reSkin

This entry comes to you from Canberra, Australia, where I am taking part in reSkin, a wearables focused media lab organised by the amazing Australian Network for Arts and Technology. Today was the first day proper and we were treated to a quick and intensive introduction to building soft circuits by two of the world's best - Elise Co and Joey Berzowska. Within a single day, such weird and wonderful things wer appearing as blindfolds with red LEDs in place of eyes, shivering wrist cuffs, and light up thumb wrestling finger puppets. This image proudly presents a first breadboard, with silver foil ball for a switch.

The workshop is going to contribute to ensemble in countless ways, and not only through a necessary filling in of some fairly basic skills gaps in my own wearables practice. The working environment is extremely stimulating, as I am surrounded by some of the most talented people form a diverse range of practice, and the quality of even incidental work is very high. There is also the opportunity for dissemination in various forms - through displays in the foyer of the ANU School of Art, to presentations to the group, an invited talk at the WearNow Symposium, and a dedicated publication of ANAT's Filter magazine.

There is a daily blog happening at http://www.anat.org.au/reskin/ which is certainly worth a look, and a great introduction posted yestedray gives a comprehensive overview of the facilitators' and delegates' work. Watch this space!

And thanks are due in no small part to the Scottish Arts Council's Lottery Funding. Their interdisciplinary development award has made this trip possible.