2024 LAB X The Young Artist's Atelier – Body Sensing
Learning x Practice x Professional Communication
National Taichung Theater (NTT) is committed to the application of technology to performing arts as well as the exploration and co-creation of interdisciplinary arts.
NTT launched the LAB X Platform in 2020, with the aim to incubate creative talents, the Young Artist’s Atelier (referred to as the program) highlights the "research process" of creative ideas and practice and the public presentation of interim results. The fifth edition of the program features creative works of Body Sensing and Augmented Reality (AR). Structured as a mentorship program, the platform functions as an incubation space for professional training, research, and experiment where young artists aged 30 or younger study under prominent guest artists from home and abroad.
The mentors of the 2024 Body Sensing program are WANG Po-wei, artistic director of the Digital Art Foundation (DAF), and TSAI Tsun-hung, technical director of the DAF. By experience sharing, guidance every step of the way, practical research methodology and intensive exchange for trend insight, young artists will be able to expand their artistic horizon, thinking and agency.
Presentation
- Date: November 23, 2024
- Venue: Corner Salon , National Taichung Theater
- Time: 10:00-12:00
Mentors|WANG Po-Wei, TSAI Tsun-hung
Creators|Lai Wen-ni(Co-creators: Fan Shu-min,Huang Yuan-ting,You Chueh-fu) , CHEN Yi-Yen (Co-creators: LIN Yu-Ching,LIN Chun-Huang,CHANG Hsiang-hua,HUANG Chi-Hung,YEH Cheng-yun,TAI Ming-shan)
Commentator|WU Zi-jing (Art director of House Peace,Director of Mr.Wing theater company )
Commentator|Warrick TSAI(Head of R&D and Planning Department,Technology Media Platform at Taiwan Contemporary Culture Lab)
Introduction
Mentors
Artistic director, Digital Art Foundation
WANG Po-wei is the artistic director of the Digital Art Foundation and previously served as an assistant researcher at the Taipei Fine Arts Museum as well as a nominee observer for the 2020-2021 Taishin Arts Award. His main research fields include media theory, contemporary art history, culture and art sociology, and art/science/technology. He co-translated Niklas Luhmann's Love as Passion: The Codification of Intimacy with ZHANG Jin-hui (Taipei: Wunan). More
Assistant professor, Interdisciplinary Program of Technology and Art and Graduate Institute of Art and Technology at National Tsing Hua University
TSAI Tsun-hung is the assistant professor in the Interdisciplinary Program of Technology and Art as well as the Graduate Institute of Art and Technology at National Tsing Hua University. He received his design doctorate from the College of Design at National Taipei University of Technology, and was the technical director of the Digital Art Foundation, the assistant professor in the Department of Communications Design at Shih Chien University, and the MIS engineer at MoCA Taipei. TSAI's professional fields include computer animation, interactive design, augmented reality, virtual reality and game design. More
Creators & Works
Stay with Me,(or...)
This creative project is inspired by the classic sci-fi novel Frankenstein, focusing on its exploration of interpersonal relationships and marginalization. The work places Mary Shelley's monster in the modern digital world, where the creature attempts to overcome the barriers imposed by its appearance through a virtual reality therapeutic framework, aiming to fulfill the unachieved wish in the original story—to form genuine connections with others.
The monster’s performance in the virtual world is presented through motion capture technology, combined with augmented reality techniques and live performance. This approach blurs the line between the real and virtual, making the monster’s image more vivid and realistic, while also allowing the audience to become part of the performance.
This work reflects humanity's long-standing desire for intimate relationships. It portrays the monster's journey of exploring, forming, and breaking connections with others in digital spaces, mirroring the loneliness and disconnection faced by modern individuals. The work aims to provoke the audience to reflect on how technology impacts human interaction.
Graduated from the Interdisciplinary Program of Technology and Art at National Tsing Hua University, LAI’s past works mainly involve virtual reality and interactive installations. She has a strong curiosity and an experimental spirit towards different mediums. Her works often draw from personal experiences and emotions, uncovering subtle thoughts through interpersonal interactions and exploring the individual's role within relationships.
FAN is currently studying in the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures at National ChengCchi University and is also a freelance creator. She has a keen interest in performing arts, particularly contemporary dance and theater, and has frequently taken on roles as a choreographer, director, and performer in school activities, continuously accumulating stage and creative experience. This is her first experience at integrating technological art into her work, hoping to explore more possibilities in somatic creation.
HUANG graduated from the Department of Geosciences at National Taiwan University and is currently studying at the Institute of Oceanography at National Taiwan University. He is also a member of the NTU Piano Club. He began learning piano at the age of six and enjoys challenging himself with performances in various musical genres. In 2016, he performed a solo piano piece at his junior high school graduation farewell ceremony. He served as the piano accompanist for male voice choirs in the National Student Competition of Music in 2018 and 2019, and as the piano accompanist for the joint choral Mei-Lü Concerts of Taichung First Senior High School and Taichung Girls’ Senior High School in 2019, 2022, and 2023. Driven by his passion, he continues to experiment with composition, primarily focusing on choral works, solo piano pieces, and symphonies.
Originally from Taitung City, YU is currently a master's student at the Graduate Institute of Art and Technology at National Tsing Hua University. During his undergraduate studies at the Interdisciplinary Program of Technology and Art at the College of Arts, National Tsing Hua University, his primary focus was on technological art, with a secondary specialization in anthropology. He excels at uncovering the logic and meaning behind everyday life, exploring poetic emotions within spaces, and expanding his knowledge while gaining practical experience. His works often express both micro and macro perspectives. His creations mainly involve interactive installations, and he also possesses skills in visual design, virtual reality creation, field research, and exhibition planning.
