Mixing Art & Industry — SIGGRAPH Asia 2019

Bushfires in Queensland did nothing to dampen the innovative spirit of participants from around the world as they converged on Brisbane for the Association of Computing Machinery’s SIGGRAPH Asia Conference and Exhibition.

Along with my collaborator, sound designer Simon Howden, I had the fantastic opportunity of showcasing our ‘Contact/Sense’ prototype to a wide array of visitors from industry and academia, hailing from cultures as diverse as Brazil, Japan, America, Canada, Australia, India, China, U.K., Singapore, New Zealand, Germany, Hungary, Korea, Italy and France. Whew!

As an exhibitor at the SIGGRAPH Asia Art Gallery, I was able to discuss my interactive media designs with a seemingly endless field of experts: it was an incredible growth experience for my research practice, and I was able to link up with many people far more advanced than I. Basically, it was an early career researcher’s ‘dream zone’ ( ironically, also the theme of the conference ;-). On top of the informal chances for networking and receiving feedback, I gave a structured talk on the research itself, as part of the gallery programme. Incorporating gestural interfaces, bio-electrical sensors, a headset, and a network of living plants, our ‘Contact/Sense’ prototype received it’s first public outing, of many more to come.

Author: Dr Rewa Wright (www.newcastle.edu.au/profile/rewa-wright)