1923 aka Heaven is one of two animation loops directed by Max Hattler, inspired by the work of French outsider artist Augustin Lesage (1876-1954). 1923 is based on Lesage's painting A Symbolic Composition of the Spiritual World from 1923, below. The second loop, 1925 aka Hell, is based on Lesage's painting of the same name from 1925. The films were created during 5 days in February 2010 with students at The Animation Workshop in Viborg, Denmark.
- Audience Prize, Animate OPEN: Digitalis, Animate Projects, 2011
SCREENINGS 2018-2020
- International Animation Exhibition (IAE) 国际动画艺术展 Online Retrospective (2017-2019), China, 1 Jun - 15 Jul 2020
- 3rd International Animation Exhibition (IAE) 国际动画艺术展, Beijing, China, 15-21 Dec 2019 (more info)
- Taichung International Animation Festival, Taichung, Taiwan, 11-20 Oct 2019 (Director in Focus 2)
- About Receptive Rhythms, Goethe-Gallery, Goethe-Institut Hong Kong, 19 Sep 2019 (artist talk, part of Max's solo exhibition Receptive Rhythms)
- Anifilm, Trebon, Czech Republic, 7-12 May 2019 (Max Hattler Retrospective)
- 26th Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film, Metropol 3, Stuttgart, Germany, 17:00 Fri 3 May 2019 (In Persona: Max Hattler screening)
- CREATE! MakerSpace, CityU Library, City University of Hong Kong, 3 Dec 2018 (Guest Lecture 5.0: Max Hattler: Audio-Visual Abstraction: Animation as Fine Art Practice)
- SAS 2018: Black Box Exhibition 'Animation Temporalities', Concordia University, Montreal, Canada, 18-21 Jun 2018 (artists: Dirk de Bruyn, Max Hattler, Mike Hoolboom, Faiyaz Jafri)
- Patterns of Continual Becoming: Order, Repetition and Metamorphosis in Experimental Animation, Royal College of Art, 8 Mar 2018 (screening curated by Lilly Husbands)
2017
- Universiti Kuala Lumpur, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 27 Nov (Oblique Narrative and Synaesthetic Experience - The Abstract Animations of Max Hattler)
- KLEX, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 25 Nov (Max Hattler Retrospective)
- Western Universities Students Animation Festival Academic Proseminar, Southwest Minzu University, Chengdu, China, 12 Nov (lecture: 'Materiality and Representation in Animation: Approaches to Abstraction')
- 56 Moon Animation Festival, Chengdu, China, 11 Nov (Max Hattler solo screening)
- Ars Electronica Festival, Linz, Austria, 7-11 Sep (Deep Space 8K: Max Hattler: Expanded Abstractions)
- London Animation Club, London, 1 Aug (Max Hattler Returns to... talk/screening)
- Expo 2017, Astana, Kazakhstan, 14 Jul (Max Hattler Retrospective presented by Visual Music Award and German Pavilion)
- 29th Society for Animation Studies Conference, University of Padova, Padua, Italy, 6 Jul (Dan Torre: ‘Revolving and Evolving: Cycles, Persistence and Time in Animation’)
- 29th Society for Animation Studies Conference, University of Padova, Padua, Italy, 4 Jul (Max Hattler: ‘Expanded Abstractions: From Fake Holography to Broken Stereoscopy’)
- Stuttgart Media University, Stuttgart, Germany, 13 Apr (guest lecture)
- Filmfest Dresden International Short Film Festival, Dresden, Germany, 4-9 Apr (Animated: Max Hattler Retrospective)
2016
- The Age of Experience, Angewandte Innovation Lab, Vienna, Austria, 1-20 Dec (curated by Harald Kraemer)
- The World of Digital Art with Andrej Tisma, #128: Max Hattler's Video Art, American Corner, Novi Sad, Serbia, 27 Oct
- Institute for Media and Communication Studies, University of Mannheim, Mannheim, Germany, 24 Oct ('Animation Art and Video Activism' lecture)
