Participation
Adopting the belief that ‘sharing is caring,’ I’ve discovered profound joy in both my scientific and artistic endeavors. As a scientist, the pleasant exchange during presentations and discussions has been a highlight. Now, as an artist, there’s an extra layer of fulfillment. I cherish the process of building artwork as a personal expression and then sharing it, whether through showcases or sparking discussions. The beauty lies in the subjective nature of these interactions, creating uniquely delightful outcomes through engagement with the audience.
Enjoyable Interfaces for Boring?Data
The two-day event, “Convergence? Interfaces of the Digital and the Living,” explored the profound impact of digitalization and AI on biomedicine, anticipating transformative changes in the 21st century, as part of the “Colloquium Digitale” series by the Austrian Academy of Sciences. During this event, we hosted a panel discussion titled “Enjoyable Interfaces for Boring Data,” delving into the transformation of typically dry or complex information into engaging, user-friendly experiences. Our collaborative art installation project, “Boundaries of Visualization,” served as the catalyst for this exploration.
Within our discussion group, we unraveled the potential of immersive, artistic, and interactive installations in turning monotonous data into enjoyable user experiences. Key questions guided our conversation, addressing the challenges of surpassing boundaries, conveying knowledge effectively, and mediating explicit, implicit, and tacit information. We pondered strategies to teach visitors to intuitively navigate interfaces, create interfaces resonating with human playfulness, and enable synesthetic experiences for the audience. Additionally, our focus extended to lowering the inhibition threshold associated with exploring new scientific topics, aiming to make the interaction and learning process not only informative but also thoroughly enjoyable.
Gemeinsam Zusammen
The “Gemeinsam Zusammen” exhibition delved into the influence of digital media on connection and separation. Attendees engaged with installations and virtual reality artworks to explore communication and community aspects. My colleague Mehrs Shirzadian and I were privileged to have presented our piece, the “Heart of Exhibition,” at this event in Darmstadt, where our shared goal of celebrating in-person participation post-COVID seamlessly harmonized with the exhibition’s essence as a vibrant social space.