Experimental Game Cultures

🎓🎮 ✨Warmest congratulations to this year’s graduates of the Experimental Game Cultures program!!✨🎮🎓

We are incredibly proud of you!!
Thank you for bringing your passion and creativity to the class!

Congratulations also to your excellent final projects:

Wassily Bartuska / Our Arms Must Be Mighty


Aliya Davletova / My Dear Puppets


Marlene Mautner / The Deconvolution of Things


Sebastian Scholz / Can´t Control It – Exploring synergies of music, virtuality and playful interaction


Maxim Shchapov / Cafe Nostalgia


Bernhard Staudinger / Threads


The graduation projects can be explored one last time today @ the !
GCP
Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Wien
1st floor, rooms 151, 155, 156/ basement STAR11

💫

Photo Credits:
#2: Wassily Bartuska
#3,4,5,6,7: University of Applied Arts Vienna, photo © Jorit Aust, 2024, licensed under CC BY ND SA 4.0

🌟 Join us next week at the Angewandte Festival! 🌟

Experience the ’Pata Play & Ludic Flow EXHIBITION, featuring our Final Projects, Master Projects, and Live Performances.

Check out our program and be a part of this exciting event from June 26 to June 29.

Nest. XenoLudic games and nonhuman intelligence

Guestlecture Experimental Game Cultures - 6.12.23, 17:00 - Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1. floor

On the 6th of December Tamás Páll will present the INTRA research project called “NEST” for the students and faculty of the Experimental Game Cultures program at the University of Applied Arts Vienna.

NEST is a collaborative project between Tamás Páll, Prof. Margarete Jahrmann, and Thomas Wagensommerer that explores post-anthropocentric experimental game mechanics and play through “XenoLudic” artistic research. The term XenoLudic - coined by Tamás Páll in his ongoing PhD research - refers to a form of game-based artistic research that explores nonhuman play and agency, and human-machine cooperation.

The presentation will unpack previous projects working with XenoLudic mechanics, and discuss the ongoing research in detail with materials, experiments and documentation.

The occasion for the event is to discuss with students the possibility to collaborate on an upcoming solo exhibition that will run between 25th of January and 25th of February at discotec Vienna. Preparing for the exhibition a one day workshop will be organized in January, where together with the EGC students they will delve into the processes of role-play, digital worldbuilding and critical play, which are the key methods of the NEST research project.

Be a part of the information session dedicated to the Experimental Game Cultures Master's programme, where you'll gain insight into the curriculum and the admissions process. This is your chance to engage directly with educators and current students to have your queries addressed.

Mark Your Calendar:
Tuesday, 7 November 2023, 10:00-18:00 — Part of the festivities at the Angewandte Open House Day.

Choose Your Mode of Participation:

Online Experience via Zoom (link in bio):
at 10:00 Engage with our esteemed faculty and students for insights into the program’s framework.

Or, Immerse Yourself Onsite in Vienna:
Location: Experimental Game Cultures Studio, Expositur Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1st floor, room 151
10:00-13:00 Open lecture „Experimental Game Mechanics“ with our senior artist Thomas Wagensommerer
13:00-16:00 Open labs (Drones/BioLudic/LudicObject)
16:00-16:30 Opening „Play Savings Bank“
16:30-18:00 Open Play Party

Join us for an informative deep dive into a program that sits at the vanguard of artistic and digital innovation.
Whether online or in person, seize this chance to get a real feel for what the Experimental Game Cultures Master's program has to offer.

We extend a warm and heartly welcome to our (new) students! 🧩🎲
It's been an incredible start with so much energy, creativity, and endless possibilities, filled with experiments and plenty of "pata play“. 👾🕹️

Let's continue to explore, experiment, and redefine the boundaries of what gaming means. Together, we're forging a future where play knows no limits! 🌐🎮✨

Join us and delve into the captivating world of interactive games 🎮 at H༙྇Y༙྇B༙྇R༙྇I༙྇D༙྇ ༙྇L༙྇U༙྇D༙྇I༙྇C༙྇ ༙྇A༙྇S༙྇S༙྇E༙྇M༙྇B༙྇L༙྇A༙྇G༙྇E༙྇S༙྇, hosted by the Angewandte Festival. Our showcase is stationed in the historic building of the former PSK, on the 1st floor, rooms 151-156.

