Evil Knievel: think positive / postgraduate me. Workshop

Saturday, September 1, 2007, 17:00
Workshop with Evil Knievel, PHOENIX Halle Dortmund
Saturday, September 1, 2007, from 20:00
Evil Knievel Party, Heimatdesign at former Hotel Rombergpark, Dortmund
Sunday, September 2 2007, 17:30
Lecture by Jens Kabisch (perfektewelt): The Tools of the Nation Makers, PHOENIX Halle Dortmund

In cooperation with Heimatdesign Hartware MedienKunstVerein proposes you to participate in a workshop with the legendary American stuntman Evil Knievel.

This unique possibility which is open for up to 25 participants, takes place in the framework of the exhibition „History Will Repeat Itself“ of Hartware Medienkunstverein (Dortmund) and KW Institute for Contemporary Art (Berlin) at PHOENIX Halle Dortmund. The show which is on view until September 23, 2007, gathers 22 international positions on strategies of re-enactment in contemporary (media) art and performance.

In a workshop which was conveived especially for the exhibition (taking place Saturday September 1, 2007, 17:00), Evil Knievel will deal with a specific aspect of contemporary (auto-)motivation strategies. "Goal setting through re-enactment" – this is the American catchphrase – serves as a guideline for his appearance. As a special form of re-enactment that is not only practised in American schools and the U.S. Army, Evil Knievel presents a central technique of self-motivation, which also was critical for his own career: identification with a successful idol. “For identification with a successful model can be an important factor in someone breaking out of the confines of their inferiority complexes and fear of failure, which cause them to remain in an enduring negative state of mind. A successful technique for improving your world is identification with a symbol that is an inspiration to make the right decisions.”

The workshop entitled "think positive/postgraduate me" Knievel will focus on Francis of Assisi (1181/1182 – 1226) who tried to model his life on that of Jesus of Nazareth (so-called Imitatio Christi). By re-enacting famous auto-suggestions of famous personalities Knievel discusses the meaning of re-enactment for his American success story. At the same time, Evil Knievel invites the public to experience the value of a positive perspective on life, the usefulness of visualizing for designing one's own life and to experience the courage needed for a change of perspective, taking historical cases as examples. „If you do what I do you need to have a postive mental attitude.“

On the occasion of the workshop/exhibition, a new issue of the fanzine Being Evil Knievel (No. 3, 2007) will be published.

www.hmkv.de
www.heimatdesign.de


PROGRAM September 1 + 2, 2007

Saturday, September 1, 2007, 17:00
Workshop with Evil Knievel: Think Positive / Postgraduate Me, part II: Francis of Assisi
Meeting point: Hartware MedienKunstVerein at PHOENIX Halle Dortmund, 17:00
Max. 25 participants, accreditation deadline August 31, 2007, call ++49 - 231 - 823 106 or write to info@hmkv.de. Participation in the workshop is free of charge.
The participants are kindly asked to wear robust shoes and white or light clothes. Beyond that, please bring a white piece of cloth, water and food for a walk.

Saturday, September 1, 2007, from 20:00
Evil Knievel Party
Venue: Heimatdesign at former Hotel Rombergpark, with DJ Grimm-O (Plunderphonics meets Bastardpop), surprise guests and Evil Knievel films

Sunday, September 2007, 16:00
HMKV-guided tour through the exhibition „History Will Repeat Itself“
Hartware MedienKunstVerein at PHOENIX Halle Dortmund

Sunday, September 2, 2007, 17:30
Jens Kabisch (perfektewelt): The Tools of the Nation Makers
Lecture room, Hartware MedienKunstVerein at PHOENIX Halle Dortmund
Lecture on the functions of open air museums and Living History in the United States on the example of Henry Ford's "Greenfield Village" and his pro-active writing of history

Venue and opening hours:
HMKV at PHOENIX Halle Dortmund (exhibition venue)
Thursday and Friday 11 - 22
Saturday and Sunday 11 - 20
Hochofenstrasse / corner Rombergstrasse
Dortmund-Hoerde

How to get there / Map:
http://www.hmkv.de/dyn/e_contact_roaddescription/


Evil Knievel

*1973 Butte, MT; exhibitions and performances a.o. “History Will Repeat Itself”, Hartware Medienkunstverein, Dortmund; KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Berlin (2007-2008); “Super A”, Kunstverein, Langenhagen (2006); “More is not enough”, Revolver, Frankfurt am Main (2006);  “Teasing Minds”, Kunstverein, München (2004), “Brand New”, Hoxton Distillery, London (2004); “Einblicke”, Haus der Kunst, München (2003).

His amazing death-defying jumps over cars and canyons and the dangerous accidents that resulted from them in which Evel Knievel narrowly escaped death more than once, laid the foundations for his status as a super-human hero – a daredevil, in Knievel’s words – powered by virtues like ambition and dedication plus the conviction that even failure should be seen as a chance. “The people I want to hear about are the people who take risks.” In his predominantly white costume with its red and blue trims, Knievel stylised himself as the incarnation of America and embodied – perhaps not least because of this ‘white’ costume – what it meant to be ‘successful’. Not only as a hero of the thrill show genre, which he helped to make so popular, but also as a public figure Knievel was a focus of attention and he was never afraid to use his popularity to serve a good cause.

“Death is a tough competitor, I beat him many times.” With these words the American stuntman Evel Knievel describes his career and established the myth of a death defying daredevil. In the mid-1960s he toured under the name Evel Knievel and His Motorcycle Daredevils, and quickly became world-famous through his spectacular motorcycle jumps across parked cars and buses. Not less spectacular were the crashes that followed most of his stunts, such as his attempt to jump over the fountain of Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas with his motorbike or his attempt to jump over the Snake River Canyon with his skycycle, a self-constructed rocket bolid. He is said to have had more than 35 broken bones during his career. This is an ultimate record which did not only secure him a listing in the Guinness Book of Records but laid the foundation for his fame as a man who never surrenders.