- Punto y Raya Festival, ZKM Center for Art and Media, Karlsruhe, Germany, 23 Oct (masterclass)
- School of Arts, Renmin University, Beijing, China, 3 Sep (guest lecture)
- Lasalle College of the Arts, Singapore, 30 Jun (guest lecture)
- SCAD Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 10 May (New Media Art and Animation lecture)
- California Institute of the Arts, Valencia, CA, USA, 10 Feb (visiting artist lecture)
- California State University, Los Angeles, CA, USA, 9 Feb (lecture)
2015
- Afterimages - Dark Romanticism’s Reverberation in Video Art, Kunstsammlung Jena, Germany, 5 Dec 2015 - 28 Feb 2016 (curated by Robert Seidel)
- Magnet Palace, Clockenflap Festival, Hong Kong, 27-29 Nov
- Indie-Anifest, Seoul, Korea, 17-21 Sep (Max Hattler screening)
- –scape, Zhou B Art Center, Chicago, 17 Jul - 28 Aug (curated by Snow Yunxue Fu and Mo Chen)
- Melbourne International Animation Festival, Australia, 24 Jun (Max Hattler screening+Q&A)
- Multiplace, Bratislava, Slovakia, 26 May
- Hongik University, Seoul, Korea, 19 May (lecture)
- Open Source Art Forum, WCO Korea, Seoul, Korea, 17 May (lecture)
- Resonate, Belgrade, Serbia, 17 Apr (lecture)
- The Age of Experience, Run Run Shaw Creative Media Centre, Hong Kong, 12 Mar - 22 Apr (curated by Harald Kraemer)
- Monstra Animated Film Festival, Lisbon, Portugal, 17 Mar (masterclass)
- Tehran International Animation Festival, Tehran, Iran, 12 Mar (masterclass)
- Aus Sehnsucht wird Weitblick. Die Jubeljahre des Ulmer Münsters, 1877–2015: 2015. Weitblick, Stadthaus, Ulm, Germany, 25 Jan - 31 Dec 2015
- School of Creative Media, City University of Hong Kong, 12 Jan (lecture)
2014
- Sint Lucas Antwerpen, Antwerp, Belgium, 15 Dec (masterclass)
- IMM - Institut für Musik und Medien, Düsseldorf, Germany, 11 Dec (lecture)
- Cologne Game Lab, University of Applied Sciences, Cologne, Germany, 10 Dec (lecture)
- Goldsmiths, University of London, London, UK, 9 Dec (lecture)
- University of the West of England, Bristol, UK, 3 Dec (lecture)
- Middlesex University, London, 2 Dec (lecture)
- Echo Park Film Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA, 21 Nov (retrospective)
- University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA, 19 Nov (lecture)
- CalArts, Valencia, California, USA, 17 Nov (lecture)
- London College of Communication, London, UK, 30 Oct (lecture)
- Royal College of Art, London, 22 + 23 Oct (artist talks)
- Medialogy, Aalborg University Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark, 16 Oct (lecture)
- London Animation Club, Green Man, Fitzrovia, London, 7 Oct (artist talk)
- National Film and Television School, Beaconsfield, UK, 29 Sep (lecture)
- Audiovisual Abstractions. Max Hattler's Doctorate in Fine Art Exhibition, Moving Image Research Centre, University of East London, London, UK, 19-24 Jun
- Fest Anca, Zilina, Slovakia, 18-22 Jun (Profile: Max Hattler)
- Museo de Arte Contemporaneo, Caracas, Venezuela, 14 May (lecture)
- School of Creative Media, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 28 Apr (lecture)
- After Dark: Extended Cinemas, Exploratorium, San Francisco, CA, USA, 6 Mar
- KASKcinema, Ghent, Belgium, 20 Feb (lecture)
- Sint Lucas Antwerpen, Antwerp, Belgium, 19 Feb (lecture)
- Sint-Lucas, Ghent, Belgium, 18 Feb (lecture at Digital Design International Day)
2013
- Middlesex University (Animation Dept), London, 9 Dec (lecture)
- After Dark: Glow, Exploratorium, San Francisco, CA, USA, 5 Dec (2-channel installation)
- Royal College of Art, London, 20 Nov (talk)
