previous recipients have included Gordon Parks, Sebastio Selgado, Arnold Newman, Ruth Bernhard and Duane Michals. Laurence Gartel is the first Digital Artist to ever receive the Award. His innovative and groundbreaking Digital Art over 30-years sets him apart. (Gartel recently had work acquired into the permanent collection of the Victoria and Albert (V&A) Museum in London.)

In addition to receiving the Award there will be an exhibition of Mr. Gartel's work which will take place in the Photographic Centre's Museum and will be the opening night event of FotoFusion 2009. Laurence Gartel will also give a multimedia presentation for the Master Series Lecture. The Fourteenth Annual FotoFusion Festival takes place January 27 – 31st 2009. The Palm Beach Photographic Centre is located in Delray Beach,Florida.

GARTEL During ART BASEL MIAMI BEACH At DANIEL AZOULAY GALLERY, Midtown Miami 4, December 2008

LAURENCE GARTEL steps up to the plate again. You never know what he is going to do next! GARTEL considered the "FATHER" of Digital Art Movement for over thirty years, has gone back to his original computer systems at the Experimental Television Centre, in New York to produce a brand new multimedia video animation DVD titled, "FERRARI." The early analog systems of 35+ years, pre-date the personal computer and art still operational and completely integrate into today's bleeding edge technology. – Amazing!

The work is part of a larger installation that will be shown at the Georges Pompidou Centre, Paris in 2009. GARTEL stated in a recent interview, "Now that everyone in the world has a computer, what are they doing to move the electronic aesthetic to new levels?" "Most are just repeating steps that were taken ages ago." "They were completely unaware of the origins of the medium and thus both artist and curator are naive, implied Gartel. You rarely see a personal aesthetic from people working computers, but rather the "signature of the software." "There is no artistry," says GARTEL. "ART has to be in the work or otherwise it is just another rolling billboard at the mall."

"FERRARI" by GARTEL is another harmonic of creation. For one thing, the software, which has been employed, has been custom written exclusively for Gretel's needs. He works his magic and adds his autobiographical imagery. "Since I was a boy, I had a fascination with fast cars," says GARTEL. I liked them for their speed. "Today, I like them for their sleek beauty: A motorcar that is sensual," says GARTEL. Azoulay a Miami art dealer has always had a sense of high standard and originality. Quality has always been his trademark. "When I heard what GARTEL was doing, it was something that caught my attention, He is always ahead of the curve. You never know what GARTEL is going to come up with. It is both unknown and exciting at the same time. That is what ART is supposed to do," said Azoulay.

GARTEL will be projecting one channel of his installation, which will be shown at the Georges Pompidou Centre, Paris in 2009, outside Daniel Azoulay Gallery from December 2 – December 7. 2008, 11 am –to 8 pm. - VIP Opening Reception, December 4, 5 to 10 pm. Daniel Azoulay Gallery is located at Midtown Miami 4, 3301 1st Avenue, Suite 105, Miami, Florida 33137

ARTIST IN RESIDENCE: Institute for the Electronic Arts, October 2008

Digital Media Artist Laurence Gartel has been invited by Peer Bode, co-Director Institute for the Electronic Arts at Alfred University.

Mr. Gartel started his electronic career working with Nam June Paik at Media Study/Buffalo in 1975. While Paik was working on the moving image Gartel saw the opportunity bfor making still pictures that were very personal and unique in a way that the rest of the world had not considered as an approach to creating imagery. Gartel's highly visible work has been utilized for the cover Forbes, ABSOLUT GARTEL for Absolut Vodka, Coca Cola, Philip Morris, Swatch, Walt Disney Corporation as well as for celebrities such as Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, AC/DC, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Boy Georges, and many others. Gartel was the artist who taught Andy Warhol how to use the Amiga Computer when he created his portrait of Debbie Harry (Blondie).

Gartel's early 1978 Digital Video has just been acquired into the Victoria and Albert (V&A) Museum in London. His most recent work, "FERRARI" will be shown during Art Basel Miami Beach and has already been requested to be exhibitedas a much larger Installation at the Georges Pompidou Centre, Paris, at the end of 2009. Gartel stated, "The entire world hasnow fully embraced the electronic aesthetic." "Coming to Alfred to work with Peer is a circle being closed." "I know Peer for decades: We were all so young, but it was the vision of our youth that has been the diving force for the rest of the world." "While we are humble men, we are visionaries living in our time", says Laurence Gartel.