At the ‘Characters at War’ exhibition, held in Berlin-Mitte not far from the main venue, a gallery space was filled with cardboard cut-out characters assembled in a long line, with bastardised versions of Ronald McDonald, Hello Kitty, and an array of other fantastical curiosities (with legs) all marching forward in a kind of surreal protest to have their silent voices heard.

‘Characters at War’ Exhibition

Night time entertainment was staged firstly at the Volkspalast, the former East German parliament, a mammoth building recently gutted from asbestos and sitting on building death-row, but currently providing a venue for Berlin’s large-scale art parties. The evening promised a ‘360 degree VJ presentation’, but was a little disappointing in that it somehow only made it to about 260 degrees, but was nonetheless a relatively entertaining evening with an almost ‘rave’ party vibe.

The queue lining up for Friday night’s party at the palatial shell of the Volkspalast

The following evening at Cafe Moskau kicked off with the very amusing ‘Toast’ work, by ‘Gob Squad’, where pieces of white bread were frenetically toasted to create a tonal range of browns with which to create a large scale wall piece made completely of toast!

Gob Squad – Victory over toast!

Other open performance presentations by artists included Mumbleboy, Berlin’s crafty creators the Steak Zombies, and French illustrator Miss Van.

In a busy calendar of art-based events this year in Berlin, the Pictoplasma Conference stood out as an original and cleverly planned event which brought fresh recognition to the genre of character design and illustration, in all its manifestations. With interactive events as much a part of the program as performance and presentation events, the conference was a pleasure to be a part of, with a healthy dose of spontaneity and a friendly atmosphere that was highly inspiring to witness. All designers and artists take note – the 2005 Pictoplasma event is one not to be missed!

Pictoplasma Conference 2004
Date: October 28th – 30th, 2004
Place: Kino International, Cafe Moskau, Berlin
https://www.pictoplasma.com