- International Festival of Fulldome Arts 'Dimension', Tsiolkovsky State Museum of the History of Cosmonautics, Kaluga, Russia, 16 Nov (artist talk)
- Animatou Festival, Geneva, Switzerland, 11 Oct (masterclass)
- Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts - HSLU, Switzerland, 9 Oct (lecture)
- Coastal Currents Arts Festival, UK, Oct
- onedotzero BL-NK launch, BL-NK, London, Wed 25 Sep (2-channel installation)
- Imagina Festival, Espacio Fundacion Telefonica, Lima, Peru, 4-12 Sep (2-channel installation)
- Videoholica, Varna, Bulgaria, 4 Aug (artist talk)
- Nozstock Festival, Bromyard, Herefordshire, Fri 26 Jul (Max Hattler Retrospective)
- Asta Sommerfest, Mainz University, Germany, 5 Jul (Filmz Festival screening)
- Schaustelle, Pinakothek der Moderne, Munich, 15+16 Jun (Max Hattler: Selected Works)
- Schaustelle, Pinakothek der Moderne, Munich, Germany, 15 Jun (artist talk)
- Rom for Kunst, Oslo S (Oslo Central Station), Norway, 10 June - 10 July (public screen curated by Kunsthall Oslo + Oslo Screen Festival)
- Memory Lame, Static Gallery, Liverpool, UK, 17 May
- Platform4, Aalborg, Denmark, 16 May (workshop)
- Nikolaj Kunsthal, Copenhagen, Denmark, 9 May (artist talk)
- AniFest, Teplice, Czech Republic, 27 Apr (lecture)
- London College of Communication, London, UK, 17 Apr (lecture)
- Frenz: Art in April, Strongroom, London, UK, 17 Apr (screening/talk)
- Outer/Inner (Space), LUX moving image, April (online exhibition also featuring Emma Hart, Kurt Kren, Sarah Pucill, Martin Kohout, Bureau of Inverse Technology, Brad Butler and Karen Mirza)
- 6 Million Ways of Getting into the Arts: Animation, University of Salford, MediaCityUK, 16 Mar (talk/panel)
- Plymouth College of Art, Plymouth, UK, 8 Mar (lecture)
- University for the Creative Arts, Farnham, UK, 8 Feb (lecture)
- Royal College of Art, London, 31 Jan (talk)
2012
- HEAD - Geneva University of Art and Design, Switzerland, 22 Nov (artist talk)
- Animate Projects: Digitalis, Egg Space, University of Salford, MediaCityUK, 8-24 Nov
- Multivision Festival, Pro Arte Foundation, St. Petersburg, Russia, 1 Nov (artist talk)
- Viborg Animations Festival, Viborg, Denmark, 28 Oct - 2 Nov
- Festival du Film Européen, Houlgate, France, 24-30 Oct
- A Secret Club, Øst for Paradis, Aarhus, Denmark, 14 Oct
- Max Hattler Presents..., Tyneside Cinema, Newcastle, UK, 23 Aug, 18:30
- Welcome to the Treasuredome, ICCI 360 Arena, Weymouth, UK, 11-12 Aug (curated by Kayla Parker and Stuart Moore)
- One Country One Film - Apchat International Film Festival, France, 27-29 Jul
- Lago Film Fest, Revine Lago, Italy, 20-28 Jul (Max Hattler Retrospective)
- Heaven+Hell, Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art, Chicago, IL, USA, 14 Jun (curated by Dan Rybicky)
- Domingo: FINDELMUNDO #01, Lima, Peru, 14 Jun
- Golden Kuker Animation Festival, Sofia, Bulgaria, 12 Jun (Max Hattler Panorama)
- ISFF Detmold, Germany, 8 Jun (Zwischenbilanz: Max Hattler Retrospective)
- Expopromenade Frontiere(s), Pau, France, 7-10 Jun
- Royal College of Art, London, 6 Jun (presentation/workshop)
- Riga International Short Film Festival 2ANNAS, Riga, Latvia, 28 May - 3 June
- Animasivo, Mexico City, Mexico, 14-20 May (Animate Projects 'Digitalis' screening)
- Backup Festival, Weimar, Germany, 12 May ("Collisions, Kaleidobooths, Hattlerizers" talk)
- FMX, Stuttgart, Germany, 11 May (lecture)
- Skepto at Istituto Europeo di Design, Madrid, Spain, 11 Apr
- Les Etranges Nuits du Cinema, La Chaux-de-Fonds, France, 5 Apr
- Skepto International Film Festival, Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy, 28-31 Mar
