Michiel van Opstal

Research Group: Situated Art, Design and Technology

‘Power, control and chance play an important role in every creative process. I explore this complicated correlation.’

Michiel van Opstal was a researcher at the Situated Art and Design research group from 2019 until 2021. He is currently a tutor at St. Joost School of Art & Design in Breda and Den Bosch.

Michiel van Opstal studied Culture and Science Studies at Maastricht University, from 1995 to 2001. During his education, he specialised in culture and media philosophy, and film theory. His master’s thesis was a critical reflection on German philosopher Heidegger’s concept of identity.

From 2003 to 2007, Michiel taught at Leiden University within the Faculty of Arts. He developed minor programmes at the intersection of media philosophy, history, art and politics. Parallel to this, he worked as a creative producer for Het Portaal, a communication agency in Rotterdam that specialises in stakeholder participation. Michiel developed formats and film plans for social documentaries and television programmes. Since 2008, Michiel has worked as a theory and research tutor at St. Joost School of Art & Design in Breda and Den Bosch.

As a tutor and researcher, Michiel specialises in media theory, narratology, photography and film theory. He is interested in the question of how new and old media influence and change our society and our existence. Within this research area his focus is on the following topics:

authenticity in a post-digital age;
new visual strategies of engagement in fine art, photography and film;
new interactive and immersive forms of narrativity;
the democratisation of the image in our visual culture.

m.vanopstal@avans.nl

The power-paradox of situated and participative art & design (2019 – 2021)

This research takes a critical look at the assumption that spectator participation in situated art and design emancipates this spectator, and examines situatedness and participation as a play of power.

Research Group: Situated Art, Design and Technology

The research group Situated Art, Design and Technology (SADT) focuses on the societal embedding and embodiment of knowledge production that art and design research enables. The conducted research contributes to a deeper understanding of technological developments and their impact on people, society, and the environment, and to the development of situated approaches in the creative sector and beyond. In doing so, it advances a wider acknowledgement of artistic and design research as a mode of knowledge production, one that is grounded in creativity and critical imagination as a way of generating insight into, and intervening in, societal transitions driven by technology.

‘People are the product of their relationships with their environment. It’s important to understand how technological developments influence these relationships.’

Michel van Dartel

‘‘Understanding how creativity and imagination emerge from interactions with our environment will lead to improved innovation processes, tools and technologies.’’

Alwin de Rooij

‘My practice explores how technology participates in relational embodied systems - how bodies, sensors, and materials co-compose stories of attention and response.’

Mark Meeuwenoord

‘Beauty lies in connecting different parties and creating equal opportunities. I believe in the power of kinship, collectiveness and critical thinking. ’

Eva van den Boogaard

‘My practice is situated in between different actors, in this shape-shifting middle many things can happen.’

Tara Karpinski

‘Imagination is the key to a strong inclusive society. Artistic work and situated design can contribute to a better understanding of the other.’

Jenny van den Broeke

‘Investigating the potential of sensory augmentation to bridge the sensory gap between deaf and hearing.’

Michel Witter

‘Through an interplay of design and research, the apt questions and necessary tools can be discovered and applied to each research project.’

Antal Ruhl

‘Humans are atmospheric beings, particles, dust, in intimate cycles of exchange, actors with an incredible force.’

Annemarie Piscaer

‘Could experimental sensory translation of art works improve their accessibility for sensory diverse exhibition audiences?’

Eva Fotiadi

‘The tacit and embodied knowledge of practitioners about the complex reality of design can provide an important resource to innovate how we learn and teach’