Post-Digital Design Strategy in Media Arts
Keywords: sustainable development, ArtTech Fusion, digital technology, digital art, ATF24.
In the context of the rapidly advancing digital technology era, media arts and digital design face new challenges and opportunities. At the recent ArtTech Fusion 2024 event held at the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (UEH), Professor Martin Kaltenbrunner delivered an engaging presentation on the topic “Postdigital Design Strategies for Media Art.”
In his talk, Professor Kaltenbrunner not only offered profound insights into the role of technology in art but also highlighted innovative approaches to help artists create interactive, creative, and sustainable artworks.
The presentation explored promising directions for integrating cutting-edge technologies such as AI, VR, AR, and tangible user interfaces to enhance artistic value and user experiences.
Professor Martin Kaltenbrunner presented the topic “Postdigital Design Strategies for Media Art.”
Digital Technology: Challenges and Opportunities for Artists
In an era where digital technology is becoming increasingly ubiquitous and saturated, artists and designers face a significant challenge: how to create works of art that are not only innovative but also capable of capturing attention in a space crowded with digital creations.
Professor Kaltenbrunner highlighted that digital technology has now become so prevalent that merely using it to create art is no longer compelling. This reality demands that artists explore new, more inventive approaches to transcend the current limitations of technology and deliver artworks with profound artistic value.
Professor Martin Kaltenbrunner delivered a lecture.
According to Professor Martin Kaltenbrunner, the evolution of technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and tangible user interfaces has opened up endless creative possibilities for artists. These technologies go beyond being tools for creating art; they can directly interact with audiences, enabling novel and immersive artistic experiences.
AI: Transforming Interaction and Creativity
AI is not just a tool for generating images, sounds, or videos but also possesses the ability to analyze audience behavior and feedback to dynamically adapt or evolve the artwork over time. This adaptability offers unparalleled flexibility, allowing artists to create works that evolve and grow with audience participation.
Professor Kaltenbrunner emphasized the transformative role of AI in digital art, suggesting it could become integral to the creative process. AI can “understand” and “respond” to audience interactions, facilitating the creation of highly interactive pieces that deepen the viewer’s engagement with the art.
For instance, he highlighted projects where AI was employed to produce artworks that change based on real-time interactions or the passage of time. This dynamic approach enriches the artistic experience, fostering greater viewer involvement and collaboration in the creative process.
Reactable: A Case Study in Tangible Music Interaction
Professor Kaltenbrunner introduced Reactable, an innovative music tool that exemplifies the fusion of technology and art. Developed by researchers at Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, Reactable transforms visual signals into sound. First showcased by iconic musician Björk during her Volta tour in 2007, the tool allows users to create music by moving symbols on a screen rather than relying on traditional buttons or keys.
Reactable offers a distinctive and engaging musical experience, turning music-making into an interactive process between the player and technology. This approach exemplifies how tangible user interfaces can empower artists to craft interactive and immersive artworks.
By blurring the lines between technology and artistic expression, tools like Reactable demonstrate how music itself can become a central element of an enriched and profound artistic experience. This integration fosters creativity, interaction, and a deeper connection between the audience and the artwork.
Reactable
Virtual and Augmented Reality: Interactive Art Spaces
Professor Kaltenbrunner continued to discuss the role of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) in contemporary media arts. Both technologies bring unique opportunities to create interactive art spaces, where audiences are not merely spectators but active participants in the creative process.
Virtual Reality (VR) enables participants to step into a virtual space where they can interact with various elements within the environment, offering rich and innovative artistic experiences. Meanwhile, Augmented Reality (AR) blends the real world with virtual elements, allowing participants to experience art in a more vivid and immersive way.
Tangible User Interfaces (TUI): Bridging the Physical and Virtual Worlds
A prominent trend in post-digital design, highlighted by Professor Kaltenbrunner, is Tangible User Interfaces (TUI). TUI refers to user interfaces that enable interactions with data through physical objects, connecting the physical and digital worlds seamlessly.
Tangible interfaces provide more intuitive and dynamic experiences compared to traditional interfaces, allowing users to interact naturally. This is particularly significant in interactive art, where participants can not only observe but also actively engage in the creative process.
Metamusic – Alien Productions: The Fusion of Music and Technology
One noteworthy project presented by Professor Kaltenbrunner was Metamusic – Alien Productions, a music initiative that integrates advanced technology. This project not only introduces new musical concepts but also explores unconventional, “alien” methods of creating music and digital art.
Metamusic serves as an excellent example of how art and technology can merge to produce works that transcend traditional boundaries. It demonstrates how technology-driven art can redefine both the creation and perception of music and media arts.
Metamusic – Alien Productions
Embodied Gestures in Art
An essential concept highlighted by Professor Kaltenbrunner is Embodied Gestures, where the movements and gestures of the user’s body serve as the primary medium for communication and expression in artistic works.
This approach plays a significant role in user interface design and interactive art, as it enables participants not only to observe but also to actively engage with the artwork through their physical movements. By integrating the body as a tool for interaction, Embodied Gestures create a deeper, more immersive connection between the participant and the artwork, transforming the experience into a collaborative and dynamic process.
Embodied Gestures
Unceasing Creativity in Post-Digital Design
In conclusion, Professor Kaltenbrunner encouraged artists and designers to continuously innovate and experiment with new approaches to integrating art and technology. He emphasized that in an increasingly digitalized world, art will never cease to evolve but will constantly adapt and thrive alongside technological advancements.
Adopting post-digital design strategies not only enables the creation of unique artworks but also enriches the audience’s experience in the digital age.
Speakers, students, young designers, and artists have the opportunity to learn from emerging technologies and contribute to the future development of art and design. With a forward-thinking vision and unrelenting creativity, we can trust that media art will continue to flourish, opening up richer and more diverse artistic spaces in the years to come.
ATF24 – A Platform Contributing to the Future Direction for the Creative Generation Towards Sustainability As part of the development trend in the ArtTech field, the annual international ArtTech Fusion (ATF) series is organized by ArtTech Hub (ATH) in collaboration with the units of the School of Technology and Design (CTD), University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (UEH), along with both domestic and international partners, featuring different themes each year. In 2024, the third edition of the international ArtTech Fusion event was held under the theme “New ArtTech for Future Generations”, aiming to inspire and foster creative thinking and innovative actions in the younger generation, contributing to the building of a sustainable society. Throughout the ATF24 journey over three days (October 22-24, 2024), more than 30 academic and practical activities were held, including 5 Keynote Speeches, 10 Special Sessions, 5 Parallel Sessions for research presentations, 5 Workshops, 1 Book Chapter publication, 9 Exhibitions, 1 Heritage Connection Trip, and 1 Tangible Performance. |
This article is part of the series Spreading Research and Applied Knowledge from UEH with the message “Research Contribution For All – Nghiên Cứu Vì Cộng Đồng.” UEH cordially invites readers to stay tuned for the next edition of UEH Research Insights.
News and photos: Author, UEH Communications and Partnership Development Department
Narrator: Thanh Kiều
