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Michael Punt Presentation	Darren Stevens
Friday 28th March 2003

 

Dynamic Space: Interactive Art in Large-Scale Public Environments – Miroslaw Rogala

 

This is a case study report following the planning and installation of an interactive installation in a busy public park in Chicago. The interactive installation being ‘Electronic Garden/NatuRealization’, 1996.

 

The case study highlights the general issues related to the installation covering a six month period of public presentation and presents conclusions on contemporary interactive participatory artworks.

 

The case study follows a hypothesis of postulating creative interactive artworks as an intellectual/philosophical investigation into the processes of creation and participation in technological media arts. The study is set with a context of ‘the impact of new technologies on urban space, industrial behaviour and art practice since 1910’ and within ‘the role of randomness and predictability in the movement of people through public spaces’.

 

The paper begins by highlighting Hugo Munsterberg’s argument detailing new technological and urban societies of the 20^th century are providing new temporalities and spatiality’s which demand a new form of cooperation and goes on to include Frank Popper claims of the transition of emphasis from the art object/artist to that of the new active role of spectator involvement. Rogala also incorporates Brenda Laurel’s statement, citing user interfaces and the balance of power between the user, the artwork and the artist, in order to propose that the term ‘spectator’ is presently inadequate and that more descriptive terms such as ‘user, collaborator or creator’ are required today to better formulate the position of the spectators/participants/interactors to the artwork. These statements all highlight a differing and collaborative relationship art and it’s viewers of today to the traditional concept of art as separate to the viewer.

 

Following the planning and installation of the interactive artwork ‘Electronic Garden/NatuRealization’, the paper presents both pre and post installation reports and findings.

Pre-installation as the following of a criteria of public involvement in planning, research, history and recordings at all stages of the installations development, highlighting a greater public/artist collaboration issue in this work and public art.

Post-installation reporting on inherent aspects of public interaction citing context, movement, duration, location and behaviour, and giving specific examples of findings from public interaction.

 

The case study emphasises the relevance of the physical body to interaction and participation in public artworks and follows on with conclusions and explanations for contemporary artwork and directions, utilising Eco’s concepts of ‘open works’ or ‘works in movement’ – participation being the active element in bringing the work to provisional completion. Rogala also indicates a linkage to architecture in the form of space, behaviour of the body and the implications of interactive systems on spatial experience.

 

In focusing on the issue of modern day research through both Deleuze and Bauer in mind and body being intimately connected, Rogala illustrates a greater level of importance to the advancement of physical interactions in space.

 

In focusing on the traditional definition of space (height, width and depth) and in view to physics, engineering and architecture, the case study emphasises the need for a redefinition of space as an empty extension. With use of Popper, Rogala indicates that physical space surrounding an artwork bears a significant level of importance to communication of consciousness through the artwork and hence it’s environment.

 

In view to technologies and interaction, Rogala summaries the technologies of radio and the internet to illustrate the move from passive receiver to the active receiver/broadcaster. The move from singular broadcaster to multiple broadcaster, participation of the spectator. Rogala also gives an indication of the usage of cooperative spectator interaction technologies within the theme park industries against the emphasis of individuality within interactive television-based games.

 

In view to the historical aspect of technological development in interactive art, there has been attempts to humanise the interface between user and system to allow for greater reciprocal dialogue. New interpretations of the art object in view to the spectator have been provided following works such as Umberto Eco’s ‘Opera Aperto’. The role of the artist has changed from that of external commentary of society to that internal societal change.

 

New avenues for interactive art are now possible, not only between participants and device, but between participants and participants and creators.