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René Beekman

Born 1968, the Netherlands.With a background of video-art, René Beekman has developed a series ofsingle-channel and installation based video-art work over a number ofyears. These works evolved from elaborate linear- and later non-linearediting, to extensive computer-based processing.René Beekman received his art education at the AKI art-academy in Enschede (the Netherlands). He followed composition classes with GérardGrisey & Jonathan Harvey at IRCAM in Paris (France) in 1998, the 'Computer Music Workshop, MAX/MSP & Pd', at the State University of NewYork in Buffalo (U.S.), Department of Music, by Miller Puckette, DavidZicarelli, Zack Settel, Erik Ona, Cort Lippe & Ron Parks in 1999 andthe 'Max/MSP Summer School' at Berkeley University (U.S.) by DavidWessel, Matthew Wright, Adrian Freed, Richard Dudas and Leslie Stuck,in July 2001.His work has been exhibited in solo and group exhibitions in theNetherlands, the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Austria, China, Finland,Switzerland, Estonia, Poland, Bulgaria, Croatia and the United Statesamong others.His sound pieces have been released on cds in the UK at the AudioResearch Editions label and have been broadcast on radio in theNetherlands and in the U.S. His videotapes have been broadcasted ontelevision in the Netherlands, Germany and Latvia.He has been collaborating with composer and musician Bruce Gremo withwhom he performed in Amsterdam (the Netherlands) and in New York(U.S.). Together they developed the concept of a multiple computer performance instrument 'Route', which received its premiere at the World Wide Video Festival in Amsterdam in 2000. Since then, the concept of 'Route' has been developed into the collaborative projects 'Talkative Gods' and 'Mutable Surface'. Both were performed in New York (U.S.). In the fall of 2001 René Beekman collaborated with Xavier van Wersch on 2 performances for DotNu, a series run by Paradiso in Amsterdam and V2_ in Rotterdam (the Netherlands). Since then they have performed again in Amsterdam, The Hague (the Netherlands) and Kiev (Ukraine). With Bulgarian composer Georgi Arnaoudov René Beekman is now working on a new performance piece to be presented in Bulgaria. In 1995 he did an artist-in-residency program at Harvestworks in New York (U.S.). His work is included in a public video-collection in Nagoya (Japan) and is distributed by Montevideo in Amsterdam (the Netherlands) and the Kitchen in New York (U.S.). In 2001 he curated the international selection of the first video-art presentation at the Sofia Film Fest, screened at the Euro-Bulgarian Cultural Center. He has published in 'Lier en Boog, Series of Philosophy of Art and Art Theory', co-organised the 'That Media Thing' symposia in Amsterdam and given workshops in Bulgaria and in Amsterdam (the Netherlands). Having lived in Amsterdam between 1992 and 2003, René Beekman is currently based in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Updated 5 January 2002.

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