FoAM - grig

PhoEf - Photons Crash on the Arts

maja — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 07:00:25 +0000

Start: 2008-09-02 17:45 GMT+2

End: 2008-09-02 19:00 GMT+2

Bartaku's 'PhoEf' exposé at the 23rd European Photovoltaic Solar Energy and Conference and Exhibition'

Session nr.: 5BO.
Feria de Valencia, Auditorium 3a - Valencia, Spain
http://www.photovoltaic-conference.com

PhoEf aims to provide insight about aims and aesthetics of converting solar radiation into electricity. More particularly, the opportunities that photovoltaic technologies provide to artistic creations, performances, and interventions that make use of electrical energy.

http://x4.fo.am/phoef/

200710 Research Gathering with gRig

maja — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 18:35:19 +0000

Start: 2006-10-27 12:00 Europe/Brussels

End: 2006-10-27 18:00 Europe/Brussels

A preliminary meeting to get a general sense of people's involvement and interests in the Guild's work.

Mutamorphosis

maja — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 13:21:17 +0000

Start: 2007-11-08 12:00 Europe/Prague

End: 2007-11-10 20:00 Europe/Prague

On the Mutamorphosis conference, FoAM presented the paper "groWorld HPI" and participated in the debates on "Synaesthesia", "Smart Materials" and "Art and Science in Media Education".

http://www.mutamorphosis.org/

Vlaamse Overheid

maja — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 12:24:36 +0000

Culture 2000

maja — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 12:19:08 +0000

Maggie Buxton: Hybrid Story-Ing, Un-Genreable Engagements and Transformative Learning

maja — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 18:32:43 +0000

The core question of this research is: by what mechanisms can humanity become more conscious of and potentially change, it’s relationship to reality? This question potentially connects numerous disciplines including neuro-science, quantum physics, art, developmental psychology, adult education theory, political science, philosophy, to name just a few. Some of these areas will be touched on to provide further theoretical context to the research and recent discourse on Orders of Consciousness and Transformative Learning will be explored in more depth. I particularly focus on Un-Genreable Engagement and Hybrid Story-ing, aiming show how the various activities that fall under these headings (which I have coined in this research) have the potential to subvert consensus reality and illustrate the fragility of the dominant epistemology.

In progress: http://libarynth.org/research_report_maggie_buxton

Sanjeev Shankar: RUrban Permaculture

maja — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 18:27:42 +0000

This project explores aspects of human environment, its relation with ecology and our attempt to encourage more sustainable growth. The relevant fields of inquiry are urban ecology, sustainability, human plant interaction and biomorphism. The research explores ways in which we can transform our cities into productive, healthy, edible and playful green visions. In recent years there has been a growing public movement to bring ecology into urban environments where many people spend most of their time. However, people are still grappling with the problem of a balance between 'growth' and conservation. This problem is not limited to emerging cities in the developing world. The thrust of this research is to explore methods to initiate collective public action in this direction.

In progress: http://libarynth.org/research_report_sanjeev-shankar

Steven Pickles (Pix): An Aesthetic Exploration of Multivariate Polynomial Maps

maja — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 18:15:44 +0000

In 2001 I found a book by mathematician Julien C. Sprott called “Strange attractors: creating patterns in chaos”. The book described the mathematics behind a class of fractals called strange attractors. In the book, Sprott presents a computer program which can search for strange attractors by trying many randomly generated equations until one was discovered which met certain criteria. The results were clouds of points which formed interesting organic shapes. each set of equations created a unique set of points. When I read this I was curious to see what would be the outcome of making small changes to the equations. I made a simple program which did this, and the result was clouds of points which would morph between many different shapes. The program would move through the parameter space randomly and automatically, and so it only showed that there was some kind of continuity to the parameter space which the strange attractors occupied, but it did not provide any useful way of visualising this space. In this research I explore this space, and map it to some degree.

In progress: http://libarynth.org/pix_research_report

Theun Karelse: Tsunamipants

maja — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 18:10:42 +0000

How do you relate to global crises in a way that is not demotivating? The discussion about our future is dominated by appeals for austerity and reduction. This is not a very inspiring message as it focuses on negative aspects of society. It is hard to see a positive revolution on a global scale, based on negative arguments. Instead we should focus on positive changes that inspire everyone. This debate should be dominated by the possibility of increasing the quality of life.