- Max Hattler: Audiovisual Abstractions, Vilnius Art Academy, Vilnius, Lithuania, 27 Mar
- Go Short, Nijmegen, Holland, Sun 18 Mar, 16:00 (Max Hattler Special Screening)
- Center for the Arts, Eagle Rock, LA, CA, USA, 15 Mar (curated by David Wexler)
- Oslo Screen Festival, Oslo, Norway, 9-11 Mar
- Byron Bay Film Festival, Australia, 2-11 Mar
- Animac, Lleida, Catalonia, Spain, 1-4 Mar (Max Hattler Special Screening)
- Royal College of Art, London, UK, 16 Feb (presentation/workshop)
2011
- Best Of Int'l Short Film Festival Detmold, Detmold, Germany, 17 Dec
- Animate Digitalis Commisions Launch, BFI Southbank, London, 14 Dec
- University of the Arts Bremen, Germany, 2 Dec (lecture)
- Expotoons Int'l Animation Festival, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 29 Nov - 1 Dec
- Filmz Festival, Cinemayence, Mainz, Germany, 24 Nov, 20:00
- Istanbul International Animation Festival, Istanbul, Turkey, 22-27 Nov
- Max Hattler Special Screening, Off and Free Film Festival, Seoul, Korea, 17-23 Nov
- CutOut Fest, Queretaro, Mexico, 10-12 Nov
- Let The Rhythm Hit 'Em, Kunstraum Kreuzberg / Bethanien, Berlin, 5 Nov 2011 - 15 Jan 2012. Opening: Fri 4 Nov, 19:00
- Multivision, St. Petersburg, Russia, 3-15 Nov (Heaven & Hell installation at AL Gallery)
- Punto Y Raya Festival, Museo Reina Sofia, Madrid, Spain, 3-6 Nov (l'Alternativa screening)
- Leaders in Software and Art (LISA) at Big Screen Plaza, New York City, NY, USA, Nov (curated by Isabel and Scott Draves)
- Banjalukanima, Banjaluka, Serbia, 23-28 Oct
- HEX Pixel Gallery, Kansas City, Missouri, USA, 7 Oct (Heaven & Hell 2-channel installation)
- Animatou, Geneva, Switzerland, 1-9 Oct
- East Pop West, London, 30 Sep - 2 Oct (group exhibition; Max Hattler solo screen)
- Hackney Film Festival, Rio Cinema, London, 17 Sep, 13:30
- The Outsiders, Newcastle, UK, 9-10 Sep (Solo Screening)
- Étrange Festival, Paris, France, 2-11 Sep
- Tenderflix at Tenderpixel Gallery, London, UK, 23-30 Jul
- San Gio Video Festival, Verona, Italy, 23-27 July
- FILE - Electronic Language International Festival, Sao Paulo, Brazil, 19 Jul - 21 Aug
- Animate OPEN: Digitalis, Animate Projects, online exhibition, 13 July onwards
- Fest Anca, Zilina, Slovakia, 1-3 Jul
- DOTMOV, Japan + worldwide, since Nov 2010 + thru 2011 (screenings in 2011: Singapore, Shizuoka, Berlin, New York, Rio de Janeiro, Kuala Lumpur; for more details see schedule)
- The Lost Picture Show at Glastonbury Festival, Somerset, UK, 24 Jun
- International Short Film Festival Detmold, Detmold, Germany, 9-13 Jun
- Whirlygig Cinema at Wychwood Festival, Cheltenham, UK, 4 Jun ('Making Tracks' rescore)
- Vienna Independent Shorts, Vienna, Austria, 26 May - 1 Jun
- Athens Video Art Festival, Athens, Greece, 20-22 May
- Wiener Kunstschule, Vienna, Austria, 12 May
- onedotzero at Donaufestival, Filmgalerie, Krems, Austria, 7 May
- Transform: Max Hattler + Noriko Okaku, Raum D, quartier21, Vienna, 5 May
- Plastic Paper, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, 4-7 May (Heaven & Hell 2-channel installation)
- Film Networks: Hattler & Okaku, Donaufestival, Filmgalerie, Krems, Austria, Sat 30 Apr
- Art Below: Art in Motion, Liverpool Street Underground Station, London, 11-25 April
- Pictoplasma Festival, Berlin, Germany, 6-9 Apr
- NOVA Contemporary Culture, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, April (group show)
- Chelsea College of Art & Design, London, 29 Mar
- Middlesex University, London, 28 Mar
- Bart kunst in huis / Go Short, Nijmegen, Holland, 16-20 Mar
- Max Hattler: Audiovisual Abstractions, AA School of Architecture, London, 14 Mar
