On September 8 and 9, 2022, Danielle Roberts participated in the symposium Extended Senses & Embodying Technology that took place at the University of Greenwich in London.
The aim of the symposium was to bring together a cross-disciplinary group of makers and researchers active in the field of expanding and strengthening the body through new and emerging modalities and technologies. Think of VR, wearable technologies, 3D Printing and new, sustainable materials applied in domains such as dance, theatre, HCI, design and music.
The program consisted of presentations about papers and artist talks, plus an exhibition. Danielle presented the paper Exploring Embodied Interaction to Support Self-Transcendence in the Art Installation “Magic Tea”, which she collaborated on with Alwin de Rooij. This work occupies a unique place within the broad spectrum of subjects. It was in line with presentations that dealt with the human being beyond the self. Man as part of a large, living network and man as an organism capable of experiencing other states of mind.
For Danielle, it was very inspiring to see that her installation offers a different perspective on those themes. Her work was distinguished by its anchoring in everyday reality as opposed to the virtual. The real-time use of users’ bio-data to influence their state of mind was also very distinctive.
The approach Danielle took to the intersection of design and empirical research proved to be a source of inspiration for the public. There have been new contacts made with other researchers of different research groups active in the field of self-transcendence by technology.
