BUY TICKETS HERE
Dates and Times: 19:00-21:30 on 13/3, 20/3, 27/3 (Tuesdays)
Venue: [ space ] on Mare Street
Participants: 20 (5 groups of 4)
Price: £99/person (£69 conc), £329 for team of 4
Instructors: Evan, Becky, Adam

Description:

This is our second run of the successful BYOSH workshop!

Working in small teams, you will build your own augmented reality system that instantly turns anyone into a superhero. Develop super powers – shoot lasers, see through walls, fire rockets, turn invisible, all using some coding and the Kinect and OpenNI! We will provide the hardware and tools you need. We will use free and open source tools such as Processing, toxiclibs, Kinect and OpenNI, and introduce techniques in 3D graphics and interactive sound synthesis. Food and drink provided. Assemble your own team, or come and meet some creative people to form a team.

Day 1: Intro, inspiration, brainstorming ideas, using our code for Processing and the Kinect (examples)
Day 2: Audio-visual programming – coding your characters visual appearance and sound effects and/or theme song
Day 3: Finishing projects; Showing off everyone’s superheroes

Code from the last workshop is open source and can be found here on Github.

Requirements:

Bring your art skills and superhero ideas! Some very basic familiarity with programming concepts required. We will cover some basics of programming using Processing, a simplified version of Java for interactive art and design. We will provide Kinect cameras and computers for each team, but you may bring your own laptop.

Ticketing:

We sell both single tickets and a special group ticket for a group of 4 people who would like to work together, and can purchase their ticket at the same time.

Refunds:

We are a small organisation and spaces are limited, so if you’d like a refund please ask us up to 48 hours before the event or else we will not be able to refund your full price.

Use your laptop to turn light into sound!

BUY TICKETS HERE!!!

Location and Time

Where: [ space ] studios, 121-129 Mare St., London E8 3RH, UK
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Dates and Times: 4 Mondays (13/2, 20/2, 27/2, 5/3) in 2012

Over 4 nights you will learn enough to put together a spectacular sound and light performance.  Composer and interactive designer Simon Katan will teach you how to track an LED light with your computer and a webcam using Processing and then turn that data into music using SuperCollider.

If you’ve never heard of Processing or SuperCollider, don’t worry ! This is an introductory course.  However, you should be comfortable using lots of different computer software and not afraid to learn some computer programming techniques. On the other hand, if you’re a hard-core coder but don’t know SuperCollider or have no musical experience then this workshop also has plenty to offer you.

About the workshop:

Working in small teams, you will build your own augmented reality system that instantly turns anyone into a superhero. Develop super powers – shoot lasers, see through walls, fire rockets, turn invisible, all using some coding and the Kinect and OpenNI! We will provide the hardware and tools you need. We will use free and open source tools such as Processing, toxiclibs, Kinect and OpenNI, and introduce techniques in 3D graphics and interactive sound synthesis. Food and drink provided. Assemble your own team, or come and meet some creative people to form a team.

Where: [ space ] studios, 121-129 Mare St., London E8 3RH, UK
View Larger Map

Dates and Times: 19:00-21:00 on 11, 18, 21 (Tues, Tues, Friday) October, 2011

• Day 1: Intro, inspiration, brainstorming ideas, using Processing and the Kinect (examples)
• Day 2: Audio-visual programming – coding your characters visual appearance and sound effects and/or theme song
• Day 3: Finishing projects; Showing off everyone’s superheroes

Requirements:

Some familiarity with programming concepts required. We will cover some basics of programming using Processing, a simplified version of Java for interactive art and design. We will provide Kinect cameras and computers for each team, but you may bring your own laptop.

Maximum Participants: 20 (5 groups of 4)

Instructors: Evan of OLW and Becky and Adam of Codasign

Ticketing:

We sell both single tickets and a special group ticket for a group of 4 people who would like to work together, and can purchase their ticket at the same time.

Refunds:

We are small organisations and spaces are limited, so if you’d like a refund please ask us up to 48 hours before the event or else we will not be able to refund your full price.

2 Day Course
Date: Friday 10th + Saturday 11th June
Times: 10.30am to 4.30pm
Price: £200.00
Instructor: Evan Raskob

You’ve played games on your phone, now make them! In this 2-day workshop you will be taken through the basics of Android programming using Processing, up to moving a character around the screen in a real game that you can play on an Android phone.
You will start with drawing shapes and images on the screen and end up with creating animations and game play.
You will need to bring your own mobile phone or tablet that runs Android (as many do), we provide the computers. Or, bring a laptop and we will discuss installing the free, open source Processing for Android software on your personal computer, for Mac, PC, and Linux.

