Jason Nelson, digital poet
Jason Nelson defies easy definition – he is a poet, hypermedia artist, educator and recent recipient of a Fulbright Scholarship in digital poetry. Nelson’s creative practice encompasses digital art, writing and game play and science. We uncover some of his recent projects and the upcoming projection for Friday Night Laneways, Organic Data during the World Science Festival Brisbane.
Nelson creates interactive digital poems that embrace complex ideas and offer non-linear paths inviting a user experience of discovery. His digital works range across subject matter, from the human nervous system, to the plethora of documents in government bureaucracies to name a few. In 2015, Nelson’s work Cryptext was heralded as the world’s first and largest game built for a public touchscreen. Hosted at QUT’s The Cube, Nelson collaborated with game designer Matt Horton to create an innovative interactive game using text, game theory with multiple layers of text and images. This interactive game put players in the shoes of a detective set to uncover top-secret government documents. The hallmark of Nelson’s works are their experimental nature, often asking players to ‘throw away the rule book’.
Alongside these complex works Nelson also enjoys creating ‘digital oddities’. For Friday Night Laneways, Organic Data Nelson brings some of these animated molecular-digital creatures to the street. His work Paraprojection: clandestine projection art, will reveal these digital creatures, but the projector itself remains hidden – leaving the audience to wonder at the secretive source of the images. The term ‘Paraprojection’ has been coined by Jason Nelson and digital artist Alinta Krauth to describe the embodiment of this mysterious and hidden digital art.
But we don’t want to give the game away! So drop down to Eagle Lane, South Brisbane – 6-10pm Friday 11 March to uncover the projection’s secret source.
Kerry
Image: Jason Nelson, Paraprojection, 2015. Image courtesy of the artist. ©Jason Nelson.
Friday Night Laneways, Organic Data is an initiative of Brisbane City Council.
- Where: Fish Lane, South Brisbane (over the road from the Qld Museum)
- When: 6-10pm, Friday 11 March, 2016
- This is a free event, bookings not required.
- www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/whats-on
- #TeamBNE #bneculture
Web Article References
You can find more of Nelson’s interactive text based works at Secret Technology.
http://www.theguardian.com/technology/gamesblog/2011/sep/13/the-meaning-of-art-games
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/illya-szilak/jason-nelson-digital-poetry_b_2803049.html
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-01-02/digital-poet-urges-authors-to-turn-over-new-leaf/5182306
Alinta Krauth, If the Forest Wanders
Alinta Krauth’s art practice explores the intersection of art, environment, science, poetry and technology. As a digital artist, Krauth combines an array of media including; projection, interactivity, game-play, text, and audio to generate a dialogue around concerns of environmental degradation and species conservation.
Krauth’s projection mapped work, Little Boxes, 2014 was featured in the Art & Science and draws attention to the plight of the Flying Fox, a nocturnal bat that is under increasing pressure from habitat loss. The repeated projection surface references the shape of the bats wings, and the projected images creates a reminder of the bat’s nocturnal beauty and the impact of human disruption. In Krauth’s interactive work desktop work Treemails, 2015-16 she uses text to connect the viewer to nature. This first phase of this work was made for the Bulimba Festival, where the community was invited to write letters to the trees that have historic significance in the local park.
Krauth also explores scientific theorems, organic data and resultant patterning in her work. Shadows blister those who try to touch, 2015 is an interactive projection mapping installation visualising the natural phenomena known as the ‘shadow blister’ effect, where overlapping shadows appear to bulge or blister toward one another.
For Friday Night Laneways, Organic Data Krauth will create an immersive and site-specific interactive projection titled, If the forest wonders. This work will be projected onto the underside of the train tracks that run above Fish Lane, South Brisbane. In her new work, an array of bio-luminescent creatures will grow around the imaged train tracks. The audience are invited to influence the work, through the use of a simple controller, triggering animations and unexpected changes. If the forest wonders, 2016 offers a moment of digital connection, reminding us of the fragility and beauty of the natural world and the encroachment of urbanization into numerous habitats.
Be sure to catch If the forest wanders, it will be on display at Fish Lane, South Brisbane Friday 11 March, 6-10pm during the World Science Festival, Brisbane.