- University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK, 7 Mar
- Anima Festival, Brussels, Belgium, 4-13 Mar
- Taicoclub Film Project / Art Re-Public Tokyo, 7 public screens in Tokyo, Nov '10 - Mar '11
- Reinterpreting the Gothic (curated by Jessica Allee + Wago Kreider), Big Muddy Film Festival, Carbondale, Illinois, USA, 22 Feb
- Animated Exeter, Exeter, UK, 19 Feb
- Floating World Animation Festival: DMTV, Show Cave, Los Angeles, CA, USA, 19 Feb
- University of East London, London, 8 Feb (Max Hattler talk)
- Structuring Strategies: Max Hattler, CalArts, Valencia, California, USA, 25 Jan
- Video Is The Only Constant, Corsica Studios, London, 16 Jan
- London Short Film Festival, London, UK, 15 Jan ('music & video' programme)
- London Short Film Festival, London, UK, 14 Jan ('Making Tracks' live rescore programme)
- Max Hattler: Relations & Abstrations (curated by Klaus W. Eisenlohr), Directors Lounge, Berlin, 8 Jan
2010
- Videomedeja, Novi Sad, Serbia, 17-19 Dec (Heaven & Hell two-channel installation)
- Short + Kort, Copenhagen, Denmark, 9 Dec 20:00
- Brain Wash, Curzon Soho, London, 6 Dec
- Yota Space, St. Petersburg, Russia, 4-19 Dec (Heaven & Hell two-channel installation)
- Animae Caribe, Port of Spain, Trinidad, 25-27 Nov
- Painting With Light, Cafe Gallery Projects, London, 20 Nov
- Met Film School, Ealing Studios, London, UK, 15 Nov
- St. Louis International Film Festival, St. Louis, USA, 11-21 Nov
- onedotzero Festival, London, 10-14 Nov ('wow+flutter 10' + 'onscreen' installations)
- Fredrikstad Animation Festival, Fredrikstad, Norway, 10-14 Nov
- Kinofest, Bucharest, Romania, 3-7 Nov
- Taicoclub Film Project / Art Re-Public Tokyo, 7 public screens in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan, Nov-Dec + into 2011
- DOTMOV, Japan + worldwide, Nov-Dec 2010 + more thru 2011 (screenings in 2010: Sapporo, Fukuoka, Sendai, Nagoya, Kagawa, Tokyo, Kobe, Kyoto, Osaka; Shanghai, Hong Kong; Buenos Aires; Stockholm; Los Angeles; Sao Paulo, Belo Horizonte + Porto Alegre; for more details see above + schedule)
- Linoleum, Moscow, Russia, 28-31 Oct
- Darklight, Dublin, Ireland, 28-31 Oct
- Tindirindis, Lithuania, Oct: Vilnius, Siauliai, Panevezys, Nida, Palanga, Klaipeda, Zarasai
- Chimeria, Sedan, France, 23 Oct - 1 Nov
- Film + Design Festival, Dutch Design Week, Eindhoven, Netherlands, 23-31 Oct
- DOK Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany, 18-24 Oct
- Floating World Animation Festival: DMTV, Holocene, Portland, Oregon, USA, 13 Oct
- Goethe-Institut, Ankara, Turkey, 13 Oct
- Tweak Festival, Limerick City, Ireland, 18 Sep
- MUMIA, Brazil, Betim & Nova Lima, 6-12 Sep; Belo Horizonte, 13-19 Sep
- MIGZ Festival, Moscow, Russia, 3-4 Sep
- Circuito Off, Venice, Italy, 1-4 Sep
- Fest Anca, Zilina, Slovakia, 30 Jul - 1 Aug
- 'The Darkroom' Adfest 2010, CCC, Shizuoka, Japan, 3 Jul - 7 Aug (2-channel installation)
- 'Heaven and Hell' Broadway, Nottingham, UK, 1-31 Jul (2-channel installation, solo show)
- 'Directors Lounge' contemporary art ruhr 2010, Essen, Germany, 2-4 Jul
- 'It Is Time' Directors Lounge, Z-Bar, Berlin, 24 Jun
- University of East London, 23-30 Jun (Professional Doctorate in Fine Art Exhibition)
- 'Tripolar' MOCA, Taipei, Taiwan, 15 Jun - 18 Jul (2- channel installation, 3-person show)
- Worldwide Short Film Festival, Toronto, Canada, 1-6 Jun
- BUG 19, BFI Southbank, London, UK, 20 + 27 May
- onedotzero at Cryptic Nights, CCA, Glasgow, 6 May
- Jornada de Comunicación, Universidad Marista, Mexico City, 30 Apr
