Seminar: a Theoretical Workshop accompanying the exhibition “Liminal – State of Transition”

Seminar: a Theoretical Workshop accompanying the exhibition “Liminal – State of Transition”

Arsenal Gallery in Białystok, November 5^th-6^th 2021

Organisers:

Institute of Polish Culture, University of Warsaw

Arsenal Gallery in Białystok

3D and Virtual Occurrences II Studio, Faculty of Media Art, Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw

The workshop will be delivered by the following instructors:

Piotr Cichocki, Piotr Fortuna, Michał Krzykawski, Jerzy Stachowicz, Matylda Szewczyk, Tomasz Rakowski and persons liaised with the 3D and Virtual Occurrences Studio, Faculty of Media Art, Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw (Agata Chodera, Przemysław Danowski, Andrei Isakov, Krystyna Jędrzejewska-Szmek,  Palina Komarova, Agata Konarska, Mateusz Kowalczyk, Dobrosława Król,  Jakub Wróblewski).

Moderated by: Zuzanna Sękowska

The exhibition “Liminal – State of Transition” has been designed to present a selection of works by students and collaborators of the 3D and Virtual Occurrences Studio, Faculty of Media Art, Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw, under Jakub Wróblewski, Ph.D., in co-operation with Andrei Isakov and Przemysław Danowski.

The accompanying event schedule includes a workshop seminar – an attempt at offering a theoretical portrayal of a phenomenon in process, an effort to critically ponder immersive art and the specificity of operating in VR space. We intend to move away from the classic model of conferences and interventions to enable intergenerational dialogue and produce conditions wherein representatives of diverse fields of humanities and arts – having absorbed the oeuvre and working specificity of the 3D and Virtual Occurrences II Studio – will be able to share comments, opinions and findings. We are hoping for lively, creative and inspiring debates, all related notes, records and conclusions a palpable trace of the research process, and foundation for a conference follow-up publication.

We do not see the exhibition – or the accompanying conference – as an ultimate linchpin summarising the phenomenon of working with VR space. Our take is one of opening a lively debate, extending an invitation to co-operate: much remains to be done when it comes to describing transmedia space and related practices.

We hereby invite you to join us in pondering the kinship of experience, the methods and objectives of transferring impressions, the political nature of these actions. We would also be curious to learn to what extent Virtual Reality-associated activities are political or class-related in nature. We will ponder their ethical and empathetic dimensions, particularly curious about identifying the cultural backdrop and specificity of cultural practices giving rise to VR exploration and (potentially) redefinition.

We will try to resolve whether 3D performance and Virtual Reality realisations and experiences must/should be interpreted against artistic intervention only. Many interesting developments have been taking place in the field of language as well – firstly, the translation of stories by particular authors into the language of VR expression; secondly, reflections regarding virtuality as a phenomenon in the context of “democratising” language. Another subject we are planning to raise.

Do join us in our shared speculations!

The workshop seminar will be streamed live on the Gallery’s Facebook profile. A chat option will be set up for online participants.

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The workshop is organised as part of the “Image Reading Room” cycle.

Inspired by visual culture research, we invite our special guests and audiences to join open debates intended to explore a broadly defined visual field – “image-based thinking”, “images”, and the “image-related practice”: dynamic and versatile associations between images and the structure and content of social awareness and social-and-cultural practice. We have scheduled our debates in parallel to the Gallery’s exhibition timetable, as commentaries or supplements to individual shows.