Kerry
Image: Alinta Krauth, If the forest wanders, 2016. Interactive projection mapping screen shot. Courtesy of the artist. © Alinta Krauth.
Friday Night Laneways, Organic Data is an initiative of Brisbane City Council.
- Where: Fish Lane, South Brisbane (over the road from the Qld Museum)
- When: 6-10pm, Friday 11 March, 2016
- This is a free event, bookings not required.
- www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/whats-on
- #TeamBNE #bneculture
In the Spotlight: Mark Wells
Exploring immersive projected visuals for Friday Night Laneways, Organic Data we tracked down Mark Wells, VJ Lightrift and asked if he could create a “light portrait zone”. We talk VJing, tech and how the audience can join the flow of images taking place at Fish Lane, South Brisbane on Friday 11 March.
Kerry: You have over 15 years of experience in projection mapping and VJing and have worked on major events like Future Music Festival, and Rainbow Serpent Festival. What inspired you to start VJing? Can you tell us more about what VJing is all about?
Mark: When I was studying visual art in the late 90’s I came across the projection art installations of Tony Oursler during an exhibition at City Gallery in Wellington, New Zealand. His dramatic projection mapped forms made a definite impact on me, as did other digital media artists I discovered when I was searching the internet for inspiration in jewellery design which I was studying at the time.
6 months after that I shifted into television and film production followed by multimedia while attending a yearly electronic music event on Takaka Hill, New Zealand called ‘The Gathering’, that’s where I first saw VJing on a large scale and I realised how much I wanted to follow the path of the VJ. Probably the first pro VJ I met was Ken Weston who has been a massive inspiration and help in the development of my own work. I have since also met a very impressive list of artists around Australia, each of them has inspired me to continue having fun with the art and I have to say there is a really strong community with Australian VJ’s, it really is a great place to be at the moment.
VJing has come about as an extension of music video’s and has embraced the constantly evolving world of technical video production. More than ever before, VJ’s are becoming an essential part of live music performance in all music genres as the creativity of artists and technical tools develop. One of the things I like the most about VJing is the diversity, each artist handles the tools they have at their disposal differently and that means there is always something new to see for the audience
Kerry: You’re creating a ‘light portrait’ zone for Organic Data, where the audience can take photos of themselves in-front of your projections. What we can expect for your Organic Data visuals?
Mark: I am very pleased to be given the opportunity to produce a ‘light portrait’ zone for Organic Data as it is really a continuation of my current visual work. Its the juxtaposition between the organic natural world and digital technology as the two elements are fused together that interests me, so I will be using organic textures, digital media and effects while experimenting with the areas of interaction between those elements, I find those interactions that happen create another transient and sometimes fleeting glimpse of a hybrid world. I am very keen for the visitors to immerse themselves in the changing visuals to add the human element.
Kerry: You use some pretty impressive equipment – how has the progression of science and technology influenced and affected VJing and the way audiences can interact with music?
Mark: I have had some amazing opportunities to work with some fantastic technology including LED screen arrays and high end projection systems over the last few years. It’s no secret that science and technology is evolving at an ever increasing rate and technical video production is one of the areas that is constantly being upgraded. VJ’s are embracing it with open arms as it enables new techniques to flourish and artists visions can be realised easier and cheaper. I think also that audiences are expecting to see the latest techniques so they can be transported into an immersive space and interact by connecting emotionally to the overall experience.
Kerry: Where can we keep up-to-date on your upcoming events?
Mark: I have a website at www.vj.lightrift.net where I post some examples of my work and links to social media sites for updates on events I am doing.
Thanks Mark for sharing your insights, look forward seeing you in action at Organic Data!
Kerry
Friday Night Laneways, Organic Data is an initiative of Brisbane City Council.
- Where: Fish Lane, South Brisbane (over the road from the Qld Museum)
- When: 6-10pm, Friday 11 March, 2016
- This is a free event, bookings not required.
- www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/whats-on
- #TeamBNE #bneculture
Image: Mark Wells, Light Portraits, 2016. Screen shot.
Engage Arts 
You must be logged in to post a comment.