Annette le Fort

Annette le Fort is an artist and typographer, researching in the fields of language, with a focus on the relation between speech and writing, as well as memory, palimpsest, and synaesthesia. She is particularly interested in the ‘materiality of language’ and explores this mainly through video, sound projects, photograms and different forms of performative diaries. She is co-founder of »fliegende Teilchen«, a studio for typographical research in Berlin and editor of a series of publications revolving around the body and the skin of language, which are based on her project at the Jan van Eyck Academie in Maastricht. »Parole #1: The Body of the Voice / Stimmkörper« and »Parole #2: »Phonetic Skin / Phonetische Haut« were published by Salon Verlag, Cologne 2009 and 2012. Her work has been awarded with numerous prizes and grants like the ISTD Award London (2 x 2011 and 2004), the Daniel Gil Award Madrid (2004), the MfG-Award (2001 and 2011), the Award of Typographic Excellence, TDC New York (2001 and 2003), the Red Dot Award (2002), the annual grant of the DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service) for the Netherlands (2002), the grant of the Jan van Eyck Academie in Maastricht (2002/03) and a residential grant of the quartier 21, MuseumsQuartier Vienna (7/2008) and the Cité des Arts, Paris (2013).
Since 2009 she is Professor at the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Kiel.

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Since 2009
Professor for Typography, Muthesius Academy of Fine Arts and Design
   
Since 2009
Editor of »Parole«, a series of publications on the question of the materiality of language:
»Parole #1: »The Body of the Voice / Stimmkörper«, Salon Verlag Cologne, 2009 and
»Parole #2: Phonetic Skin / Phonetische Haut«, Salon Verlag 2012
       
7/2008
Residential grant at the MuseumsQuartier, Vienna
   
2006
Master of Arts, University of Applied Sciences Potsdam / Free University Berlin
   
Since 2005
lives and works as an artist and typographer in Berlin

Her Artistic projects revolve around language, especially the relation between speech and writing, the act of writing, memory, palimpsests, synaesthesia.
Selected projects: »About the house«, group exhibition at the W. H. Auden-Haus, Kirchstetten, Austria (2013), »trembling«, performative lecture / exhibition as part of the symposium »Resonant Bodies«, ICI Berlin (2013), »Polßen«, video project as part of the exhibition »Not I«, Errant Bodies Space Berlin (2012), »Reisetagebücher«, performative lecture for the symposium »Ephemer«, Kunsthalle Kiel (2012), »The Invisible Seminar«, exhibition, Bergen Academy of the Arts/Norway (2012), »White«, travel diary and video from Bergen to Oslo (2012), »Memory Map V – Trg Bana Jelačića and »Memory Map IV – Trg Petra Preradovića«, anotated maps, Zagreb (2011), »Black thread«, video project as part of the symposium »Bewegung Lesen. Bewegung Schreiben«, Tanzfabrik, Berlin (2010), »Synästhetische Bilder I – IV«, video project (2010), »Phonetic Skin – A Library of Voices«, video project (2009), »Bibliothek – Gelb Gelb Schwarz Weiß«, video project as part of the symposium »Dialog der Schrift«, Kunsthalle Kiel (with André Heers, 2009), »A ist blau«, video project (2009), »4 films«, video installation as part of the exhibition »Voice Day«, Jan van Eyck Academy Maastricht/Netherlands (2009), »Der Spaziergang«, travel diary London to Ljubljana to Belgrad (2009), »O corpo da voz«, book launch and exhibition, Livraria Odeon, Rio de Janeiro/Brazil (2009), »folha folha«, travel diary and video project, Curitiba to Morendes/Brazil (2009), »Wir verheimlichen nichts«, newspaper and installation as part of the exhibition »Mode und Verzweiflung«, MuseumsQuarter Vienna (2008), »J’aime ma caméra, parce que j’aime vivre«, video project as part of the exhibition »Test Tone – Sound and Image«, Musikhuset Aarhus/Denmark (2008), Memory Map II – Plaza de la Constitución (El Zócalo), anotated map, Mexico-City (2008), Memory Map III – Praça Santos Andrade, anotated map, Curitiba/Brazil (2008), »My dear«, video project (2007), »Travel Type«, diary of movements (2006-10), »Double Diary«, video project, Sevilla/Spain (2006), »Memory Map I – Garden of Dr. Maasri«, anotated map, Aley/Lebanon (2005)

Typographical projects mainly for international galleries and museums, publisher, universities and other cultural institutions with a focus on books and publications for artists.
Awards for the typographical work: Nomination for the German Design Prize (2012), International Typographic Award, London, category magazine (2011), International Typographic Award, London, category poster (2004 and 2011), MfG-Award 1. prize (2001 and 2011), Daniel Gil Award Madrid (2004), TDC-Award, New York (2001 and 2003), Red Dot Award (2003), Corporate Design Award for Germany and Switzerland (2001), Judge’s choice, TDC New York (2001), Preis der schönsten Bücher (1997).
   
2004-05
Relocation of the studio to Lisbon and Berlin
   
2002-03
Research project at the Jan van Eyck Academie Maastricht/Netherlands about the poetical cross-over between speech and writing. Projects f.e.: »pillow talks«, comic diary (2003-5), »Breathe in Breathe out«, performance, Jan van Eyck Academy (2004), »12 tongues«, virtual speech ballet for 12 speakers with a different mother tongue (2004), »To the Moon with a Spoon«, performance, Entre Deux Maastricht (2003), »hier à la même heure«, archive of moments, Paris (2003), »cheek2cheek – the air between you and me«, letter- and web project (2003). Studiovisits with artists, designers and theorists as Karel Martens, John Murphy, Pierre di Sciullo, Armand Mevis, Melle Hammer, Jop van Bennekom, Eva Meyer, Eran Schaerf.
   
2002
Relocation of the studio to Maastricht and Den Haag
       
2002
Annual grant of the DAAD
       
1999/2000
Study Philosophy, Christian Albrechts University, Kiel
       
1998-
Co-founder of the studio »fliegende Teilchen« for typographical research together
with André Heers
       
1997
Diploma communication design, Muthesius Academy of Fine Arts and Design, Kiel