- Habitacion del Ruido, Universidad del Claustro de Sor Juana, Mexico City, 28 Apr
- Lumen Eclipse, Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA, USA, 1 Apr - 30 Jun (solo show)
- Animated Worlds: Avant-Garde Animation, Cinephilia, London, 21 Mar
- University of Westminster, London, UK, 8 Mar
- 'Kunst ist Versuchung' Kloster Roggenburg, Germany, 24 Feb - 6 Jun (3-person show)
- Ravensbourne College of Design, London, UK, 17 Feb
- 6th Berlin International Directors Lounge, Berlin, 14 Feb
- The Animation Workshop, Viborg, Denmark, 12 Feb
PUBLICATIONS + TV
- Phase 3, BR-alpha TV, Germany, 2012
- Canal+ TV, France, Jan 2011 (+ interview)
- Stash DVD Magazine, Issue 67, Apr 2010
CREDITS
Director: Max Hattler
Technical Director: David René Christensen
Sound: Blake Overgaard
Previz/Layout: Thorvaldur Gunnarsson
Modelling: Thorvaldur Gunnarsson, Arnold Bagasha, Blake Overgaard
Animation: Casper Michelsen, Mikkel Vedel, Thorvaldur Gunnarsson, Blake Overgaard, Arnold Bagasha
Produced by Max Hattler & The Animation Workshop
Year: 2010
Versions:
- 2 min. festival screening version
- forever-looping 1923/1925 double-projection installation ‘Heaven & Hell’
- "Clip of the Week" iotaWeekly (7-13 Feb 2011)
- "strangely enticing" Televisual
- "enigmatic" Motionographer
- "hypnotic" Boards
- "stunning" Middle Boop Mag
- "mesmerizing" BOOOOOOOM!
- "impressive" Front Row Reviews
- "Awesome" Beautiful/Decay
- "Beautiful" Shift_4ward
- "brilliant" The Curious Brain
- "Animated Heaven" sleek magazine
- "Really trippy stuff" Light Sound Dimension
- "Loving this ... amazing ..." Ventilate
- "A looping masterpiece." Tom Judd, Animade
- "Amazingly trippy..." DoseNation
- "Las Vegas if it was pretty..." Reel Aesthete
- "Trippy Tech Take on Lesage" Dangerous Minds
- "An interwoven, rhythmically aligned, neon world unfurls" Worldwide Short Film Festival
"Viel Kunstgeschichte verbirgt sich auch in der Arbeit von Max Hattler (HEAVEN AND HELL 2010). An der Oberfläche ein Lichtspiel wie in Las Vegas vielleicht. Auf zwei großen Screens nebeneinander. Das digital in Bewegung versetzte Bildmaterial stammt größtenteils aus dem Œuvre des 1954 verstorbenen Art Brut Künstlers Augustin Lesage. Himmel und Hölle. Man muss nur wissen woher, um die öde Techno-Ornamentik der End 1990er zu überschreiten." Roland Schöny, artmagazine, 2016
"Max Hattler’s video 1923 aka Heaven envisages a receding digital landscape." LUX moving image, 2013
"The connections between so called outsider art and certain forms of generative/computational art can be intrinsic and implicit. The self-referential motifs and mytho-mathematic patterns that so commonly appear in the work of outsider artists, generated by 'non-standard' brain functioning (or whatever the currently accepted catchphrase is), mimic the output of recursive functions, and various iteration species of the mindless algorithm. (...) In this film loop the viewer is taken on a trajectory through a seemingly infinite architecture of moving pillars, sliding steps and shifting façades, each adorned with glowing primitive shapes - circles and squares. The experience seems to be a well worked out exercise in the geometric resonance of nested complexity, the end result is a building that is a machine – a chapter of Tron occurring in Ancient Egypt. The bilateral symmetry, often also favoured by outsider artists, is employed to yield illusions of totemic forms in a way that those who have a fondness for Rorschach ink blots will appreciate." Paul Prudence, dataisnature, 2011
onedotzero interviews Max about 1923 + 1925.
