Category Archives: writing + research

articles, discussion and research

Interview about IntraVenus

IntraVenus

IntraVenus

Female Icons: it’s not the gaze but the looks is a fascinating project by De Geuzen: a foundation for multi-visual research, that explores what makes a woman an icon through a rich variety of means, including workshops, streaming lectures, online data collecting and new media works on view such as She… by Renee Turner and my own IntraVenus.

In December 2007 Renee interviewed me about IntraVenus for the Female Icons archive. I reproduce it here:

The Interview

Renee Turner: Can you give me a little background on IntraVenus, meaning what your impetus was to make the work?

Christine Wilks: I created the images some time ago when I was a young art student. At the time I felt somewhat overwhelmed by the predominance of the female nude throughout art history and felt the pressure of this archetypal image (exacerbated by being taught by an almost entirely male staff) was interfering with my ability to visualise myself as a practising artist. I wanted to explore this, to get inside the image and challenge it directly with my own body. I was quite surprised when the images turned out to look so violent, the way my body looked so battered and bruised. It was disturbing, but all the more fitting since my self-image as an artist was bruised. Read More »

6 May 2009 by crissxross | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments (0)

Exploring methodologies for non-linear story development

A Creative Writing & New Media Research Project

Research Questions

Most writing tools and story development processes are designed for writing linear narratives, whether fiction or non-fiction. To develop non-linear interactive narratives, what kinds of tools and processes does the writer ideally need? Unlike, for example, with film/tv screenwriting, there is no established modus operandi for new media writing, other than using flow charts. So do the kinds of linear tools and processes that are commonly available to writers inhibit the development of non-linear stories? Are there any near ideal tools available and if not, how can I adapt what is available to meet my story development needs?

To answer these questions I decided to process the same story idea through a variety computer applications and non-digital methods to see what effect they have on the story’s development. The primary aim of this research is to find answers to my personal needs as a writer (so for example, as an Apple Mac user, I concentrate on software for the Mac) but hopefully my findings will be of wider interest.

During the course of my investigations additional research questions emerged. Because I am presenting this critical study chronologically, I will introduce the new research questions as they occurred to me.
Read More »

5 May 2009 by crissxross | Tagged , , , , | Comments (5)

spring cleaning

Get FlashPlayer

I am rethinking this blog, reassessing my purpose… (this is a bit sticky ;)
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30 April 2009 by crissxross | Also posted in crissxross, remixworx | Tagged | Comments (0)

The Devil’s Rope Journal at IF07

The Devils’ Rope Journal pre-release mix presented live by babel, crissxross & runran at the Interactive Futures 2007 conference in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, November 15th.

Devil’s Rope CD cover by runran

Below: setting up for our live presentation of The Devil’s Rope Journal

Setting up The Devil’s Rope presentationSetting up The Devil’s Rope presentation

I had a great time at Interactive Futures earlier this month. When you spend most of your creative life alone and glued to your computer screen, it’s wonderful to be able to present digital media with your collaborators to a live audience – and so rewarding to hear them laugh in the right places! After collaborating online in the remix for the past year, it was good to spend a couple of intense days, before the conference, working together face-2-face with Randy Adams (runran) and Chris Joseph (babel) for the first time. Considering our improvisational process, it was amazing how everything came together. Presenting live meant that we could incorporate spoken word into our performance too, which was a fascinating experience. I felt we were performers emerging from the virtual world, but not becoming fully present in theatrical reality, preferring to remain creatures of the shadows and to merge our voices with the digital presence.

Here are some more examples of oddly disembodied but very human, real-time, virtual presences at Interactive Futures. It really does feel like you’re interacting in the future when you’re conversing, from North America, with European heads in a digital boxes!

Julie Andreyev introduces Mirjam Struppek’s keynoteMirjam Struppek presents her keynote remotely

Above left: Julie Andreyev introduces Mirjam Struppek’s keynote: Urban Screens – The Potential of Screens for a Sustainable Urban Society. Above right: Mirjam Struppek presents her keynote remotely, via iChat

Leena Saarinen gives her presentation remotelyRemote Q and A with Leena Saarinen

Above left: Leena Saarinen talks, via iChat from Finland, about ‘Accidental Lovers’, her interactive musical TV-comedy. Above right: the remote Q and A with Leena Saarinen.

IF07 was a fantastic experience all round. It was fascinating to see a variety of new media and to meet and listen to a range of artists, academics and creative techies. A good end-of-conference party too: The Exploding, Plastic & Inevitable redux! I even got an opportunity, albeit brief, to do a bit of veejaying, when Chris and Randy took a short break from their VJ controls.

For more photos see my IF07 set in Flickr

Arts Council EnglandFor more about other presentations at IF07 see my comment

A big thank you to Arts Council England whose support enabled me to travel to Canada and take part in Interactive Futures 2007.

30 November 2007 by crissxross | Also posted in crissxross, exhibiting + presenting | Tagged , , , | Comments (3)

women business & blogging conference

nlabwomen logo I came away from this hugely enjoyable gathering of blogging women (and a few men), hosted by De Montfort University, brimming with enthusiasm for blog writing – determined to do more of it, as well as posting my creative media. So here goes…

I gained so many useful insights during the day, but one of the things that sticks in my mind is the issue of how to deal with aggressive comments. It’s not something I’ve experienced on my own blog, but I have while contributing to other blogs. Personally it doesn’t bother me too much, in fact I often enjoy the rough and tumble of a heated debate, but I know many women are uncomfortable with it. The keynote speakers (or one of them, at least) pointed out that, generally speaking, men and women tend to have different commenting styles: men like to challenge more, women tend to be more consensual. No one’s denying that there are trolls out there, but it’s important for women to remember that a challenging comment is not necessarily an attack.

I enjoy peaceful discussion and consensus can be good – but I like variety and it’s exciting to get a shake up once in a while too. If women become overly concerned about online aggression, the danger is they abdicate from the discussion, they lose their voice, they silence themselves. It’s important to remember that online men have no real advantage, they are no bigger nor louder than any woman wants to be – and as Jory Des Jardins from BlogHer pointed out, collectively women are a powerful and influential online presence.

There’s nothing to stop individual women making their mark too. If a woman wants to carve out a space for herself, she’s got to be prepared to defend it. In a virtual web 2.0 world the balance of power is different… and still evolving… Don’t take your old assumptions into battle – and don’t assume it’s always a brawl.

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11 June 2007 by crissxross | Tagged , , , | Comments (0)