Mediale has announced the latest cohort of creatives commissioned to take part in Immersive Assembly Vol 3, a multidisciplinary artistic residency bringing together a cohort of UK-based artists and practitioners on the theme of ‘Truth and Testimony’. Vol 3 of the programme is supported through the Jerwood Arts Developing Artists Fund, and Sage Gateshead.
Immersive Assembly Vol 3: Truth & Testimony will explore the new ways immersive media can allow us to interrogate and interpret flows of information, using Extended Reality (XR) or other hybrid encoded spaces. This edition is led by immersive artist, director and curator Estela Oliva who has designed a programme of expert keynotes, case studies, hands-on demonstrations and mentoring sessions. During the six months duration, the residency allows the multidisciplinary cohort time to learn, share, network and play.
The 2023 IA3 cohort brings together artists who are based around the UK and who work in a variety of disciplines including performance, theatre, installation and sound. The selected artists are:
Dian Joy, a British-Nigerian transdisciplinary artist who lives and practices in London, working across a variety of mediums, including video, installation, and extended reality. Their investigation into various strategies of emancipation and exaltation has led them to exhibit internationally both solo and as a part of BLUE, a transnational art collective they co-founded whilst living in Amsterdam.
Guy Schofield, a multidisciplinary artist, designer and maker, whose practice involves installation, film, sound, music, physical computing, VR, animation, and games. Guy is deeply committed to collaborative and participatory co-creation and has been involved in numerous projects exploring how to engage people in making intricate and complex digital installations.
Julia Merino Calleja, a sound designer and audio programmer, with a background in audiovisual engineering and music, currently based in Edinburgh. She designs sound for a variety of contexts such as films, virtual reality, games and installations. Her practice focuses on immersive sound and its remarkable use as a tool for storytelling.
Lucy Wheeler, a creative technologist and digital artist. She has a collaborative, concept and technical driven mindset – with a vision to merge realities, explore technology’s impact on society and address our digital footprints’ impact on the world. Lucy is an advocate for creative technology accessibility, and between 2018-2021, she co-founded The Immersive Kind, a multi-faceted creative technology collective.
Max Percy, an award-winning theatre maker and facilitator creating ambitious theatrical experiences. A regular collaborator across various forms including dance, theatre, academia, technology and accessibility, his work explores queer and Asian identity whilst experimenting with new forms.
Tatiana Collet Appraxine, a French VR director/creator and real time artist living in London. Tatiana extensively trained and worked as an award winning theatre practitioner before transitioning to the VR/XR world. She is deeply fascinated about the potential of VR and XR to alter our sense of presence, consciousness, and to enhance the impact of the age-old art of telling stories, centering themes such as grief, trauma and embodiment.
Tom Higham, Director, Mediale said:
“Whether we are searching for information or creating content, websites and apps streamline our experiences, making it easy to produce and manipulate media and get the answers we want. As these applications also blur the boundaries between personal and global spaces, the ways in which we trust, verify and process their streams of content become more complex. Single-purpose media devices, like traditional cameras, can be more clearly recognised and understood as both creative devices and tools of documentation and surveillance. But where do aesthetics, senses and instincts come into play when one device can promise to find or produce anything? We are really excited to welcome this new cohort to help us solve and think through these questions, creatives who were selected from a huge number of quality applications, 400% up from last year’s group.”
Lilli Geissendorfer, Director, Jerwood Arts said:
“Mediale are exceptional specialists in the art of digital and immersive tech and we are thrilled to be funding IA3. Support for early-career artists to get their hands on the latest kit and have the time and space to play and collaborate, with national and international partners, is critical for artistic innovation to thrive.”
Rachel Williams, Head of Digital at Sage Gateshead said:
“We’re delighted to welcome Mediale to Sage Gateshead to launch this year’s Immersive Assembly programme. The North East of England is a recognised stronghold of immersive companies and we’re looking forward to introducing the artists to the region and its creative experts, and bringing everyone together to see what new ideas emerge when art and technology meet. We can’t wait to learn, make new connections and celebrate the unique opportunities for artist development that this partnership will foster.”
Find out more on the Mediale website.
