data dances in denmark

Scott deLahunta (sdela@ahk.nl)
Wed, 27 Jan 1999 07:39:19 +0100

1)
>From 4 Feburary until 15 March -- the Department of Dramaturgy, University
of Aarhus, Denmark (in collaboration with the Centre for Information
Technology (http://www.cit.dk) will be organising a 6 week series of
digital performance workshops utilizing motion capture (Ascension Motion
Star Wireless with 7-8 sensors), animation (MAYA) and projection
technologies (with possible inclusion of a Holobench). The amount of work
to set this up has been so intensive that there has been no time to produce
electronic information/ websites to inform a wider public of the project.
Hopefully, there will be more information on-line soon. The international
team of people involved as facilitators/ workshop-seminar leaders are Scott
deLahunta (nl), Torunn Kjolner (dk), Susan Rethorst (nl), Kim Madsen (dk),
Erik Soldfeldt (dk), Susan Kozel (uk), Claude Aebersold (sw), Luca Ruzza
(it), etc.

2)
Some 'theoretical' preamble related to workshop:
*Dialogues on Motion Capture*

Motion Capture is an umbrella term for those digital technological
facilities (hardware/ software) which make it possible to record movement
and represent it in 3-D on a computer display. Briefly, these technologies
have been utilized primarily in two areas: 1) in the area of biomechanical
and ergonomic research with quantifiable research benefits to the medical,
sports and military establishments and; 2) in the area of special animation
effects utilized by the entertainment (movies and computer games) and
advertising industries. Motion Capture was rarely used by artists for
extending the borders of dancemaking partly because the costs for the
necessary experimentation were prohibitive. However, in the last few years,
we see more dance/ performance and digital artists working together on a
regular basis and in different countries with these technologies (e.g.
Susan Kozel and Kirk Woolford, Sally Jane Norman, Richard Lord and
Christian Hogue, Paul Kaiser/ Shelley Eshkar (riverbed) and Merce
Cunningham/ Bill T. Jones, Bruno Martelli and Ruth Gibson, Yvonne Fontijn
and Karin Post/ Michael Schumacher, etc.). They represent what might be
considered an evolved "critical mass" of work· wherein this technology has
reached a key moment of integration into the dance and movement arts field.

3)
Riverbed's motion capture/ virtual dance project *Ghostcatching* (which we
are hoping to bring to Aarhus, Denmark in May 1999) is still on at Cooper
Union until 13 February
http://www.cooper.edu/art/ghostcatching/

Review in Village Voice
http://www.villagevoice.com/columns/9901/bunn.shtml

See February issue of Archis for article by Susan Kozel
http://www.archis.org/archis_eng.html#contents

4)
At the Frascati Theatre in Amsterdam, 25 and 27 March 1999, there will be
an open installation of 'body/ improvisation and technology' projects
including a collaboration between Yvonne Fontijn and Michael Schumacher
utilizing motion capture technologies (http://www.nestheaters.nl/).

---------------------------------------------------------------|
Scott deLahunta and Susan Rethorst
Writing Research Associates, NL
Sarphatipark 26-3, 1072 PB Amsterdam, NL
tel: +31 (0)20 662 1736 / fax: +31 (0)20 470 1558
email: sdela@ahk.nl
http://huizen.dds.nl/~sdela/wra (WRITING RESEARCH ASSOCIATES)
http://www.art.net/~dtz (DANCE AND TECHNOLOGY ZONE )