----- Forwarded message from kirsty boyle <
karakuri@gmail.com> -----
Date: Mon, 4 Apr 2005 12:08:42 +1000
From: kirsty boyle <
karakuri@gmail.com>
Reply-To:
kirsty@karakuri.info
Subject: "ROBOT CULTURE FORUM"
--------------------------------------
PLEASE CIRCULATE - APOLOGIES FOR CROSS POSTING
"ROBOT CULTURE FORUM"
A lecture/presentation by artist and Karakuri expert KIRSTY BOYLE
Monday April 18 @ 1.00
The Open Stage
Arts Centre Building
University of Melbourne
FREE ADMISSION
The Robot Culture Forum will introduce the world of Karakuri—from
ancient Japan to Sony robots. Japan's love of robots lies in the history
of the Karakuri Ningyo. 'Karakuri' = a mechanical device to tease, trick,
or take a person by surprise. It implies hidden magic, or an element of
mystery. The Karakuri tradition has influenced the Noh, Kabuki and Bunraku
theatre arts, and directly contributed to the industrial modernisation
of Japan.
Artist Kirsty Boyle will give an introduction and then an overview of
current developments in Japan, using a range of media clips. She will
also be discussing new media robot culture and her most recent project -
'girltron'.
Kirsty Boyle is an artist who has travelled the world in order to work
with like-minded puppeteers, animators and roboticists. During 2002,
Kirsty visited the Aichi prefecture in Japan to study under artisan
Mr Tamaya Shobei, a 9th generation Karakuri Ningyo craftsman. She also
studied with Dr Yoshikazu Suematsu, Director of the Suematsu Robotics
Laboratory at Nagoya University. Kirsty's work examines different cultural
approaches to technology. In October 2003 she launched the website
<
http://www.karakuri.info>, which is the first and only online English
language archive available about the Karakuri Ningyo tradition. Her latest
project girltron examines robots as subjects of culture, and perceptions
people have of machines; with particular emphasis on how we personalise
technology, and how these interactions make us feel.
PRESENTED BY THEATRE STUDIES (SCA) & JAPANESE STUDIES (MIALS),
UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE
-------------------------------------
Dr Peter Eckersall
Coordinator and Senior Lecturer in Theatre Studies
School of Creative Arts
University of Melbourne
Australia
3010
(61 3) 8344 8627
----- End forwarded message -----
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://www.xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
http://www.glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
http://www.sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
