Bridging contexts and interpretations: Mobile blogging on art museum field trips

In this study of art museum field trips by high school students, we investigate the ways in which features of different social and mobile technologies, specifically blogs and mobile phones, are able to bridge and support meaning making in young people’s encounters with contemporary art. Empirical material is presented from Gidder, a web-based learning environment with a mobile blogging feature. Through close examination of students’ use of contextual resources and the writing and editing of blog entries, this study contributes a deeper understanding of the ways in which digital technologies may be designed for pedagogical use on museum field trips

Practice-based method : exploring digital media through the dynamics of practice, theory, and collaborative, multimedia performance

Abstract The synthesis of dynamic digital media and live, physical action present in multimedia performances affect both production practice of performance art and theoretical frameworks. This is a thesis on practice-based method and how digital media may compel us to revisit learning and research designs in digital media studies of the humanities. My aim is to review practice as an accompanying line of inquiry to the interpretive and critical approaches of the humanities, that is, in this instance, how collaborative, exploratory practice may extend our understanding of digital media. The core research questions are: How may practice-based methods inform studies of digital media? How may the interplay between practice and theory be conceptualised? How may practice-based studies be communicated? This thesis is in itself based on such practice-based method, centered on the collaborative media and dance production Extended, part of the practice-based educational design of the master-level course New Media Education at IMK, autumn 2002/Spring 2003. Dance-students, choreography-students and media students, of which I was one, collaborated in making four media-rich dance performances. My practical experience from this production supports the reflection on practice-based method put forward in this thesis, as does relevant theory and recorded material from the production-process and final performances. Theoretical perspectives in this interdisciplinary thesis derive from cultural-historical activity theory on learning to post-critical perspectives on media studies, practice and on-line research communication. From a cultural historical activity theory perspective on learning, from a media education perspective, from a digital media research perspective and from a multimodal culture perspective, there are reasons to advocate practice-based research and learning into digital media, Both digital media and digital media theory may be approached by notions of artifacts, and thereby as potential material and conceptual tools or artifacts of expressions in making expressive artifacts like multimedia performances. As all artifacts, digital media and digital media theory may be altered by practice, and thereby refined. A model of the dynamics of artifacts and tools in practice-based method is put forward. Concepts: Digital media, interdisciplinarity, practice-based method, multimedia performance, research communication, artifacts of expression and expressive artifacts. As this thesis explores how practice-based studies of digital media may be communicated by digital media, it is to be read as multimodal webtext, on-line. Please do see http://folk.uio.no/idunnsem/practice-based_metho

Designing performativity for mixed reality installations

This article takes up the concept of performativity prevalent in the humanities and applies it to the design of installation arts in mixed reality mode. Based on the design, development and public access to two specific works, the concept is related to a form of research by design. We argue that the concept of performativity may be further usefully employed in investigations (design and research, artistic and public) into digital arts where complex intersections between concepts, technologies, dramaturgy, media and participant actions are in flux and together constitute the emergence and experience of a work. Theories of performativity are related to these two works in an argument that further suggests there is room in research by design to also include ‘performative design’. The article is the result of a wide-ranging interdisciplinary collaboration and aims to convey some sense of that in its reporting style, content and analysis