General
Each student has their own workstation for the practical parts of the course and can discuss any specific areas of interest they may have towards the end of the day with the tutor.

Bookings
http://www.eventbrite.com/event/1517772699

Enquiries
020 8525 4330
training@spacestudios.org.uk

Presented by SPACE Studios: http://www.spacestudios.org.uk/whats-on/courses/game-design-for-android-devices

Call for Participants!

Supercollider Sounds, Interactive Visuals

For: Beginners, with some basic experience with programming recommended but not required.
Cost: £135 for 5 weeks
Dates: 5 Tuesdays in May: 3, 10, 17, 24, 31
Time: 7-9:30PM

Please email reserve@openlabworkshops.org to book a place!

Openlab Workshops’ mission is to use open source and free software tools and knowledge to both inspire and enable creativity. Since 2009 we’ve developed and taught over 24 workshops in such areas as Programming for artists, Processing for designers, Interactive lighting, Livecoding, Arduino, and Sound generation and analysis.

Technology Will Save Us is Hackney based alternative education space and haberdashery for technology. We believe in lowering the barrier of entry to technology to enable people to produce and not just consume technology.

For Kinetica this year, Openlab Workshops is pleased to partner with our friends from Technology Will Save Us to offer three fun filled days of drop-in workshops. We welcome everyone from artists, and designers to students, professionals, tinkerers and families. Join us to build lighting fixtures that respond to the world around us, or magically make music out of simple electronic circuitry. If you already have a project or idea and want to know how to bring it to life, enter our contest and win an opportunity to get personalised feedback from our professional panel of experts.

All workshops will include friendly instructions from our lovely facilitators and all the kit you need to make something and take it home with you when you leave.

OpenLab Workshops:
About us: http://openlabworkshops.org/about/

Technology Will Save Us:
http://www.technologywilsaveus.org
http://learn.plankman.com

Workshops:

The Art of Soldering (1 hr sessions, every hour from 11am-7pm, Friday-Sunday. Advance booking not necessary, please pay at the front desk).
Drop into one of our hourly soldering sessions and learn how to make music out of simple electronic circuitry. We provide all the electronics, parts and guidance you need to learn basic soldering while building a sound and light toy.
Level: Ages 9 and up, all skill levels (because: soldering irons are too hot for small fingers.)
Cost: £12/10 for individuals with group rates available (includes kit of parts to make an sound making instrument for you to take home)

Synth Sounds of Circuits (2 hr sessions, 12pm & 4pm, Friday-Sunday. Advance booking recommended or pay at the front desk on the day)
Using basic circuitry, we will create some sound-making machines to impress your friends and astound your enemies. Does not involve soldering. We provide an exploratory kit of electronic parts, sensors and expert guidance. You provide both yourself and your creativity. Result: sonic cacophony for people of all abilities.
Level: All ages and skills (warning: Small parts are suitable for younger kids who might eat them.)
Cost: £18/15 for individuals with group rates available (includes kit of sound-making electronics and a snazzy booklet for you to take home)

Interactive Lighting with DMX and Arduino (2 hr session, 2pm Friday-Sunday. Advance booking recommended)
Fancy sending ripples of light shimmering through your bedroom, or building an stylishly interactive chandelier to impress dinner guests? Do all that and more using the DMX Arduino shield from this workshop and an open source Arduino device, combined with some off-the-shelf lighting fixtures. Good for designers, architects, VJs, and others who appreciate some responsive lighting.
Level: Ages 15 and up. Some basic familiarity with programming required.
Cost: £34/28 (includes special DMX Arduino shield kit for you to take home)
Requires: a laptop with Arduino downloaded (http://arduino.cc). Arduino Uno kits recommended.

Experts’ Surgery (Saturday Night Event)
Do you have an idea for an interactive art project, but need some guidance as to how to pull it off? Are you immobilised by all of the options and technical possibilities? Propose a project to us for a chance to participate in a very small group session with our panel of top interactive artists. We pick a selection of the best proposals and invite their authors to come present their projects to our experts for some personal assistance.
Cost: £10 entry fee to submit a proposal, free to watch the event.

To book: email reserve@openlabworkshops.org

First, we’ve slashed the price – now £20 for the whole day, and we’re giving away 6 free tickets to the first 6 people who contact us!

What sort of device can you make, activated by only a single, simple button?  Openlab Workshops and Cybersonica, in partnership with the AND Festival challenge your minimalist interactive design skills.

