Skypetrait: Transcontinental Faces

Research Background Skypetrait is an inter university research project between Design and Textiles, Reutlingen University and Art in Public Space, RMIT University presented in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut Australien. Its outcomes include a series of different exhibitions (City Library and Project Space in Melbourne, City Hall, Reutlingen in Germany), public projections (Gertrude Street Projection Festival, Federation Square, Design Hub), publication distributed internationally, on line at ARTE Creative TV (France/Germany) and Skypetrait Facebook page. German researchers undertook an RMIT iAIR residency and RMIT researchers undertook residencies in Germany 2013. Work to date is viewed as platforms for reflection leading to on going research. MOU in progress. Research Significance The project is significant in that it has created new global opportunities through a new connection to Reutlingen University in Germany and through cooperation with the Goethe-Institut Research Contribution Skypetrait inquires into the nature of 'portraiture' as a recording of perceived identity within the public space of the everyday experience of social media. In this context 'portraiture' becomes less of an interpretation of the individual as a mapping of the collective consciousness of our times. Skypetrait creates maps through an investigation of the relationship of continuous linearity (as expressed through the traditional medium of drawing by hand) and fragmented networks (as expressed through the new digital medium of Skype). The project uses innovative methodologies that enhance understanding of the boundaries of drawing within public space. This artistic practice opens up new ways of thinking about the relationship between linearity and networks, image and word, by exploring the impact of each on the other and the interdisciplinary nature of contemporary drawing and the changing nature of interfaces in communication between art, design, urban space and technology.