Mark your calendars for our special performances on today's agenda, Thursday, June 29th:

17:00 - N̆̈ĕ̈ŭ̈r̆̈ŏ̈-̆̈m̆̈ă̈n̆̈ĭ̈c̆̈ ̆̈N̆̈ĕ̈ŭ̈r̆̈ŏ̈m̆̈ă̈t̆̈ĭ̈c̆̈ ̆̈Ğ̈ă̈m̆̈ĕ̈ ̆̈Ă̈r̆̈t̆̈ ̆̈Ĕ̈x̆̈p̆̈ĕ̈r̆̈ĭ̈m̆̈ĕ̈n̆̈t̆̈ ̆̈Ă̈[̆̈Ĭ̈]̆̈ ̆̈M̆̈Ă̈Z̆̈Ĕ̈

In a neuro-manic Neuromatic Game Art experiment, we test the effects of AI-generated images on our brain in a feedback loop. The "prompt" - that is, the textually described command for image generation - is replaced by data from our brainwaves 🧠🌊 collected through a 32-channel EEG.
The 32 channels are implemented in an audio game composition. They influence our own mood towards the image generated from AI and our biological mind (brainwave measurement).

@ studio EXPERIMENTAL GAME CULTURES

Further informations:
https://neuromatic.uni-ak.ac.at/

After the NEUROMATIC performance, synthesizing art and neuroscienitifc apparatus:

17:45 - ʟᴜᴅɪᴄ ᴍᴇᴛʜᴏᴅ ᴘᴀɴᴇʟ

A discourse with the curator and co-initiator of Künstlerische Tatsachen Jena,
Enrique Torres on Science, Spiel and Art

Do we need a Bioludic lab — a space for artistic facts?

Enrique Torres, born in Jena, has been part of the re: publica program team since 2018 and was responsible for the rpCampus, among other things. He studied philosophy and cross-disciplinary strategy at the University of Leipzig and at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna. He is also the founder of Œuvre e.V. and schau e.V. and is involved in numerous artistic projects at the interfaces between art and activism as well as art and science.

https://www.kuenstlerische-tatsachen.de/en/about/
kuenstlerische-tatsachen.de

https://www.instagram.com/kuenstlerische_tatsachen/

https://twitter.com/KTatsachentwitter.com

Today / / 6pm
/// Join the talk ///

Margarete Jahrmann
AI Labyrinths, mean Eigenfaces, Ludic Currency, Zero Action und Aktivismus im künstlerischen Spiel

Learning from/in and/or with Experimental Game Cultures Vienna

Wie kann das Potenzial von Kunst als Aktivismus genutzt werden, um eine neue Form der experimentellen Spielkunst zu schaffen? Im künstlerischen Forschungsprojekt Neuromatic Game Art. Critical Play with Neurointerfaces wurde eine Reihe von Experimenten entwickelt, die mittels art games politisch intervenieren. Ist das Spiel mit Überwachung, Face-Recognition und AI eine Form des Protests? Ist das künstlerische Spiel mit AI und Gesichtserkennung, mit Machine-Learning und Klassifizierung (Diskriminierung), dem AI-Bias (Daten- und Ergebnisverzerrung) Aktivismus?

Gesellschaft, Spiel, Kultur und Profitmechanismen sind dank aktueller AI/ChatGPT und OpenAI einem radikalen Wandel unterworfen. Diskutiert und kontextualisiert werden sollen dazu drei Arbeiten, die außerdem Hirnscans/Elektroenzephalogramme als künstlerisches Ausdrucksmittel im Spiel nutzen: AI Labyrinth (2022), Kopfgeld (2021) und Zero Action at the Savings Bank (2021). A sweet little do nothing performance game!

Das Ausstellungsspiel AI Labyrinth ist eine Form der Aneignung von AI, Kopfgeld eine Game-Scores-Installation zur Generierung einer ludischen Währung als Alternative zu energieintensiven Tokens und Zero Action … eine antikapitalistische Parabel über das neue Genre der künstlerisch adaptierten low / no action games als resistance im Spiel.

Von und für diese Formen des künstlerisch handelnden Spiels lernen wir in neuen AI-basierten critical games, entwickelt im Bereich Experimental Game Cultures.

Margarete Jahrmann
ist Spielkünstlerin und spielend Theorie-Schreibende, ordentliche Universitätsprofessorin und Leiterin der neuen Abteilung für Experimentelle Spielkulturen an der Universität für angewandte Kunst Wien. Aktuelle Forschungsprojekte: Neuromatic Game Art. Kritisches Spiel mit Neurointerfaces (FWF/PEEK) und Biological Interfaces, Ludic Cultures and Non-human Agencies. Spiele von/mit/über das Leben hinaus.

Want to see and hear what we are doing? Then come by and catch Ludic Orchestra in action performing non-human sounds in cooperation with the class of Jorge (Media Composition / University of music and performing arts Vienna).
👾Btw: The call for applications for our master’s program is still open until 27th of Jan.
Find all the info here: https://experimentalgamecultures.uni-ak.ac.at/apply23/ -> link in bio

Calling all art - game - culture enthusiasts and visionaries!
Are you ready to change the game? …in designing game changer games?

