Making free use of the personal
Artistic statements are always very closely linked with the personal perceptions and individual constructions of realities of those who make these statements.
The ambition “to form one’s own impression of something”, to transform one’s own views, observations and thoughts into worlds that can be experienced visually, to translate them into images, sounds and character systems – this ambition accompanies us when we create art and when we study art. The curiosity to understand why we do something and the enthusiasm to ﬁnd out how we do it – to play in a serious manner – all this can serve as a guiding philosophy for studying Time-based Arts here at the university.
The specialist class in Time-based Arts is a research team. Narrative and experimental ﬁlms, projections, sounds, time and perception of time, built spaces and media spaces, bodies and motion, the material and the immaterial are all explored in both word and deed. Against the background of one’s own experiments and reﬂections and on the basis of joint discussion, the tasks here are to investigate personal motivations and perceptions and to experiment with the available tools and possibilities in order to formulate one’s own artistic statement in a precise manner.
Studying art means making discoveries, searching for and taking up positions (and then discarding them again), trying out artistic forms and ﬁnding one’s own language.
My role as a teacher is that of the questioner and the mirror, of someone who opens up worlds and encourages, of the accelerator and the catalyst. I regard myself as a dialogue partner for my students – somewhat similar to a sports coach – who makes her knowledge and experience available to the students, who offers propositions, who develops a path of study together with the players, and who accompanies every individual student on their own chosen trails, no matter how unclear, convoluted or uncharted these may be.
Alongside the specialist class, the Time-based Arts department also includes an area that is open to students of all specialist classes. In this way, students with very different focuses and skills come together in the seminars, and persons and artistic positions can enter into a common dialogue.
Prof. Michaela Schweiger
archive of guests
Adrian Sauer - Guest review
Börres Weiffenbach - camera
Cristóvão A. dos Reis - Super 8, Dramaturgy
Daniel Niggemann - guest criticism
Gerriet K. Sharma - Sound
Holger Birkholz - guest criticism
Jan Rieger - light, video seminar / camera
Joker Nies - Circuit Bending
Julia Schäfer - guest review
Kilian Schellbach - Guest review
Lena Brüggemann - Guest review
Maria Morata - Experimental Film
Niklas Goldbach - Workshop
Steph Ketelhut - Steadicam
Tilo Schulz - Guest review
Ulf Aminde - Performance
Yala Juchmann - Photography
Focuses of this course of study
Experimentation – whether individual work or a team project – is at the core of our teaching activities, together with reﬂection upon and discussion of this work within the class and within the broader context of art. Particular importance is also attached to individual artistic mentoring.
Alongside the specialist class, the Time-based Arts department also includes an area that is open to students of all specialist classes. In this way, students with very different focuses and skills come together in the seminars.
The projects carried out within the department of Time-based Arts reﬂect the interests of the students and teaching staff. The seminars and workshops provide introductions to the relevant fundamentals. The department lecturers and various guests offer seminars and workshops on a broad spectrum of subjects, ranging from ﬁlm, video, media installations and computer-supported works, right through to sound works. Subsequently, the students work on individual solutions for their projects in close cooperation with the teaching staff.
The focal areas here include ﬁlm and video, spatially active video installations, computer-supported works and audio plays, right through to sound installations. Inter-disciplinary projects and close cooperation with the Werkleitz Society (Werkleitz Biennial for Media Art) provide further input.
The course of study in the Time-based Arts specialist class takes ten semesters: the foundation course takes four semesters, and the main study period including the ‘Diplom’ thesis takes six semesters. This leads to the awarding of a ‘Diplom’ degree in Fine Art.
The area of the department concerned with fundamental skills and knowledge aims to teach the essential elements of audio-visual work and to introduce students to the broad spectrum of possibilities. This means teaching basic craft skills and, together with the students, investigating how the various formal and aesthetic tools relate to the different types of content.