The Tsunamipants project shows the traps that are hidden in responding to problems by coming up with solutions that are built within the limits of the problem. This invariably creates new versions of the same problem, it doesn't solve them. That is the tragedy in which the inventor Martin Brolin is caught in Tsunamipants. Martin engages the extreme weather conditions that are associated with future climate changes and tries to engineer his way out-off danger. In his work Mr. Brolin suffers from lack of expertise, lack of budged, oversized ambition and being over-all mediocre. These are common human traits that run beneath the surface of positive social change. To be able to construct anything realistically and therefor longlasting, I suggest we start by acknowledging that there is nothing inherently wrong with being mediocre. I realise that this goes against giant forces in popular culture, but Martin is deliberately portrayed as a mediocre inventor, although I only later became fully conscious of why I was doing this.

In progress: http://libarynth.org/research_report_theun_karelse

groWorld HPI

maja — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 16:51:10 +0000

Cursory Speculations on HPI

maja — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 16:47:25 +0000

Fabbing II

maja — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 14:52:28 +0000

Start: 2008-05-12 11:00 Europe/Brussels

End: 2008-05-12 23:59 Europe/Brussels

Phase II of the Fabbing workshop. During the workshop we continued building the RepRap desktop fabricator. (Also see Fabbing I)

Media Ecologies: Tech Nouveau

maja — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 14:45:15 +0000

Start: 2008-04-21 16:40 GMT+2

End: 2008-04-25 16:40 GMT+2

FoAM, Nadine and OKNO concluded the .x-med-k. series with a workshop exploring media and media technologies as an ecosystem, deeply networked.

At an isolated location in the Champagne region, participants gathered for a week of workshops, reflection and practical sessions around the themes of networks, collaborative projects and Tech-Nouveau. The workshop took an 'Open Space' approach, in which all participants took an active role in shaping their activities. FoAM undertook hands-on experiments with simulated biological systems, feeding them with discussions regarding complexity, whole-systems, patterns, permaculture, biomorphism and biomimetics in physical and simulated lifeforms and ecosystems.

”[T]here are other things that need doing, and one of these is the development of an imaginary of technology, an understanding of its poetics and a testing manifestation of those poetics in ways that allow us to think and sense through what that technology is.” – Matt Fuller in .x-med-a.

More: http://libarynth.org/media_ecologies_workshop

Luminous Green Workshop 2007

maja — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 14:23:51 +0000

Start: 2007-05-01 14:00 Europe/Brussels

End: 2007-05-05 17:00 Europe/Brussels

In a time when energy use and electronic waste production should be rapidly decreasing, can media artists comfortably use arsenals of computers and their peripherals in the name of art?

Several artists and designers came together for four days to explore the opportunities and challenges of working to minimise our ecological foot-prints, while maximising our cultural hand-prints. Should we gather together to design and deploy new strategies for functioning independently of power-grids, proprietary networks and established waste disposal networks? How will our artworks change when we can only count on low-power computing for processing and presentation? What kind of displays can we use for audiovisual works, without relying on power-sucking projectors and amplifiers? And - what is the low-power, renewable aesthetics of ecologically sustainable media arts?

Using a collaborative methodology, we learned about designing miniature solar power plants and discussed a waste processing using microwave ovens. We built solar-powered singing robots and looked at designing artworks from a whole-systems perspective. Each day started with a theoretical presentation or a technical tutorial, while the afternoons were reserved for hands-on experiments in small teams. The evenings were filled with screenings, discussions and salon-type presentations, where the participants had a chance to get to know each other, spawn new collaborations, or just chill-out in good company.

Workshop participants: Angelo Vermeulen, Olu Vandenbussche, Patrick De Koning, Robert Brecevic, Geska Anderson, Vahida Ramujkic, Annemie Maes, Steven Pickles, Bart Vandeput, Rachel Wingfield, Matthias, Gmachl, Carole Collet, Cristina della Giustina, Toby Borland, Marko Peljhan, Goran Kuzmanovic, S. Srinivasan Rajan, Tapio Makela, Andrew Morrison, Idunn Sem, Herve Gouget, Nik Gaffney, Lina Kusaite, Rasa Alksnyte, Pieter de Wel and Maja Kuzmanovic.

A Cranky Workshop

maja — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 09:05:34 +0000

Start: 2008-09-02 13:00 Singapore

End: 2008-09-02 17:00 Singapore

A hands-on workshop involving cranks, solar robots, citrus batteries and the nature of reality for students at the Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.