ARTFORMATS     by       THIERRY GEOFFROY / COLONEL

                                 Emergency Room              Critical Run                   critical formats/ news               contact 1@colonel.dk

                                 Biennalist             Penetration             Slowdance                  Debate Fight at vernissages                  Awareness Muscle             Debate Rave                  press images                manifeste 1989


Thierry Geoffroy / Colonel's most important art work since 2005 has been to conceive and activate globally his “ART FORMATS“.Some of his ART FORMATS have been activated in over 20 countries. The theoretic grounds for the ART FORMATS are provided in the Manifeste Moving Exhibition written by Colonel in 1989.The aim of ART FORMATS are to expand global critical platforms in response to the emergencies existing in the world today. Some of the most known ART FORMATS are: "Emergency Room", "Critical Run", " Debate Rave", "Penetration" and "Biennalist".

An ART FORMAT is constituted on the basis of a formula or prescribed format.  The format contains a number of invariable elements that create the framework for the participants and factors that change every time the ART FORMAT is activated. Besides the variables within the structure of the ART FORMAT, the relation between the ART FORMAT, space and time also changes. For example an ART FORMAT put up in a museum would differ slightly from an ART FORMAT activated in a gallery. Other outward factors that could change the ART FORMAT could be the political climate; an ART FORMAT mounted in a totalitarian state would differ from a mounting of the same ART FORMAT in a democratic state. Art institutions wanting to use an ART FORMAT like Emergency Room must agree to use the original formula including the title, spirit and the methods that Thierry Geoffroy has prescribed.

An ART FORMAT is an art work in itself. ART FORMAT is related to conceptual art but has an increased focus on becoming widespread and aims to expand into a global artistic movement. As soon as an ART FORMAT has proven successful it can, with permission from and negotiation with the artist, be activated an unconditional number of times as long as the formula is respected. Furthermore, the ART FORMAT incorporates psychological and sociological aspects by virtue of the relationships arising between the participants. Thus an ART FORMAT becomes a frame of interaction, form and expression, both visually, socially and conceptually.
The concept of the ART FORMATS has been developed by the French-Danish conceptual artist, Thierry Geoffroy (also known as Colonel). He has worked since 1989 developing the ART FORMATS as an artistic frame. Through his experience with TV productions for Danish National Television, Geoffroy was inspired to apply the TV format to the art scene. He has created these ART FORMATS to resemble the TV formats that are designed for propagation, distribution and global interest.

“I am interested in the methodology of the TV formats but I highly disagree with TV format's existing aims as they are focused on spirit of hate with a smile, I even find them responsible for global Apathy,“ says  Geoffroy, "some of my ART FORMATS are really unpopular, like making people run and debate at the same time about embarrassing, untrendy questions."

Geoffroy's ART FORMATS involve several hundred participants and are based on a sociological and a psychological starting point concerning debate and collaboration. Thierry Geoffroy is also adamant that contemporary artists and their audience have an obligation to confront current themes – emergencies – today before tomorrow is too late. This is especially visible in the Emergency Room and the Critical Run format in which the participants train their ability to think critically about the emergencies of today whilst reaching a mass audience often facilitated by the internet.