Ralf Beil – författare

Music videos are signs of their times, integral parts of their contemporary culture, available worldwide, produced worldwide – a nucleus of the global entertainment industry. In this brilliant book, musical world culture meets an icon of German industrial culture. The catalog accompanying the major exhibition at the Völklinger Hütte World Cultural Heritage Site is devoted to the history and present of music videos. In the numerous text contributions, musical, artistic and filmic quality are illuminated as well as current topics: AI, climate change, political, psychological and physical violence, and gender issues of all kinds. The examples span from early forms of short music film to Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody from 1975 to empowerment scenes of the 2020s by Lady Gaga, Beyoncé or The Carters. The result is a global panorama of the genre and the art form of the music video that has never been realized in this form before. The book brings together around 90 music videos from more than 30 countries. Among the musicians, artists and directors involved are: Laurie Anderson, Roger Ballen, Joseph Beuys, Björk, Childish Gambino, Chris Cunningham, Daft Punk, Michel Gondry, Spike Jonze, Pussy Riot, Rammstein, Andy Warhol, Zoot Woman and many more.

Opening up the cosmos of an entire continent – New perspectives on Africa This lavishly illustrated volume approaches the vast continent of Africa from a variety of viewpoints; beyond prejudice and stereotypes, via cultural history and contemporary art: by means of permanent changes of perspective and a diversity of artistic voices. The history of humankind meets the colonial past and the omnipresence of aspects of Africa in many regions of the world. On the one hand, surprising views of Africa are focused on from Europe. And on the other, works and installations by Africans or protagonists from the diaspora present ideas, impulses and identities which all signify Africa. The texts illustrate the broad time frame from the first humans to Pan-Africanism and Afro-Futurism, as well as present literary and philosophical narratives. ARTISTS: DELE ADEYEMO, JOHN AKOMFRAH, JAMES GREGORY ATKINSON, SAMMY BALOJI, ARÉBÉNOR BASSÉNE, MEMORY BIWA, MARÍA MAGDALENA CAMPOS-PONS, CATPC, OMAR VICTOR DIOP, SOKARI DOUGLAS CAMP, WILLIAM KENTRIDGE, KONGO ASTRONAUTS, SUSANA PILAR DELAHANTA MANTIENZO, ROMÉO MIVEKANNIN, ZANELE MUHOLI, JOSÈFA NTJAM, KALOKI NYAMAI, EMEKA, OGBOH, ZINEB SEDIRA, SANDRA SEGHIR, YINKA SHONIBARE, THE SINGH TWINS, GÉRALDINE TOBE, KARA WALKER, CARRIE MAE WEEMS