Vello Virkhaus graduated from the School of The Art Institute of Chicago in 1995 with a BFA, focused in Art and Technology. His VJ career started in 1992 with the collaborative efforts of Brien Rullman, Vj-Tek. Early visual installations and performances would consist of multiple 16mm film projectors running a series of spliced film loops, which where changed throughout the evening in tandem with slides and dissolve units. People used to come up to us and ask us what we where.... and we would say VJ's... like a DJ, but we mix visuals not music. Virkhaus, Rullman and Brian Dressel formed OVT Visuals, one of the first live "VJ" companies in the world.
Today, the term Vj has become a title that many young and aspiring video mixers have adopted, and use to identify with a unique creative visual process. The establishment of the live visuals art form in the electronic music community and the art world has created a huge new variety of software and hardware tools for artists to use today. Things have come along way since 16mm film loops... and will continue to evolve as new technology and artists emerge today. We are on the dawn of a new interactive audio visual era, which will embrace and unify our communities.... narrowing the gap between DJ and VJ... creating VDJ's?
"I do what I do because I love my art.... plain and simple.
I could not put enough importance on how special
I feel.... when at an event.... people come up to me to shake my hand and cheer as I drop in another loop.. wild eyed with energy and full of life. Thats why I do it..... for the thrill of being an entertainer, and the enjoyment of all who are in my environment"
- Vello
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