"The French artist Augustin Lesage was an avatar of the French movement known as art brut—a scene like outsider art, but with a spiritual and shamanic overlay—the old, weird Europe, to paraphrase Greil Marcus. Lesage, a former miner whose work was celebrated by Andre Breton and the surrealists, painted vast, intricately patterned canvases that call to mind visions, trance states, the Egyptian Book of the Dead—anything but technology as we think of it. But technology is older than the computer, older than electricity. And as animator Max Hattler's film inspired by Lesage's 1923 painting A Symbolic Composition of the Spiritual World shows, the strobing, massing, fluorescent patterns of technological imagery—calling to mind both the neon aesthetic of Tron and the glowering industrial edifices of Fritz Lang's 1927 film Metropolis—have something visionary in them as well." Matthew Battles, Gearfuse
Taicoclub Film Project / Art Re-Public Tokyo: 1923 aka Heaven on public screen 1 of 7 in Shibuya, Tokyo, 2010-2011.
"Enter the Void: Somewhere between our electro death and a Tron-inspired DMT trip, Max Hattler blew our mind." Complex
"smart use of abstract imagery and music to create a hypnotic piece reminiscent of the dark mood of the classic Metropolis." Selected and commented by Jesus de Francisco (Motion Theory) for DOTMOV 2010
"guaranteed to unhinge your worst creative block: 1923 and 1925 from Max Hattler and a hard-driving student crew from the The Animation Workshop in Viborg Denmark." Stash
"In 1923, Max has refashioned the Lesage painting as a stunning, futuristic metropolis, composed of countless separate moving elements. It is beautiful and hypnotic, and as one reviewer has already noted, like Las Vegas would be if it was pretty…" Promo News
"addictively hypnotic ... updating Lesage’s vision into a futuristic metropolis." ... "killer animation loop" Animation Show
"If this is what heaven is like, I'm ready to go." FICKNISH
"I was floored by this piece … 1923 truly harnesses the spiritual nature of the original work which it was based on, for me it was like two great discoveries in one. Just google image search 'Augustin Lesage' and you'll know exactly what I'm talking about." David Montgomery, Silverfish Closet
"It’s nice to see someone bring a painting to life like Hattler does here, especially an older work." Living Proof Magazine
"... a stunning example of an animation loop that offers up something new through every cycle." Doodlescreen
Art in Motion: 1923 aka Heaven on public screen at Liverpool Street Underground Station, London, April 2011, thanks to Art Below and tank.tv.
"i'm so taken by this new animation loop by max hattler… whereas this new piece has a special magic that is not quite rivaled by his previous works and colaborations, after watching 1923 for the first time yesterday, i started looking at his other videos and got sucked into nearly all of them. it was an afternoon well spent." the celluloid index
"...one of the most profound motion-graphics, vimeo clips I have witnessed this year. The elements displayed remind me of glimpses of the hidden and unseen worlds of psychedelic experiences, near death experiences & deep meditation." Prana Genius
"...one of the coolest animations I've ever seen." Hunters & Gatherers
"... an incredibly complex and addictive world of machinery and pattern" Ellen Turnill, Moving Brands
"While 'Hell' appears cold and mechanical, 'Heaven' reminds me of the solemn atmosphere of a buddhist temple." Bianca Beuttel, bbianca.net
"i suspect the guy that made this sprinkled some dmt in his computer and just hit record" Joyce Su Loves You
"Um mix daqueles antigos livros da coleção 'Olho Mágico', caledoscópios e um grande e iluminado cassino." smellycat.com.br
"Eine Reise durch animierte Sphären. Der Zuschauer scheint wie im Flug durch ein filigranes Reich aus Farben und Formen zu reisen." Filmz, Mainz, Germany, 2011
"Heute schon LSD gehabt? Nein? Nicht nötig. Augen- und hirnfordernde Animation, die mich erst hypnotisiert und dann eingesogen hat." Das Kraftfuttermischwerk
"Animations-Wizard Max Hattler kommt diesmal psychedelisch daher: Letzten Monat erstellte er mit Filmstudenten beim The Animation Workshop im dänischen Viborg einen Motion Graphics-Clip in Andenken an den französischen Künstler Augustin Lesage." Page online