General qualiﬁcation for university entrance, and artistic suitability. No prior specialist technical and craft skills are required. Exceptions: The general qualiﬁcation for university entrance can be waived in cases of exceptional talent combined with professional experience.
Diplom degree in Fine Arts
The four-semester postgraduate course is aimed at graduates who have already acquired experience in working with new media and who wish to complete a project within the given timeframe. The prerequisite for admission is a completed university course, a ‘Diplom’ degree or a comparable degree, along with a personal discussion with the department.
In the area of producing artistic films, videos and media installations, the Time-based Arts department has had a modern working environment at its disposal since the summer semester of 2017, which enables productions in high-resolution 4K formats.
For this purpose, the department has several customisable camera rigs (Sony PXW-FS7 and PMW-F5) with extensive options for a wide range of applications. For example, dolly and crane movements or stabilised camera movements can be realised with a gimbal system. An Easyrig is available for handheld camera use. In addition, video radio links and radio focussing as well as professional Compact Prime zoom lenses and fixed focal lengths are part of the basic equipment.
For presentations and exhibition projects, the department has a number of HD and 4K-capable projectors and screens as well as professional media players.
Much of this recording and presentation technology can be borrowed by students to realise their projects and exhibition plans.
In the post-production area, which takes place in a central computer lab that can be used around the clock, ten editing suites with the latest computer hardware (Mac Pro/ iMac, HP Workstation) and a colour correction suite are available. All editing suites have 4K-capable displays and are equipped with the latest versions of popular audio and video editing software (including Adobe Creative Cloud, DaVinci Resolve, Avid Media Composer and Steinberg Cubase).
After an intensive introduction to the use of lighting equipment, a studio attached to the time-based arts department allows filming to be carried out in a controllable environment. The equipment includes a ceiling truss with integrated lighting control, as well as artificial spotlights and grip. These allow various lighting situations to be set up. A pneumatic tyre dolly and a mini JIB crane can be used in the film stage area. The studio can also be used as a green screen or photo studio thanks to a mobile cove. In addition to film and photo shoots, the room is also used for sound recording and as a rehearsal space for performative work.
The recording studio in the ‘Weißes Haus’ building can be used after attending an introductory workshop. Registration is possible with Claus Stoermer at ed.ellah-grub@oidutsnot. In the recording studio, professional miking of sound sources, e.g. instrument, noise and voice recordings, is possible on a digital audio workstation (DAW) with a 5.1 sound system. A speaker's desk is permanently set up ... more
Dates for equipment rental in the ‘Gärtnerhaus’ (Gardner's house)
- tuesday: 3 – 4 p.m.
thursday: 10 a.m. – 12 p.m studio weeks
- monday: 10 – 11 a.m.
wednesday: 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Technology can be borrowed by students of the FG Time-based Arts and students who have taken the introductory video course.
The rental usually takes place over a period of one week.
General qualiﬁcation for university entrance, and artistic suitability. No specialist prior technical and craft skills are required. Exceptions: The general qualiﬁcation for university entrance can be waived in cases of exceptional talent combined with professional experience.
Study Information Day
The university holds a Study Information Day in January every year for applicants. General information on the university is provided, and the various disciplines showcase themselves. You will be able to talk to students and to assistants. The precise date is announced on our website by mid-December at the latest.
The traditional summer festival, which includes the annual exhibition, is held every year in July at Burg Giebichenstein. The university opens up its studios, seminar facilities and workshops to all who are curious about the fresh ideas, objects and pieces of art that have been created in the various art and design disciplines at the state of Saxony-Anhalt's art university. You are cordially invited to come along!
- Office for students and
T +49 (0)345-7751 532
F +49 (0)345-7751 517
- Diplom degree in Fine Arts
Start of study
- Winter semester, new students
per year: 2-6 STANDARD PERIOD OF STUDY
- Basic study programme: 4 semesters,
Main study programme: 6 semesters (including diploma thesis)
Diploma thesis: written and practical work, diploma colloquium tuition
- Information for prospective students