page_title: Batuz
section_title: Altzella, Germany (1993-2005)
hierarchical_section_title: Batuz / Life and work / Altzella, Germany (1993-2005)
caption_attribution_description: English: Human chain. A preparation for the Batuz' project "no más fronteras" in Antarctica.
context_page_description: Batuz is an artist, philosopher and cultural activist. He is the founder of the Société Imaginaire, an undertaking that strives for cultural dialogue. Batuz' ideas are carried out through the support of his foundations – Batuz Foundation USA and Batuz Foundation Uruguay, as well as Helmets for Peace e.V.
context_section_description: The Kennedy Center on its 25th Anniversary honors Batuz by inviting him and the Société Imaginaire to hold their meetings at the center for the duration of one week.
  Batuz is given the Kloster Park Altzella as a place to establish working centers. A publication illustrating the grounds, workshops, programs and opportunities created by Batuz at Altzella is published. Artists, professors, and students of all kinds from around the world are invited to participate in these workshops.
  Throughout the next upcoming years Altzella serves as a laboratory for several cultural experiments.  Implementing the methods of the Société Imaginaire into myriads of projects, Batuz extends its ideals to thousands of participants in cooperation with various institutions.  Apropos to these projects, portfolios are continually created which include works from heads of states, such as Richard von Weizsäcker, Julio Maria Sanguinetti, Michal Kovac, Pastrana Borrero, from artists and writers such as Czeslaw Milosz, Alvaro Mutis, Arthur Miller, Hans Magnus Enzensberger, Seamus Heaney, Mark Strand, Raul Lozza, Michael Morgner, to name but a few, together with people from all sectors of life.  The National Gallery of Art in Washington DC under the direction of Henry A. Millon becomes a permanent repository of all portfolios and creates a separate archive in its library for these works.
  Though forever formative, and the Société Imaginaire being nothing other than a social representation of his study on the ‘Interrelation of Forms’, Batuz begins to integrate his artistic works directly into upcoming projects.  The ongoing project ‘no más fronteras’ is implemented in the year 2004 on the German-Polish border in the river Neisse together with the cooperation of former General Inspecteur Hans-Peter von Kirchbach.  The border between the two nations becomes symbolically overcome in the act.  With civilians and members of the military of both countries standing together in the middle of the river, a physical representation of one of Batuz’ painting is composed to symbolize this mutual will.
  In 2006, together with support from the Uruguayan government and military, Batuz goes to Antarctica and realizes, with scientists from different nationalities posted throughout the continent together with members of the military, his project ‘no mas fronteras en la Antartida’.  Along the endless background of snow and ice, aerial documentation is taken of the participants forming a line that reenacts the image of his painting held in the collection of the Guggenheim museum.
  With a change of government in Saxony, Batuz is forced to leave Altzella and reestablishes his headquarters in the newly acquired Villa X. Therein the archive of the Société Imaginaire is created together with a private exhibition.
  In 2009, the preliminary enactment of ‘no mas fronteras en Afghanistan’ is made possible through the support of 200 soldiers of the Panzergrenadierbrigade 37 of Frankenberg in conjunction with local civilians.  It would finally be implemented in Afghanistan, through the support of the German Minister of Defense Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, in the fall of 2010 when Batuz’ visits and promotes the project in cooperation with members of the international joint armed forces and various Afghanistan locals.
caption: A human chain. Preparation for the Batuz' project "no mas fronteras" in Antarctica. Instead of using brushes Batuz "paints" with people.
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