The Master's program in Experimental Game Cultures is now accepting applications!
This interdisciplinary and internationally oriented program is dedicated to address the pressing issues of our time through the principles of free, experimental, and artistic game design, art in games, and the design of game mechanics that resonate with social contexts.

We aim to not only create innovative game concepts but also to understand the impact of games on society. We explore the use of games as a tool for understanding social, economic and political contexts, and work towards a democratic shaping of their future.

Apply now and let's make our way to the future together!
Our way there is the game!
Tune in: INTERVIEW online!

Register and submit your application until 27.01.23 (12 am, CET) here:
https://application.uni-ak.ac.at/

Get all the details about the master program and the admission procedure here:
https://experimentalgamecultures.uni-ak.ac.at/apply23/ —>Link in bio

Ludic Method Soirée 07_12_22

Simon Huber - A Playbook of Knowledge Visualization

Studio EXPERIMENTAL GAME CULTURES - Prof. Margarete Jahrmann

The Orbis sensualium pictus, written by Jan Amos Comenius and printed 1658 in Nürnberg, is a curious object. In this ludic lecture, we’re talking about a tiny, illustrated encyclopedia that shares a whole world vision in 150 short chapters each referring to a simple woodcut. For readers today it’s not only an intriguing glimpse into life of the Europeans of the early modernity.
A closer look reveals that in its layout the rules of reading are re-designed. This way books become a ‚graphical user interface‘ to the „wisdom“ to be transmitted. Knowledge is no longer text to be read and memorized. Rather it is situated within a world as a virtual learning environment. It can be navigated only by playfully flipping pages. While managing knowledge with this simple operation the Orbis pictus aims at a new target group: children, who were no humans yet as they are lacking the capability of reading and learned reasoning. Therefore it sets a new standard, that is still at work today — not only in explicitly didactical school contexts, where Comenius laid famously ground for. This rigid principle of clear and vivid visualization of knowledge is ubiquitous in our recent ludic culture, and therefore can be traced forth to any game that lets its players acquire knowledge within an emerging story world.

Simon Huber is historian, who ‚excavates‘ the rules of visualization of knowledge and its playful transmission — formerly within the recent history of commercial video games, e.g. in the use of so-called ‚cutscenes‘. He also teaches game design and coffee making.

TONIGHT 7pm Depot - Kunst und Diskussion or online:
https://youtu.be/_qbBgVpMQQI

/Mindgames - a critical statement on artistic LUDIC research by Thomas Wagensommerer & - including SNEAK PREVIEW on a 1st person experience on research

https://www.depot.or.at/index.php?article_id=30&clang=0

We are very pleased to welcome Robert Glashüttner (game culture journalist FM4) to our Ludic Tea Event!! Tomorrow, November 9th, 3pm

In the context of Ludic lecture series - discourses on narrative structures in pinball artifacts, videogame culture, art, game, play, politics and the world in relational times of non-human and human challenges.

-human

Phygital Lunch
We are very much looking forward to our next guests Flavia Mazzanti & Manuel Bunell (Immerea), 3rd Nov. 2022 at noon!

Experimental Game Cultures, Prof. Margarete Jahrmann

The public Ludic discourse will bring up different examples from media art, performance and game development, together with Immereas and other experimental work and research in the field (also see Neuromatic Game Art). It will take the form of an open discussion about the role of the artist and game designers/artiststic developers in this realm. We will double-check, in a dialogue among friends and Ludic Society members with Margarete Jahrmann, the promises, dark sides, possibilities and challenges that virtual and extended realities might inter-play.

This Wednesday 19th October,
we are very happy to welcome for our afternoon lecture series >>> Ludic Tea

EXPERIMENTAL GAME CULTURES @ Parallel Vienna
6.- 11. 9. 2022 / Game location: Semmelweisklinik, Hockegasse 37, 1180 Vienna / B108 + B109 https://parallelvienna.com/
HYBRID LUDIC ASSEMBLAGES.
Aliya Davletova, Adrian Jonas Haim, Wassily Bartuska, Bernhard Staudinger, Barbi Markovic, Marlene Mautner, Daniela Weiß/ Litto, Maxim Shchapov, Sebastian Joseph Scholz, Sarah Steininger, Klimentina Hristova.

https://experimentalgamecultures.uni-ak.ac.at/

https://parallelvienna.com/

Gald to be part of ! 🦾🪅⚪️🪅🦾