[ISEA2011] Workshop: Luciana Haill & John Holder – NEURALinterface: Generative Interactions and Mind Music with your Brainwaves

Workshop Statement

Have you ever wondered what your brain sounds like? In this 5-hour workshop participants will explore fascinating ways of augmenting their consciousness with brainwave monitors, using portable EEG interfaces such as IBVA, ThinkGear and MindWaves’. After introducing and exploring the equipment, you will work in small groups to monitor changes in your consciousness with the devices in an interactive experiment, and go onto collaboratively create musical compositions, interactive visuals and even develop an audio/visual performance utilising and augmenting real-time signals from your brains. No prior programming experience is required as we will learn to use and manipulate patches in a visual programming language called Quartz Composer (or MAX/MSP, PureData or MatLab may be accommodated if you are conversant), to access your data from the brainwave monitors and visualisers provided. This workshop is open to composers, computer musicians, performers, neuroscientists, brain hackers and programmers alike as there are no specific prerequisite technical skills. Participants may bring their own laptop computer. You will capture and keep your own recorded brainwaves and creative compositions to take home with you. ibva.co.uk   unnecessaryresearch.org

  • Luciana Haill is an artist working with Neurotechnologies to sample human brains’ electrical oscillations (EEG) emitted during Altered States of Consciousness. Through her practice she creates interactive telematic artworks, performances and sensory environments. She has appeared on TV and Radio triggering 3D spatialised sounds via brainwaves and collects samples for her “EEG Thought Depository”. Altered states of consciousness can occur passively through daydreaming or reverie upon awakening. Luciana’s experience of meningitis and fever as a teenager led her to fascination with imaging the intangible in the brain.  Dominating her work are science art projects exploring lucid dreaming, hypnosis and forms of meditation. She is currently Visiting Research Fellow at CCNR – Centre for computational Neuroscience and Robotics in Sussex University (UK) and ‘Head of Augmented Consciousness’ for The Institute of Unnecessary Research.
  • John Holder is a digital installation artist whose work focuses on experiential, reactive and immersive installations. He has exhibited work internationally and lectured across Europe. Recent installations have involved interpreting hidden body data, 3D virtual actors, synthetic voices, and focuses on placing the audience at the centre of an experience. He also teaches at the University of East London (UK) since 2005, is completing his doctorate in Fine Art, and is the ‘Head of Virtual Reality’ for The Institute of Unnecessary Research. johnholder.co.uk