ARTERATI

Changing Your Genes

This past fall, as part of the Australia Festival in Pittsburgh, Penn., Wood Street Galleries hosted a survey exhibition of contemporary video and installation artists from Australia. Participating artists included Tracey Moffatt, John Gillies, Denis Beaubois, Christian Bumburra Thompson and John Tonkin.

Arterati had the chance to talk with Sydney-based new media artist, John Tonkin, about his work Personal Eugenics.

After studying science at the University of Adelaide, Tonkin experimented with film before making his first computer animation in 1985. Tonkin develops his own software in programming languages such as C++ and Java.

His recent works involve building frameworks / tools / toys in which the artwork is formed through the accumulated interactions of its users. In 1999 Tonkin received a fellowship from the Australia Council’s New Media Fund. He is currently working on Strange Weather: a grand unified theory, a visualization tool for making sense of life.

 

 Changing Your Genes [3:30m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Playing the Space

Sound Modulated Light #1 is a participative environment in which visitors were invited to explore and interact with the light, sound and space. In this Arterati exclusive, the artist gives a brief description of the inner workings of the installation.

In 1989 Edwin van der Heide started performing with custom-built sensor-based instruments. This led him to create a form of music with a strong physical approach and an emphasis on sound itself. The formation of Sensorband in 1993/1994 was a continuation in this direction. While performing he developed more and more an interest in space/spaces. He realized that it would be possible to approach a space as an instrument and, even one step further, to approach the human senses and the perception of the audience as an instrument for which you could compose. Over the years the focus of his work has shifted to sound installations, interactive installations and environments. The performance aspect is still present in part of the work, but the emphasis has shifted to the content of the environment and less focus on the performer.

 

 Sound Modulated Light #1 [1:52m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Miguel Chevalier in/on RGB Land

Interviewing Miguel Chevalier was fascinating. One of the first artists to use the computer as a tool. Miguel has put consistent pressure on the cutting edge. The first Arterati podcast features Miguel describing his multi-media installation, RGB Land during its world-wide premier.

 

 in/on RGB Land [2:54m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download