digital – The Cultural Exposé

Invisible Treasure at Ovalhouse puts you (and others) centre stage

Matilda — Mon, 02 Nov 2015 13:00:45 +0000

I’ve made a habit of not reading synopses where films and theatre shows are concerned. This means I have no idea of what I’m getting myself into so I can make an unbiased critique at the end. But in the case of Invisible Treasure, a new interactive production at the Ovalhouse theatre, I wish I read the memo. That way I would have brought a friend along (trust me, bring a buddy) and I’d also have a better understanding of the premise – a digital playroom that involves connecting with others, evoking your inner-child, losing your inhibitions (or in some cases, not).

I’m not gonna drop any spoilers, but as a piece of theatre, it’s definitely one of the more creative concepts I’ve ever engaged with, making amazing use of technology. And with no obvious plot to follow, it’s thought-provoking, a little bit strange, but an experience nonetheless. If you have a spare Saturday afternoon, it deserves the attention before it wraps up on 14th November. You can check out pics from the production below and for more info, visit: http://www.ovalhouse.com/whatson/detail/invisible-treasure-by-fanshen.

Pic: Cat Lee

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Somewhere you should go… Digital Revolution at Barbican

Matilda — Thu, 17 Jul 2014 10:00:17 +0000

It’s fair to say that the world’s digital explosion in the last 40 years has been something like a phenomenon. Rapid, progressive and artistic all at the same time, we’ve seen it stretch across many facets of life and industries – and this generous show at the Barbican does its best to present as much of this under one roof. Visitors are first met by retro games and inventions in the Digital Archaeology section. As the unmistakable ching-ching-ching of Sonic the Hedgehog collecting coins in the legendary platform game resonates around the room, there’s a chance to play Pong and Super Mario Bros and see the first website by Tim Berners-Lee. Walk further into the exhibition and you notice greater nods to technology in music (musos can feast their eyes on a Linn LM-1 drum machine), education (remember Speak & Spell?) film (Inception and Gravity get a look-in) and home computing, with screens showcasing old-school browsers like Netscape while you can see the development of Apple computers back when the corporation had a rainbow logo, and later spread some colour to the bulbous iMac G3.

Chris Milk’s The Treachery of Sanctuary at Digital Revolution

And that’s just the beginning. You’ll spend hours admiring and playing with creative art as you experience commissioned works from a range of digital filmmakers, technicians, artists, fashion designers and musicians including willi.am. A graphic of the pop star towers over visitors like a modern day Pharoah in the State of Play section, watching you as you move and belting out a new track – autotuned, naturally – that he penned exclusively for the show. It’s kind of freaky but still impressive, like the rest of this mighty project that presents digital technology to creative extremes you simply couldn’t make up. And yet incredibly, some very clever people did. On until 14^th September. For tickets, visit the website. Digital Revolution Trailer from Barbican Centre on Vimeo.

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Somewhere you should go… the Cave of Sounds at Hack the Barbican Festival

Matilda — Fri, 16 Aug 2013 10:00:02 +0000

Instruments and me go waaaaaaaaaaaay back. From learning to play the piano aged 7, to practicing flute scales for the bulk of my teens (and flirting with the saxaphone and guitar along to the way), I can honestly say I miss those days – not just because I got to develop modest musical talents, but also the camaraderie that came with playing in the school orchestra (because no matter how bad we were, we always had a whale of a time doing it).

So I’m loving the idea of the Cave of Sounds – an installation where visitors will get to play bespoke instruments that have been invented before coming together in one accord for what could be quite the jam session – especially as it will encompass body movements and new technology. Players will be connected through interactive floor visualisations with the aim of exploring self expression and understanding how music can be used to communicate with one another.

The project comes courtesy of London artist Tim Murray-Browne and it kicks off at the Barbican from 19-26 August. For more info, visit: www.caveofsounds.com.

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Something you should see… Remote Control at the ICA

Laura Thornley — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 10:00:49 +0000

You may have noticed a dubious advertising campaign gracing your idiot box over the past months in which a mini robot/alien – AL to his friends – travels the length and breadth of the country to get us all clued up about modern technology and the broadcasting change over to digital. Yes, that’s right people, this is the last month to enjoy the Tube in all its old skool analogue glory! Thankfully, the curators at the ICA have recognised this monumental moment in history and are putting on an exhibition to lament the TV’s presence in the art world and beyond.

Curse or powerful tool? The TV has plagued and empowered the world no matter which side of the fence you are on – and the artists in this exhibition have all used it to explore this very fact. The Remote Control season has great works on show from ANT FARM, Harun Farocki, Adrian Piper and Dan Graham amongst many others. Accompanying the exhibition will be a series of talks and special film screenings that explore a whole host of exciting art and TV related areas, including art made for TV. A real insight into the small screen – not to be missed. (Words: Laura Thornley)

Remote Control is on at the ICA until June 10th. For more info, click here…

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