http://www.interactivefutures.ca/if09.htm

Transdisciplinary Digital Art is a collection of papers from two parallel conferences: Digital Art Weeks in Zurich and Interactive Futures in Victoria, Canada. The term transdisciplinary distinguishes the practice from the older term, interdisciplinary, because the latter term implies a certain detachment between mediums. Transdisciplinary, on the other hand, suggests a level of direct connection across mediums. This acknowledges that there are varying levels of skill, but also states that transdisciplinary work engages practitioners in unique fashion, where each participant strives to better understand necessary processes and concepts at more than superficial levels. From the technical to the philosophical to the poetic, the papers in this collection cover a range of topics related to digital tools and the creation of expressive digital works. The volume, as a whole, furthers an understanding of and an engagement with our apparent transdisciplinary future.

The development of tools and strategies for the presentation of screen-based environments has radically accelerated in the past few years. Artists and writers are exploring new ways of controlling narrative flow, formal structures, and ways of viewing. Immersive tools for experiencing visual environments have allowed artists to provide radically subjective experiences of visual surroundings and forms. With the introduction of interactivity, multi-screen environments, and media-rich web-based applications, a new era of performed, live, streaming and/or improvised media art is contributing to the creation of new modes for the screen that are distinct from older forms such as print, film or video art.

The New Screen will include installations, screenings and performances by visual artists, writers and performers. These practitioners are critiquing usual modes of visual interface, such as rectangular screens and determined techniques of interactivity. Interventionist strategies, public participation, experimental projection methods, and destabilizing interactive interfaces are some of the approaches that are used in their work.

We would like to thank the following sponsors

Open Space Artist-Run Centre – Founded in September 1972, Open Space is non-profit artist-run centre located in Victoria, British Columbia. For over thirty years, Open Space has been an entity for professional artists who utilize hybrid and experimental approaches to art-making, as well as a touchstone for young and emerging artists.

Emily Carr Institute of Art + Design – Emily Carr Institute of Art + Design was founded in 1925 and is one of British Columbia’s oldest post-secondary institutions and one of the world’s leading arts institutions.

Victoria Independent Film & Video Festival – The mission of the Festival is to expose youth and adults to a broad range of cultural, artistic and philosophical ideas and lifestyles through the presentation of film, video, new media and interactivities in order to stimulate critical analysis and inspire an interest in using the medium as a creative tool.

The Fairmont Empress Hotel – Rising regally on Victoria’s spectacular Inner Harbor, The Fairmont Empress showcases the spirit and energy of Vancouver Island in grand style. With her turn-of-the-century beauty, The Fairmont Empress captures the grandeur and elegance of a bygone era, while her facilities and services meet the needs of today’s traveler.