Context
The current situation has led to an intensive examination of digital means of expression and platforms in the independent cultural scene. This process has once again demonstrated how innumerable factors contribute to an inspiring analogue cultural experience – and how sheerly impossible it is to convincingly mirror this multiplicity into the virtual world. A one-to-one transfer of the analogue into the digital cannot be the goal. Autonomous ways, concepts and forms of aesthetics are needed!
If society is increasingly settling in the virtual world, even more arts and culture professionals will have to secure a place for themselves there and address the issues associated with this migration in appropriate media. The technology does exist – let’s play with it creatively!
XR technologies such as Augmented and Virtual reality are suitable for virtual as well as hybrid cultural formats. Culture, technology and craft work closely together in the development of such offerings. Interdisciplinary collaborations of specialists from these fields make an exciting exchange and professional results possible.
XR_Unites
The XR_Unites project is part of the INKA research group at the Research Centre for Culture and Computer Science (FKI) at HTW Berlin. It is thus a sister project of the AURORA School for ARtists and the APOLLO project.
We support the independent creative scene in Berlin in forming interdisciplinary project teams and jointly developing artistic concepts with XR. To this end, there are two networking events a year with keynotes and workshops on changing focal points. In addition, we have set up a network board where fellow artists can be sought and found for creative XR projects.
Through three open calls, one promising art and culture project with XR will be selected by mid-2023. For each call, an interdisciplinary team will be advised and supported over several months in the areas of concept and aesthetics, XR development, digital media production and public relations.
Under the menu item “Insight”, the interested community will be kept up to date on the development process. Public presentations of the results are planned at the end of each project.
All participants expand their network, gather valuable contacts and experience in the interdisciplinary agile development of creative XR applications. And because XR_Unites is a HTW project, it also supports interested creatives in founding their own start-ups with sparkling ideas and expanded know-how.
Funding
XR_Unites is funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the program Strengthening Innovation Potential in Culture II (INP-II) with the kind support of the Senate Department for Culture and Europe.