Intermediæ english blog

For everyone
From 16 to 21 June
16:00-21:00 h
With the collaboration of the Basurama collective
www.scrapyardchallenge.com

DIY Urban Challenge

The workshop proposes an urban journey for two days where attendees gather discarded objects and materials to be used later. Attaching different electronic mechanisms to them, attendees create new expressive possibilities out of everyday objects, awakening a playful ability to interact with the city and the "trash" it generates. The material results of the workshop will be reincorporated into the neighborhood and Intermediae on 23 June during Celebrando.

Workshops offered by The Scrapyard Challenge team (Jonah Brucker-Cohen and Katherine Moriwaki) are intensive ones where participants build simple electronic projects (both digital and analog inputs) out of found or discarded "junk" (old electronics, clothing, furniture, outdated computer monitors, etc.).

So far the workshops have been held 22 times in 10 countries with 3 different themes including the MIDI Scrapyard Challenge where participants build simple musical controllers from discarded objects and "junk", DIY Wearable Challenge where they create wearable tech projects from used clothing, and the DIY Urban Challenge where they work on public space interventions and other projects. No electronics skills or any experience with technology is necessary to participate in the workshops. The Scrapyard Challenge Workshops are built on the premise of encouraging an open and collaborative space for creative ideas and hands-on prototyping. Workshop attendees learn how to build a variety of projects from found and/or discarded objects.

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Jonah Brucker-Cohen is an artist and Research Fellow at the OpenLab at Eyebeam in New York City. He was a Research Fellow at Media Lab Europe and is currently completing his Ph.D. at the Networking and Telecommunications Research Group (NTRG) at Trinity College, Dublín. His work has been shown at events such as DEAF, Art Futura, SIGGRAPH, UBICOMP, CHI, Transmediale, ISEA, the Institute of Contemporary Art in London, Whitney Museum of American Art's ArtPort, Ars Electronica, and the ZKM Museum of Contemporary Art.
www.coin-operated.com/projects

Katherine Moriwaki is an artist and researcher from Canada who is currently completing her Ph.D at the Networking and Telecommunications Research Group (NTRG) at Trinity College, Dublín. Katherine’s research explores the possibilities offered by clothes and accessories for creating devices that activate networks of social relations in public spaces.
Her work has been shown in exhibits including: numer.02 at the Georges Pompidou Center (2002), Break 2.2 (2003), Ubicomp, Eculture Fair (2003), Transmediale (2004), CHI (2004), ISEA (2004), and Ars Electronica (2004). She is currently an Associate Professor at Parsons School of Design and the Rhode Island School of Design.
www.kakirine.com

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