Creative Tech Week 2017

Biometrics and Immersion in Creative Tech can mean many things to many people. Here three experts, Ellen Pearlman, Andy McWilliams, and hannes bend share their experiences working with brain waves, body glucose levels, and meditation and the breath, to discuss the future of the physical body and immersive art practices. Ellen's "Noor: A Brain Opera" (2016) was an immersive, interactive brainwave opera inside a 360 degree theater. Andy's "Insulin" works with the numbers emitted by a sensor that act as triggers for feelings of guilt, fear, or pride in daily decisions, such as eating or injecting insulin. hannes's VR project 'mYnd' currently under developed at the ThoughtWorks Arts Residency is a VR experience that integrates dynamic and adaptive biofeedback via biosensors into the immersive experience.

Ellen Pearlman is a new media artist, curator, writer and critic. She received her PhD from the School of Creative Media, Hong Kong City University, where she premiered her brain opera "Noor", an interactive immersive performance in a 360° theater. Ellen is on the faculty of Parsons/New School University, Director of the Volumetric Society of New York, and President of Art-A-Hack™.

Andrew McWilliams is a New York-based artist, technologist and program director. He is Director of the ThoughtWorks Arts Residency and a Lead Consultant at ThoughtWorks. Andrew has exhibited work at HarvestWorks New York, Currents New Mexico, and AlphaVille Festival in London. He is Director of Art-A-Hack™ and the Hardware Hack Lab.

hannes bend is a German-born artist who has exhibited internationally, with shows in Berlin and New York. His recent work investigates the possibilities of biofeedback in virtual reality environments, incorporating heart rate, breath and more into experiences.