PONTON - Biography

Biography

1986

Ponton - one week of simulated TV and radio station at Ars Electronica in Linz, Austria

1987

Van Gogh Radio - 50 days interactive citywide radio station at documenta 8 in Kassel, Germany
Van Gogh Radio - radio project on the Frankfurt book fair

1988

Artist's channel - one week TV station at the European Media Art Festival in Osnabrück, Germany

1989

Van Gogh TV - three days of satellite TV on ZDF/3sat with 3 satellites at Ars Electronica in Linz, Austria
Foundation of Ponton European Media Art Lab as a fixed media art lab in Hamburg, Germany
Founding members are Karel Dudesek, Benjamin Heidersberger, Mike Hentz and Salvatore Vanasco

1990

Hotel Pompino - interactive cyberspace TV, a one week satellite gameshow in a virtual hotel on ZDF/3sat at Ars Electronica in Linz, Austria
University TV - a virtual TV lab on the European Media Art Festival in Osnabrück, Germany

1991

Ballroom TV - Event in Berlin, Germany, combining the audience in a discothek and in the Berlin cable network
All American Tour with Interactive TV on Continental Cablevision in Cambridge/USA

1992

Piazza virtuale - 100 days of interactive TV on ZDF/3sat on 4 satellites with a total of 700 hours (250 transmissions) and more than 100.000 calls per hour at documenta 9 in Kassel, Germany

1993

Piazza virtuale - from the Mediale in Hamburg, Germany, via 3sat
Van Gogh TV Japan Tour - three days nationwide broadcast on NHK BS-2 in Tokyo, Japan
Mike Hentz leaves Ponton, Frank Matthäi becomes a partner

1994

Piazza virtuale: Service Area a. i. - a 15 part interactive TV-show on the basis of a 3D and multimedia communication space at Ars Electronica in Linz, Austria
The Ponton European Media Art Lab is being invited by the Ministry of Science and Culture in Lower Saxony to move to Hannover, Germany.

1995

Karel Dudesek leaves Ponton and continues with Van Gogh TV as a separate enterprise.
Ponton develops and programs the 3D userinterface of the educational research project COMENIUS.
"Nachtfieber" - first nationwide interactive TV party on the German ARD network

1996

Local_Loop - Ponton designs a 3D interactive navigation tool for the WWW with financial support by the Lower Saxony Film Board
EPRI-Watch - Ponton develops communication interfaces and technology to be used by the members of the European Parliament
SMARTS - Ponton teams up with an international cosnsortium to provide communication solutions for Small and Medium Sized Enterprizes (SME)

Honors and recognitions:

1991 Nomination for the Smithsonian Award, Washington
1993 Honorable Mention at the Prix Ars Electronica, Linz
1993 Deutscher Medienkunstpreis from Siemens and Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnologie (ZKM), Karlsruhe
1994 Interactive Media Festival, Los Angeles (Nominee)