Digital Technology and Culture (Sweden) (1/15/03; 5/7/03-5/9/03)

Geneva Next 2.0 - New Extensions of Technology

University of Karlstad, Sweden

May 7-9, 2003

Proposal Deadline: January 15, 2003

NEXT 2.0 will bring together for a second time in Karlstad an international field of practitioners and scholars engaged in the work of making digital technology meaningful for contemporary culture. An academic conference and an artistic exhibition, NEXT 2.0 will represent a unique forum for celebrating and critiquing the techniques, forms and aesthetics of digital media.

Conference Themes

Creating Content for Interactive New Media

One of our themes is to develop alternative approaches to the design of content and narrativity in interactive digital environments. How is storytelling and narrative evolving with the development of new interactive forms such as interactive film and DVD technology? How have artists developed alternative approaches to the design of interactive digital environments? The explosion of new approaches to creating content for new media will require the use of a wide spectrum of traditions, genres, styles and disciplines, ranging from theatre to music to film.

HumanIT

An exploration of the human values of technology. What is the value of modern information technology to people? How do we ensure that the technological progress that is being made serves humanities as diversely as possible? Issues of design, mobility, usability, privacy, and information stress are just some of the subjects of interest here.

Virtual Globalization

Digital technology, under the auspices of the "IT Revolution" is often associated with globalization. Pundits claim that technologies such as the web will usher in a new and more democratic world. Critics, on the other hand, point out that IT will do no such thing and that the claims of its revolutionary potential are overblown and na=EFve. We invite presentations that enter into this debate and more specifically investigate the economic, political and social effects of the combined forces of globalization and information technology.

Confirmed Speakers/Artists

Rafael Lozano - Artistic Director at Telefonica, Spain, Artistic Director of 5CyberCon and Will Bauer, President of Acoustic Positioning in Edmonton, Canada and inventor of the Martin Lighting Director (virtual tracking system). For more information about Rafael Lozano see http://www.fundacion.telefonica.com/at/rlh/eprlh.html. For more information on Will Bauer see http://www.positioning-research.com/apr.html

Stelarc - Performance Artist, Australia. Projects include the Third Hand, the Exoskeleton and the Stomach Sculpture. For more information see http://www.stelarc.va.com.au/

Additional invited speakers will be announced shortly

Submission Guidelines

Paper Submissions

Scholars and artists working in digital media, theory, and criticism are encouraged to submit proposals to present their work at the conference. Presentations may be in the form of scholarly papers or presentations; or performance, installations, or sculpture incorporating digital technologies, interactive or digital video, virtual environments, or network-based elements. Conference sessions may combine academic presentations with mediated performances; we encourage proposals which push the boundaries of the traditional conference paper in form and content.

Proposals should not exceed 500 words in length. Please indicate which of the above themes your paper falls under. Proposals should be submitted electronically to: andreas.kitzmann@kau.se or via regular mail to:

Andreas Kitzmann

Dept. of Media and Communications

University of Karlstad

651 88 Karlstad, Sweden

Fax: 46-(0)54-838445

tel: 46-(0)54-700-2105

If your presentations require specific media or technical support (computer or network access, 35 mm slides, videotape, etc.), describe your needs in detail, including specific OS or hardware requirements (Mac OS or Windows 95/98/NT), if appropriate.

All proposals must be submitted in WWW ready format (ASCII text or simple HTML code), either as attachments to email correspondence or within the body of the email message.

Performance/Installations/"Net" Work

NEXT is generally interested in artistic work that advances new concepts of technology, and more particularly in electronic art in which content is directly informed by an understanding of technological theory. Pieces which address concerns related to the above-stated themes will have the best chance of success. NEXT will screen installations, vide tapes, performances, games, and anything in-between.

Please submit a 2-page description of your project, a 1-page biography, a complete list of technical requirements, plus examples of your work on NTSC VHS tapes, PC of Mac CD-ROM, DVD, or Audio CD to:

Steve Gibson

Digital Media Geneva, Faculty of Fine Arts

University of Victoria

Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2, Canada

Please be aware that NEXT has a limited budget for equipment rental. Those projects in which the artist provides his or her own equipment will have the greatest chance of being accepted to NEXT.

Deadline for Proposals: January 15, 2003

Notification of acceptance of proposals will be sent out in February

Contact Information

Robert Burnett: Robert Burnett@kau.se (Director of Next)

Andreas Kitzmann: Andreas Kitzmann@kau.se (editor, papers and general enquiries)

Malin Sveningsson: Malin Sveningsson@kau.se (editor, papers)

Steve Gibson: sgibson@pop.finearts.uvic.ca (editor, artistic works)

NEXT 2.0

Dept. of Media and Communications

University of Karlstad

651 88 Karlstad, Sweden

A conference web site will be available soon!

_________________________________________________________________
Dr. Andreas Kitzmann andreas.kitzmann@kau.se
Senior Lecturer University of Karlstad, Sweden
Media and Communications 651 88 Karlstad, Sweden
Universitetsg. 1 Fax: 46-(0)54-838445
Voice: 46-(0)54-700-2105 e-mail: andreas.kitzmann@kau.se
ICQ: 109328175 or kitzmann@yahoo.com
Cell: 46-(0) 70 866-0182

Web Pages:
Department: http://www.media.kau.se/