This Manchester workshop will take place at Cornerhouse from 11am-5pm on this MONDAY OCTOBER 4 at a cost of £45 £20, including materials.  An optional second day will take place on Tuesday, 5th October, 11am-5pm at Fablab Manchester, Ancoats – part of a a global network of local labs, enabling invention by providing access for individuals to tools for digital fabrication and supported by the Manufacturing Institute, introducing you to this fantastic free resource and enabling you to fabricate your own custom made enclosures and/or display mount for your one-button device.

Space is limited!  Please email us to book, or with any questions.

A 6 week immersion into making art in a digital age.  Through hands-on workshops, talks, lively discussions, and local gallery and studio trips we explore the current state of digital art and gain some hands-on skills.  We will use free, open source tools such as Processing and Arduino, look into digital color theory, interactive hardware and sensors, and discuss techniques and ideas, with the goal of creating an interactive work of art by the end.

Schedule: Wednesday nights at SPACE Studios in Hackney from 7-9PM starting Oct. 13.

Cost: £120 for 6 weeks (does not include materials such as Arduinos)

Please register at: http://digitalartanalogueworld.eventbrite.com or email us.

Concessions available – please email reserve@openlabworkshops.org for details.

Also – look at our wiki to see our working outline of the 5 weeks!

One Button Challenge

A combination workshop and challenge to see who can build the most creative device using only a single button for user interaction.

The Idea

In a world where our interaction with technology is dominated by qwerty keyboards, multi-functional hand-held devices, motion-detection controllers and touch screens what becomes of the lowly, single button? Is it still possible to find inventiveness in simplicity?

The One Button Challenge attempts to answer the question – setting this simple limitation as both a physical and creative boundary.

This October, Openlab Workshops and Cybersonica present a One Button Challenge as part of the AND (Abandon Normal Devices) Festival in Manchester, UK.

In the run-up to the event, we are offering both a 5 week workshop in London at (and supported by) SPACE Studios, and an intensive workshop in Manchester on how to design and build your own One Button Device.  We trust in your imagination to create devices which will amaze, surprise, entertain, inform, humour and perhaps even offend.  So go on, ask yourself what your button would do… and take up the challenge!

At the end of the workshop, participants and instructors will choose two of the best devices to include in the AND Festival.

We Provide:

We will provide some useful electronics (plenty of LEDs, resistors, servos, motors, capacitors, etc) inspirational examples, and hands-on expertise to help guide you through the development of your one-button object.

You Provide:

A creative idea and anything else you require – feathers, knitted objects that can fit buttons inside, LED matrix, solenoids, motors, speakers.  We’ll help you choose them based on your project.

You also should have some basic familiarity with Arduino (or basic electronics, if you don’t plan on using one).  If you know how to program your Arduino to blink an LED, you’re all set.

What Is A One Button Device?

It has a single button.

When that button is pushed, something happens.  Something profound. Something exhilarating.  Or at least, minimally entertaining.

It is ready to be installed with minimal fuss.

It is a work of art; a game; a toy; a useful tool; a nihilistic statement of futility.

Photo by Audrey Penven (audreypenven.net) of Jonathan Moore’s Doubt Button exhibited as part of One Button Objects curated by Kokoromi (kokoromi.org) and Create Digital Motion (createdigitalmotion.com) at GAFFTA (gaffta.org), SF, 12 March 2010.

Ok, But WHAT?

Maybe you’d like a more concrete example of some fully-realized One Button Objects: http://www.flickr.com/photos/audreypenven/sets/72157623614749574/

We were very inspired by Heather Kelley of Montreal-based video games collective Kokoromi and Peter Kirn of CreateDigitalMusic who both organized and curated GAMMA IV: One Button Games, earlier this year at the 2010 GDC:

“In an age of sophisticated multi-touch, augmented reality, and sensors, what can be done with a single, lowly button? Inspired by a one-button challenge to game designers for the Gamma game competition, a group of artists, working with sound, interaction, light, and gaming, answers that question. From a plush, beating heart to a drinking game to one-button musical instruments, these handmade circuit objects push the envelope of what a single button can do.”

We are thankful that we have their blessing to run this event!

We were also inspired by Gamasutra’s excellent article on designing one-button games.

Schedule and Cost

The 5-week London workshop will take place every Wednesday night at 7-9:45PM from September 1st 8th until September 29, 2010, at the very well-outfitted SPACE Studios in Hackney. That’s 4 Wednesdays plus one or more Tuesdays, total.  This workshop costs £160 for the whole 5 weeks, which includes some very useful electronics (but sadly, not Arduinos for everyone).  A £30 deposit is required to secure a spot, with full payment due by the 3rd session.

