The New Media program’s end-of-year show begins this week. Lauren Izso fills you in on all the interactive, artistic goodness
Ryerson’s School of Image Arts’ new media program will be hitting the Distillery District next week to showcase their interactive artwork.
Meta, an annual exhibition of art installations, will include game design, animal-generated art, kinetic sculptures, video and sound art, performance, and more.
Each of this year’s more than a dozen displays was designed and created by selected fourth-year new media students, with a focus on interactive experiences for the audience.
Danielle Bossio’s The Koiora Spectacle takes its audience through a journey. Her sculpture is a physical depiction of a species from conception to extinction.
She explores a certain creature at different stages of life and describes the animal she calls the Onekina, as an octopus-sloth hybrid. She hopes the piece will lead audiences to question their own truth and existence.
Taking audiences on quite a different journey, artists Kelvin Wu and Jason Yeh bring new meaning to choose-your-own-adventure.
Their contribution Gregory is a creative take on a childhood genre. Audience members are able to help the character move through the story, and through a series of choices, have an adventure.
“We want you to think about your own choices. Are they your own, or are they predetermined,” says Wu. Each installation, however different, questions how technology defines us as a generation and as a society.
Artist Stephanie Luong’s piece, RAGNARÖK, is a multi-medium abstract based on an old Norse myth, but with a modern twist. With scenes of recent natural disasters projected behind metal sheets violently shaken by motors, Luong’s intention is definitely to scare her audience.
She explores modern myths and their evolution from movies, television and the media. Each display is designed to elicit a response from viewers, which is why curators have worked to make this year’s show accessible.
“We want to make sure we include everyone. Art is a multi-sensory experience,” says Jordanne Pavao, the event’s Public Relations Coordinator.
As accessibility coordinator, Veronika Lok has made sure this year’s gallery exhibit will accommodate visitors with disabilities, an initiative that has not been taken in previous years—including braille text at exhibits and American Sign Language-English interpreters.
The exhibit will take place at Airship 37, located at 37 Parliament St. in Studio 2, and will run March 29- 31.
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