28.08.2003 :: Event Special :: Cathy Brickwood
e-culture fair Amsterdam 23-24 October
Where are we heading with the knowledge economy? In the current discussions around this topic, it is creativity that plays a key role rather than purely technological development. Not only scientists and commercial product developers have ideas about how we will be working, communicating, learning and playing in the future. The innovative e-culture fair that takes place in Amsterdam this October, is a unique international showcase for new media projects from the cultural sector, industry, science and education. Instead of taking the technology or the commercial applications as a starting point, the makers profiled at the e-culture fair design and develop products with the human being as point of departure. The e-culture fair is a digital bazaar, a fair with nothing for sale, an exhibition with the makers available for a chat. They explain the ideas behind the products, and offer visitors the opportunity to test out their prototypes in the three zones: My-Mode, Toys4Us and Mobile Home. Each zone highlights a particular field in new media research and development. The e-culture fair takes place on 23 and 24 October in De Balie, Melkweg and Paradiso, three neighbouring venues in the centre of Amsterdam.
Would you wear a smelly dress?
Bodily functions, clever clothing and new forms of physical communication are the focus of the
My-Mode zone. The project Scentient Beings, by Jenny Tillotson of the Central Saint Martins School of Art and Design in London, presents clothes that activate not just the eye but also the nose. In the future clothes could detect illnesses through smell, match you with your perfect mate through pheromone profiling (pheromones are chemicals that influence behaviour), or even produce refreshing deodorant when you perspire.
Would you like to play with Peter Greenaway?
Reality and fiction and the related experience of time increasingly flow into each other. This is obvious in a film like The Matrix. But it becomes even more interesting if you can influence it yourself. During the e-culture fair you can play Tulse Luper’s Journey in the Toys4Us zone. This interactive game is based on the three new films by Peter Greenaway, the story of the mysterious figure Tulse Luper. The first part of the trilogy premieres in the Netherlands on 6 November. In the game you play the role of a scientist who researches Tulse Luper’s life. Along with researchers from all over the world you analyse the contents of 92 suitcases that contain information about Tulse Luper. By solving riddles and sharing discoveries with your fellow researchers you start to build up a picture of his life story, and the story of 20th century Europe. The combined discoveries gradually create an alternative, dynamic view of Tulse Luper’s life.
Where are you?
With the rise of mobile telephony it’s hard to know where the caller is. Whereas the standard question used to be ‘how are you’ now it’s ‘where are you?’. But things are about to change. Soon everyone will be able to trace their friends through their mobile phone. The Mobile Home zone brings together various examples of ways in which human contact is made possible despite physical distance. In some cases the contact is also physical. In RemoteHome people who live in a different city than their loved one can experience their presence through contact with physical objects. The remotely shared home was developed by Tobi Schneidler in collaboration with Smart Studio/Interactive Institute (Stockholm) and Textiles Futures/Central Saint Martins (London). Two houses are connected by Internet. In one house someone snuggles into an armchair. The person sitting in a chair in the other house is forced by his or her own chair into another sitting position.
Meeting the makers
The e-culture fair is not only about wireless contact. It’s about bringing people together to foster new ideas and co-operation. This emphasis is echoed in the design of the physical space, with central meeting points for visitors and presenters. The makers will also present their work themselves during the presentation sessions held during the fair. Each session has a thematic focus and is introduced by internationally renowned specialists. The informal setting allows visitors to ask questions and enter discussions about the topic.
Practical information
The e-culture fair takes place on Thursday 23rd and Friday 24th October 2003. It is held in De Balie, Melkweg and Paradiso, three neighbouring venues in the centre of Amsterdam. Tickets cost €10/ €7.50 (concessions). On 24th October a one-day working conference is taking place for specialists. For more information see www.e-culturefair.nl.
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