The Manchester workshop will take place at Cornerhouse from 11am-5pm on October 4 at a cost of £45, including materials.  An optional second day will take place on Tuesday, 5th October, 11am-5pm at Fablab Manchester, Ancoats – part of a a global network of local labs, enabling invention by providing access for individuals to tools for digital fabrication and supported by the Manufacturing Institute, introducing you to this fantastic free resource and enabling you to fabricate your own custom made enclosures and/or display mount for your one-button device.

Space is limited!  We also have concession rates available.  Please email us with any questions.

Reserving a Spot

To reserve a spot, please email reserve@openlabworkshops.org and provide us with your name and a short description of yourself (what you do, what you are interested in, anything else you’d like us to know).  We’ll send you back a confirmation of your place and payment information.

Press Release

Cybersonica and Openlab Workshops with the Abandon Normal Devices (AND) Festival, Manchester, UK, ask:

What kind of device would you build that is activated solely by the push of a single button?

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

LONDON and MANCHESTER, UK, August 24, 2010: From September through October 2010, open source software educator Openlab Workshops and digital arts organisation Cybersonica challenge anyone interested in makings things for themselves to conceive, design and build a device with a single button input. What this device actually does once its button is pressed is entirely up to them.

In a world where our interaction with technology is dominated by qwerty keyboards, multi-functional hand-held devices, motion-detection controllers and touch screens what becomes of the lowly, single button?  Openlab and Cybersonica’s One Button Challenge uses this physical and creative boundary to inspire inventiveness from simplicity.

This October, Openlab Workshops and Cybersonica present a One Button Challenge as part of the AND (Abandon Normal Devices) Festival in Manchester.  In the run-up to the event, they are offering both a 5 week workshop in London at (and supported by) SPACE Studios and an intensive workshop in Manchester on how to design and build your own One Button Device.  Both workshops culminate in an ‘interventionist’ display of one button objects starting October 5 in Manchester, throughout the conference hub and its environs.   An online blog will document the progress of the workshops their final, public outcome.

The first workshop series will take place weekly on Wednesday nights, from September 1st until September 29th, 2010 at the media lab in SPACE Studios, 129 Mare St, Hackney, London.

The second workshop series will take place at Cornerhouse in Manchester from 11am-5pm on October 5 and 11am-5pm at FabLab, also in Manchester.

One Button Challenge is inspired by One Button Objects – a collection of playful interactive circuit-based creations presented at the Gray Area Foundation for the Arts (GAFFTA), SF, 12 March 2010 and co-curated by Heather Kelley from Kokoromi (kokoromi.org) and Peter Kirn from Create Digital Music (createdigitalmusic.com) and Create Digital Motion (createdigitalmotion.com).

One Button Challenge is part of a season of collaborative activity organised jointly by Cybersonica and Openlab Workshops which also includes Make It Yourself – an exhibition of inventive Arduino and DIY electronic-circuitry projects to accompany the major solo exhibition Recorders by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer at Manchester Art Gallery between 18 September 2010 to 30 January 2011.

Openlab Workshops (http://openlabworkshops.org) are London’s leading independent organizer of workshops in art and technology using free software. Since 2009 they fulfill the need for practical education about digital art and technology by providing workshops focusing on open source and free software, with its idealistic emphasis on transparency, knowledge-sharing, and international collaboration.  Workshops are developed and taught by working artists and media practitioners, giving participants access to direct, practical experience.  Topics include: programming for artists and designers, interactive lighting, and sound design.

Cybersonica (http://www.cybersonica.org) is an annual celebration of electronic music, sonic art and audiovisual experimentation. Now in its eighth year, their rolling schedule of collaborative events and projects are a key destination for anyone interested in the theory and practice of how new technologies are shaping and changing the way musicians, digital artists, audiovisualisers and creative software developers make and present their work. Cybersonica’s programming brings together a vibrant community of sonic and audiovisual innovation, nurtures new talent and showcases the freshest and latest work in the field.

Abandon Normal Devices (AND) (http://www.andfestival.org.uk) is a cross-regional festival of new cinema and digital culture that spills from screens and galleries into the streets and imaginations of the Northwest. During 01- 07 October 2010 AND ventures into Manchester and Cheshire – investigating how normality is closely intertwined with the constructing and collapsing of identities. Expect cinematic shenanigans, installations, online projects, work in public spaces, debates, workshops and live events.

Contact: Evan Raskob (info@openlabworkshops.org) or Lewis Sykes (lewis@cybersonica.org) for more information.