Since 1979, the Ars Electronica Festival has been interested in art, technology and society – starting at a time when the impact of technology on the fabric of today’s society was barely imaginable, except for the few who, out of passion, profession or curiosity, followed all its stages.
The Festival, which every year takes place in the first week of September, is now globally renowned and institutionally recognised. There are many entities surrounding the event, serving as the backbone of both the Festival and the museum. One of these is Ars Electronica Futurelab, an artistic research and development laboratory that, since 2003, has been working with an interdisciplinary team and partners from all over the world to address the social aspects of technological developments. Among these, they explore the impact of Artificial Intelligence, robotics, media architecture, interactive technologies, new forms of aesthetic expression, and swarm intelligence.
How do they explore these fields? By creating future-oriented prototypes of technologies and experiences through interactive installations, immersive works, technical solutions, workshops, experiments and much more.
They are the ones who create and manage all the technological aspects of the permanent Ars Electronica museum. They are also behind the cutting-edge technologies of Deep Space 8k, a digital space with a resolution of 33 million pixels and a high-performance laser tracking system. Among the Festival shows, this year, for the first time, this space hosted a session dedicated to Cultural Heritage.
Originally a support laboratory, FutureLab has evolved into a research centre fully integrated within Ars Electronica, becoming one of its key components. It continues to drive the technical work while optimising the team’s training and experience in a socially oriented direction. Their approach involves both internal exchange and collaboration as well as openness to the outside world, encouraging a continuous dialogue between different professions and disciplines, as well as between individuals and institutional realities. One of the ways and among the approaches adopted to look towards the future is “searching for the right questions”, as Anna Weiss explained during a visit to the open Futurelab at the Festival. Her interdisciplinary profile speaks volumes: a young artist and researcher with a degree in physics from Joan Kepler University.
This year, Data Art & Science (DAS) was launched as a collaboration between Futurelab and Toyota Coniq Alpha, with the aim of incorporating artistic perspectives on data. The DAS project is working with Shiga University to help revitalise the Shiga prefecture, located east of Kyoto and Osaka on Japan’s main island. Shiga borders Lake Biwako, Japan’s largest freshwater lake, which covers one sixth of the prefecture and supplies water to Shiga, Kyoto and Osaka. Known for its natural beauty, historical sites and cultural heritage, Shiga faces several challenges such as depopulation, empty houses, an ageing society, and risks of flooding and landslides.
One part of this Project is Memories for Futures, a “multimodal multimedia installation designed to raise awareness and promote a discussion about the future of rural life”, specifically in the village of Azusakawachi. The data displayed in the installation was gathered from the people in the village during a two-day workshop. Participants created real-time 3D models of significant objects and places. Their personal stories were collected through interviews.
Among the various projects encountered during the Festival’s open Futurelab area was Pillar of Democracy, Parlament Österreich-Parlamentsdirektion (AT) and Ars Electronica Futurelab (AT). This playful installation aimed to increase participation and awareness by capturing citizens’ shadows at Ars Electronica and projecting them onto the walls of the Parliament on election day. The goal is to establish an emotional and personal connection to democracy, emphasise the significance of participation and promote democracy and voting on an emotional level. (Maria Pfeifer, Peter Freudling)
The installation is based on Shadowgram, a Futurelab tool that allows people to take a stand on eight democracy-related issues using their silhouettes and recording short videos. These will then be displayed on the Parliament columns on election day (29 September 2024) and are encouraged to be shared on social media to stimulate debate on democracy and civic engagement.
These are just a few of the projects showcased by Futurelab, which is busy all year on various fronts linked to Ars Electronica and is now also working on a high-resolution scan of Linz’s St. Mary’s Cathedral (Mariendom) for Deep Space 8K. The scan, created by the Nöbauer construction engineering office and ii3D, will be presented at the end of September as part of the European Conference of Cathedral Builders.”
This provides an interesting insight into a reality and a working methodology that, for the past 25 years, has been constantly looking towards the future, starting with questions rather than answers and with a careful look at the present and the society to which these technologies and their use are directed.
Art Electronica, Futurelab
images: Maki Mamekawa, Life Ink, ph Florian Voggeneder, Future Lab Nights, Ars Electronica 2024 (2) Futurelab Night Performances 2023: 11°22’4”142°35’5”, photo: Tom Mesic, Ars Electronica 2024 (3) Gaussian Splatting during the workshop, Photo: Kazuma Obara (4) Notre-Dame Immersive / Ars Electronica (AT), Iconem (FR), Histovery (FR), photo: Ars Electronica / Raphael Schaumburg-Lippe
