John's QUAD Life

Digital Participation Curator at Derby QUAD exploring digital participation, aesthetics and engagement in public art.

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Blockbuidlers in Our New Studio

We had a great time last week in our new Digital Studio with Blockbuilders for two days of regenerating Derby in Minecraft. From sky hotels to floating houses, jacuzzi cinemas to underground railroads. Our young people are Derby’s future, so their insight into their needs is important, and made out of blocks :)

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3D Printer Paint with Light

and its amazing! :D

http://thecreatorsproject.vice.com/blog/watch-a-modded-3d-printer-paint-with-light?utm_source=tcpfbus

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“Anytime you change the way that you see things, it changes the way that you understand them. As soon as you can change somebodys understanding then they change the way they see the world”

Source: Microsoft finally gets real about HoloLens' field of view

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Holograms are finally here!!!!!

And if you can’t tell, i’m excited!

http://nerdist.com/the-future-of-holograms-are-3d-plasma-displays-you-can-touch/

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The Void - https://thevoid.com/#media/4

The Void are a technology company in the US who are producing amazing emersive digital eperiences through VR and practitical interactions. VR is no longer sitting on the fence in the virtual world, but moving more towards the mixed-reality of VR and AR. So what does this mean for arts organisations?

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I like digital art because I like art

Olafur Eliasson @The Space

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HP Sprout

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Microsoft HoloLens

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Photoreal game engines

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GamerGate is an ugly mess, but this picture of it is beautiful

And I agree. For anyone who's been following GamerGate, you will know its a bit of a mess. Glad something beautiful has come out of it and it just goes to show how your participation (on either side of the fence) can create wonderful works of art.

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A Glowing Orb Simulates Interactions Between Humans And Artificial Intelligence

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http://www.theguardian.com/culture-professionals-network/culture-professionals-blog/2014/oct/03/post-web-technology-museums-virtual-reality?CMP=new_1194

It is frustrating working in the arts and seeing all the highly impressive commercial uses of technology. Companies spend huge marketing budgets using projection mapping, VR, AR, apps, devices etc on providing 'cultural experiences' to sell a product. Samsung recently created an instalation in London to promote their new tablet and Heineken, again in London, used Battersea Power Station as the backdrop for their an impressive projection mapped ad (?) for thier already popular beer. Both of these campaigns are credible in the area of 'cultural experiences', but both leave museums, galleries and arts organisations with audiences that are expecting more from their visits.

So how do arts organisations around the country compete with expansive use of digital technology to sell products? Can they? While considering our current audiences, we must also consider our future audiences. The above article highlights young visitors getting confused when they touch a screen and it doesn't do anything. Young people (and I do mean young after seeing my 2yr old nephew scroll through his dads iPhone to load Youtube and watch videos of diggers) may start feeling a sense of alienation from arts organisations because they no longer know how to interact with them. But while funding in the arts is not seen as important as other sectors of society, will young people stop coming altogether and start going to trade fairs instead? I hope not!

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Jim Richardson from Museum Next talks digital content (and the museums doing it right...)

Jim Richardson founded MuseumNext as a blog about museums and technology. Several years later it’s an international conference series, and a chance for industry professionals to come together and discuss how new media can be used to reach audiences. 

We spoke to him about the highlights from the 2014 edition, digital content, and why everyone needs to stop with the Phone Apps.

Museum Next started as a blog, right? Can you tell us how the initial idea came about?

Museum Next started as a blog about museum marketing, which relates to my work promoting some of the UK’s leading museums and galleries. The main challenges which museums seemed to be facing was adapting to the changing technological landscape, and over time what I wrote about became broader than marketing. I built a great community around what I was writing and it seemed a natural next step to try and produce some kind of event which would bring those people together in the real world.

Read More

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Photoshop’s 3D tools is making 3D printing easier for traditional artists

http://www.digitalartsonline.co.uk/news/hacking-maker/3d-printing-hottest-trends-new-tech-from-3d-printshow-2014-in-london/