Game Art Mechanics, Dynamics and Aesthetics
Saturday, January 30th, from 12:00 to 6:00 PM
At Studio XX, 4001 Berri, Suite 201 – corner Duluth
RSVP: info (at) studioxx.org or 514-845-0289
Cost : Free for members, $20.00 for non-members (taxes included)
Heather Kelley and Cindy Poremba will speak about their collaborative work as part of the experimental game collective Kokoromi, as well as about their individual art and independent game projects and curatorial work. Then let the fun begin! This dynamic duo will lead the group in a playful exploration of game design and game rule modification, capping off the day with a brief introduction to digital game production using free gamemaking tools like Processing and Unity.
Cindy Poremba is a digital media researcher, creator and curator exploring the intersection of documentary, games and interactive art through Concordia University’s Doctoral Humanities program (Montréal, QC). She is a former faculty member in Simon Fraser University’s School of Interactive Arts and Technology (SIAT), and has published work in journals such as Eludamos and Games & Culture, as well as edited collections. Cindy also organizes non-traditional and “new arcade” exhibitions as an independent curator and member of the Kokoromi game art collective.
[ cPoremba ] digital media researcher / creator / curator @ shinyspinning.com / docgames.com / kokoromi.org
Heather Kelley – moboid – is a media artist and video game designer. Most recently, she was Artist in Residence for Subotron at Quartier21, MuseumsQuartier Vienna, where she created “SUGAR,” a cross media collaborative event featuring an original game, scent-generating networked electronics, and couture fashion. Previously, Kelley was Creative Director on the UNFPA Electronic Game to End Gender Violence, currently under development at the Emergent Media Center at Champlain College in Burlington, Vermont. In Spring 2008, she was Kraus Visiting Assistant Professor of Art, and Adjunct Faculty at the Entertainment Technology Center, at Carnegie Mellon University, where she organized The Art of Play symposium and art game arcade.
Heather’s twelve-year career in the games industry has included AAA next-gen console games, interactive smart toys, handheld games and web communities for girls. She is co-founder of the Kokoromi experimental game collective, with whom she produces and curates the annual Gamma game event promoting experimental games as creative expression in a social context. Her game concept with Erin Robinson, “Our First Times,” won the 2009 GDC Game Design Challenge, and her game concept “Lapis” won the 2006 MIGS Game Design Challenge. As moboid, she has created interactive projections using game engines such as Quake and Unreal. Her experimental art game work with Lynn Hughes, “Fabulous/Fabuleux,” was created at Montreal’s Hexagram Institute and integrates gameplay into a full-body interactive installation using custom interface hardware. For seven years, Heather served as co-chair of the IGDA’s Women in Game Development Special Interest Group. She holds an MA from the University of Texas at Austin, where she is an alumna of the Advanced Communications Technologies Laboratory.