Under the Skin
A Contemporary Re-enchantment of The Painted Skin—Shifting Between Human and Non-Human Forms
This presentation is based on the ancient text The Painted Skin from Pu Songling’s Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio. Following the mythical creature’s metamorphosis as it wanders the boundary between human and mythical forms, the piece recreates the skin by translating bodily information through the senses. The physical data is stripped from the body and manifested into digital skins. While recreating the skins, the work utilizes sensing technology to explore contemporary speculations on skin and identity. Presented as physical theater and audio-visual performance, the piece allegorically reopens the concept of skin as an open medium, delving into the dialectics of the real and the virtual through the work’s exploration of our bodies.
Currently a master’s student at the Graduate Institute of Art and Technology at National Tsing Hua University, CHEN’s works primarily utilize visual media and installations for storytelling, using art as a medium that connects humans, technology, and space. Her creations focus on the transition between the real and the virtual in contemporary identities, integrating sensory memories into her work. She participated in the 2022 Taipei Fringe Festival The Infinite Depth, serving as the space and real-time visual designer. CHEN has cross-disciplinary collaboration experience, including exhibition production for Liminal Space at Huashan 1914 Creative Park and LightWeight-Tower at C-Lab. Her work Solitude Internet was showcased in the Campus Exhibition Program at the 2024 Ars Electronica Festival in Linz.
Currently a master’s student at the Graduate Institute of Art and Technology at National Tsing Hua University, LIN primarily works with video and spatial installations, focusing on behavior, sensory experiences, and natural ecology. Her creations are rooted in personal sensory experiences, exploring the connections and disconnections between public and private realms. Her work The Tactile Labyrinth was showcased in the Campus Program of the Research & Creation Laboratory at the 2024 Recto VRso Festival in Laval, France. Her piece At The Bend Of The Street was exhibited at the 2024 Ars Electronica Festival in Linz and in 2022 at the Banqiao 435 Art Zone.
Currently a master’s student at the Graduate Institute of Art and Technology at National Tsing Hua University, LIN focuses on interactive installations, internet art, and virtual art, exploring the relationships between environments, people, and technological media in the digital era. He has received numerous awards, including First Prize at the 2024 National Art Exhibition R.O.C., First Prize at the 2024 New Taipei City Art Exhibition, the Silver Award at the 17th K.T. Technology and Art Award in 2022, and an Honorable Mention at the 2022 Hualien Art Exhibition. His works have been featured in the 2024 Ars Electronica Festival in Linz and the 2024 ISEA International Symposium on Electronic Art. He also received an Honorable Mention at the 2024 Expanded Animation Symposium and an invitation to exhibit at the 2024 Recto VRso XR Art Festival in Laval, France. LIN’s works were also showcased in the 2023 Taiwan Lantern Festival, the 2023 Hsinchu Lantern Festival, and the 2024 Yuejin Lantern Festival.
Currently a master’s student at the Graduate Institute of Art and Technology at National Tsing Hua University, CHANG primarily creates using interactive programming, AR, VR, and other similar media. She observes her surroundings, including the environment, people, and objects, using her personal perspective as a starting point, and integrates various media such as motion capture, augmented reality, virtual reality, and immersive projection in her works. She continues to explore the possibilities between technology and art, seeking to connect and engage in dialogue with the audience through her works. CHANG was a co-creator at FUTURE VISION LAB 2021 TNUA NMA X SCCD-Immersive Audiovisual Workshop-The Joint Presentationand and participated in ET@T Lab Theater × O Echo.Co Studio's Go! Gorenji!, where she was responsible for 3D modeling and motion capture technology execution.
Currently studying at the Graduate Institute of Art and Technology at the College of Arts, National Tsing Hua University, HUANG excels at presenting ideas through various mediums, unrestricted by physical or digital forms. She views creation as a language of communication to express observations on contemporary social phenomena. HUANG has received numerous awards, including First Prize at the 2024 National Art Exhibition R.O.C., First Prize at the 2024 New Taipei City Art Exhibition, and an Honorable Mention at the 2022 Nanying Award. Her works have been featured in the 2024 Ars Electronica Festival in Linz and the 2024 ISEA International Symposium on Electronic Art, and have received an Honorable Mention at the 2024 Expanded Animation Symposium, along with an invitation to exhibit at the 2024 Recto VRso XR Art Festival in Laval, France.
Currently a senior year student at the College of Arts, National Tsing Hua University, YEH has served as the chief instructor of the NTHU Pop Dance Club and represented NTHU in the 2021 and 2022 College High Hip-Hop Group Competitions, as well as being the chief choreographer of the NTHU Women’s Group in the 2023 College High competition. She won second place in the 2023 NTHU x NYCU Meichu Battle in the choreography category and was part of the group delegation that competed in the House, Girlstyle, and Hip-Hop categories. Her creations focus on theater, body movement, and technology performance. She participated in the stage production of A Simple Silence by Riverbed Theatre and co-created the participatory VR theater piece zhan, which was shortlisted for the 2024 Laval Virtual Experience in France and the 2024 Ars Electronica Festival’s Expanded Animation Symposium in Linz, Austria.
Currently a master’s student at the Graduate Institute of Art and Technology at National Tsing Hua University, TAI focuses on the relational bonding in digital society. She is deeply influenced—one might even argue it’s a toxic relationship—by the aesthetics of mono no aware and postmodern culture. She integrates creation and research as a way to practice living. She excels at medium exploration through visual media and text studies, working across diverse mediums such as video, internet art, photography, and AI, with traces of her work scattered across the internet.