In this workshop, participants will explore figure and still life drawing techniques through the free platform VRChat. Together we will engage in a virtual group drawing session while considering the influence of latency, perception, and virtual bodies and their representation. Taking place in a custom 3D modelled studio, we will examine both form and substance through art historical and technologist perspectives.

This workshop is part of Vector Festival 2021.

About the Instructors

Spekwork is Cat Bluemke and Jonathan Carroll.

Cat Bluemke works through video games, performance, and expanded reality to explore the control and conflicts of labour and its relationship with technology. Graduating in 2018 with her MFA in Design for Emerging Technologies from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, her practice uses technology to reimagine existing social relations and the future of work. Her work has been exhibited internationally at venues such as the the 2018 Venice Architecture Biennale, Kunsternes Hus (Norway), and the Museum of Contemporary Art (Chicago). She lives and works between Chicago, IL and Toronto, Canada.

Jonathan Carroll is an XR artist and developer who makes games and software. His practice evolved from creating applications to facilitate interaction between performance artists and audiences, to building irreverent interactive experiences for mobile devices and VR headsets. His applications have been shown at the Art Gallery of Ontario and the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, and his apps V/Art, Gigco, and GreetAR are available via the App Store. Jonathan teaches game design and XR to artists at the Ontario College of Art & Design and Trinity Square Video in Toronto.