DEBATED IN:  UNIVERSES IN UNIVERSE  -  FORUM
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   FROM RAUL  MOARQUECH FERRERA-BALANQUET:

   Dear Eduardo, Pat and Marie:

   Thank so much for your kind words. I have been traveling since last week
   and I just got to my email.
   There was a moment when I wanted to give up, but the solidarity of the
   artists, which always have been the key element of InteractivA, kept me
   working. I was amazed how we pulled the show up that day. There was the
   pleasure of the collective experience and the cultural exchange that took
   place at every moment. I look back now, and I am very honored to have the
   support and the understanding of the artists and have the pleasure to
   continue my long lasting friendship with so many new media artists,
   including the one I have met at this forum.
   It will take a while before 2005 and who knows what will be the state of
   new media art. It will be great if another InteractivA takes place but 
   I have done this work as part of my social responsibility with
   Latin/Latino Culture and I can not used my energies to develop a name for
   a museum which doesn´t support the work I do, specially when I don´t get
   paid. I feel exploited by my own people because they know that I figure
   out ways, and have the support, to make the exhibit work. I need to
   rethink the base and working conditions of InteractivA. Well, a lot of us
   started brainstorming in Merida. In a few months  will have regained the
   energies to keep the work.
   Gracias a todos and Eduardo, my very best warm wishes for articulating
   your experience at InteractivA. Your words showed me that the work I did
   was worthy.
   Saludos,
   Raul
   Raul Moarquech Ferrera-Balanquet,MFA 
   Artist/Writer/Curator 

   krosrods@cartodigital.org 
   ektenel@hotmail.com 
   http://www.cartodigital.org/krosrods
 

     A NOTE FROM FATIMA LASAY

     “ It will take a while before 2005 and who knows what will be the state of
   > new media art. It will be great if another InteractivA takes place but 
   > I have done this work as part of my social responsibility with
   > Latin/Latino Culture and I can not used my energies to develop a name for
   > a museum which doesn’t  support the work I do, especially when I don’t get
   > paid. I feel exploited by my own people because they know that I figure
   > out ways, and have the support, to make the exhibit work. I need to
   > rethink the base and working conditions of InteractivA. Well, a lot of us
   > started brainstorming in Merida. In a few months, will have regained the
   > energies to keep the work.”

   Sometimes, a museum/institutional base for new media projects is useful
   which is why we often tolerate problems and incompetence. Also, the nature
   of new media makes it difficult for traditional art institutions to support it
   fully. It is ideal to have a harmonious working relationship with art
   institutions - but this does not always happen.

   I am curious, what were the specific problems of MACAY (apparently, they
   knew they had problems and were probably guilty so they did not even show up
   to welcome the participants in InteractivA'03)? Why were they not able to
   support the equipment requirements of the exhibition? I ask because I had a
   similar experience - and the problem had to do with the museum dealing with
   sponsors who could not deliver the goods on time. So to resolve the problem,
   the museum used their own equipment and some of the artists brought their
   own equipment. I also offered some equipment for the artists to use. We are
   fortunate to have the full support of the museum, and just unfortunate that
   we had corporate sponsors that do not understand cultural work.

   But it seems the situation between MACAY and InteractivA'03 is different. On
   a related issue, the situation between ICECA and CMU Art Museum (in
   Chiangmai New Media Art Fest in Thailand) seems much worse, see
   http://culturebase.org/home/iceca/cmu_letters/clarifications.html

   In contrast, Habana's "V Arte Digital" seem to be a demonstration of new
   media thriving well in the institutional context.

   Well, there will always be those moments when we want to give up. Those
   moments mean we need to take time to re-think the conditions and the
   intentions of our work, and proceed to make our work better and more suited
   to local needs and concerns. So we don't really ever give up, but rather
   pause to contemplate, and then move on again.

   Congratulations, Raul, and to all those who pulled InteractivA'03 through in
   Merida!

   Warm regards to all,
   Fatima
 

   Spelling mistakes (that often occur in e-mails) have been corrected by the editor.