May 06, 2004
Prix Ars Electronica 2004
This year's awards for best Interactive Art works:
Golden Nica Award:
Ben Rubin, Mark Hansen (USA): "Listening Post?"
A darkened space, 231 fluorescent text displays attached to a taut, vertically-strung, semi-circular net, eight loudspeakers and two subwoofers-this is the setting for "Listening Post." An aluminum lattice on the wall opposite the net reflects the light of the monitor screens and controls the acoustics of the space. Several computers analyze data from thousands of Internet chat rooms and newsgroups, and cull out 85 postings that begin with "I am," "I like" or "I love." Gradually, the communiqués appear on the displays, filling more and more space with their light. The selected texts vary in length and complexity; simpler and shorter ones come first. The beep of a telephone answering machine precedes the appearance of each message. This setting is variously modified in different segments. "Listening Post" sheds light on the enormous quantity of the online discourse in the digital Tower of Babel and reveals the absolutely unbelievable mass of human communication in the Internet.
Award of Distinction:
Feng Mengbo (Tadschikistan):
"Ah_Q"
With "Quake III" as the basis of his work, Feng has come up with a very different sort of video game. On one hand, the keyboard has been replaced by a "dancing board" to allow users to control the game with their feet; on the other hand, Feng Mengbo has imparted a clearly ironic-political note to the game by inserting himself-camera in one hand, plasma gun in the other-into the game as an on-screen figure. Feng Mengbo is one of the leading Chinese media artists. His games, films and photographs reflect his unique style and creativity in dealing with virtual reality.
Award of Distinction:
Kenneth Rinaldo (USA):
"Augmented Fish Reality"
"Augmented Fish Reality" is an interactive installation. Each of five goldfish bowls containing Siamese fighting fish sits atop a rolling pedestal. Four infrared sensors built into each goldfish bowl register the movements of the fish and transform them into movements of the pedestals. In this way, the fish can move about in space. Siamese fighting fish have excellent vision and display a high degree of social organization. The installation thus enables the fish to communicate with one another; in addition, there is interaction among the fish and visitors to the installation. Images captured by mini-cameras mounted in the goldfish bowls are projected within the installation space in real time and enable visitors to observe the world from the perspective of the fish.
Honorary Mentions:
DEMI-PAS Julien Maire D
alert Barbara Musil A
Messa di Voce Golan Levin, Zachary Lieberman, Jaap Blonk, Joan La Barbara USA, NL
Loops Marc Downie, Paul Kaiser, Shelley Eshkar; The Media Lab, MIT USA
We interrupt your regularly scheduled program ... Daniel Sauer; Osman Khan/UCLA Design, Media Arts USA
3 minutes² Naziha Mestaoui, Yacine Aït Kaci F
Topobo, Amanda Parkes, Hayes Raffle; MIT Media Lab USA
Iso-phone James Auger, Jimmy Loizeau, Stefan Agamanolis; Media Lab Europe IRL
Turing Train Terminal Severin Hofmann, David Moises A
Isadora / Future of Memory Improvisation; Future of Memory Mark Coniglio, Dawn Stoppiello USA
1000 Deathclock in Paris Miyajima Tatsuo, Tachibana Hajime J
Interactive generative stage and dynamic costume for André Werners "Marlowe, the Jew of Malta" Joachim Sauter, Nils Krüger D
