Laser Talks
Date: Tuesday, 5th of December, 2023
Time: 20.00h (CEST)
Title: “Art through Technology: when technology enters artistic practice; tools, meaning making and aesthetic voice”
Location: IAAC Main hall, C/ Pujades 102 & Zoom (link here)
The Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (IAAC) is delighted to host Laser Talks organized by Waag. The event will explore the creative tensions, and the methodological and ontological boundaries of technology, and how it interacts with creative autonomy. Alexandre Dubor, IAAC Co-Director of the Master in Robotics and Advanced Construction (MRAC) and of the Postgraduate in 3D Printing Architecture (3DPA), will participate in the debate together with two residence artists from VOJEXT S+T+ARTS and speakers from S+T+ARTS and EIT Culture & Creativity.
Programme
The artists in residency at VOJEXT S+T+ARTS will briefly introduce their projects. Each panelist will be invited for an informal commentary on their view regarding the close-knit relationship between art and technology and how this impacts their work and practice. Then, the panel will continue with questions and reflections.
– VOJEXT S+T+ARTS Residents: Marielena Papandreou and Calin Segal
– Alexandre Dubor, Head of Fabrication & Robotics AAG, at IAAC
– Marta Portales Oliva, Communication and Event Manager, EIT Culture and Creativity
Moderator: Zeynep Birsel (Waag)
About the speakers
Alexandre Dubor is an architect and researcher combining new technologies in an attempt to improve how we build and live in our cities. He holds a Master degree of Architecture & Engineering from EAVT & ENPC (France) and a Master Degree in Advanced Architecture from IAAC (Spain), with a specialisation in robotic fabrication and large-scale additive manufacturing. Together with IAAC staff, students and industrial partners, he is investigating how new advances in material, digital fabrication and computational design could lead to a better construction ecosystem, towards a more efficient, affordable, sustainable and personalised built environment.
Marta Portales Oliva has a professional and a scientific career manifesting a keen interest in the impact of technology on society as well as, digital transformation in the economic, cultural and social spheres. Her PhD research focused on Media literacy and new digital environments: mobile devices, young people and audiovisual language. Her latest professional career involved investigating and promoting digital transformation in the manufacturing sector, SMEs in particular, through advanced manufacturing processes and the digital skills that will be necessary for the factories of the future within the framework of the European I4MS and Horizon projects such as Better Factory. Currently she is the manager of Communication at EIT Culture and Creativity.
Marielena Papandrou is an artist/designer with technical, manufacturing and academic background honed by a variety of international experiences. She holds a MArch (Hons) in Design for Manufacture from the Bartlett School of Architecture which led her to a Lectureship position in Numerical Manufacturing in UCL. Her specialisation lies in parametric production pipelines and robotic fabrication. By leveraging algorithmic pathways and digital fabrication her research involves the practical, procedural and economic drivers behind the materialisation of building products. She studied Architecture & Engineering in the National Technical University of Athens and in the Escola Tècnica superior d’arquitectura de Barcelona, UPC.
Calin Segal is a Romanian multidisciplinary artist and designer based in Paris. He studied at the Arts School D. Cuclin in his hometown of Galati and later attended the Ecole Speciale D’architecture in Paris. During his studies he specialised in robotic manufacturing and digital design. Initially planning to become an architect, Calin instead decided to pursue a self-guided path of research into interactive and generative art. He co-founded the In-Dialog collective, a multidisciplinary research and development studio exploring the intersection of art, technology, and design.
The event will be accessible through the this link, and attendance is free. The proceedings will be conducted in English.