Fall salon series kicks off with interactive installation in Little River and a dialogue with Miami-based artists

(Aug. 16, 2023) Miami, Fla. – As a way to elevate the discourse on new media in Miami, Oolite Arts will launch a new salon series this fall featuring Miami-based artists and their work at the intersection of art and technology.

Oolite Arts’ Media Art Salon Series will showcase artists’ work in progress while also curating a critical dialogue on art, technology and the human experience. The first, on Sept. 13 and entitled “Generative Generosity,” explores the ways artists are drawing inspiration from open source technologies and features an interactive installation created with a new open-source, robotics toolkit.

“How are artists using new technologies to innovate in their work – and how can we share that knowledge? This new salon series will dig into what artists are doing in their practices so that others can learn from it,” said Dennis Scholl, president and CEO of Oolite Arts.

“Generative Generosity” and additional salons will take place at Oolite Arts’ Satellite Space, 7297 NW 2nd Ave. The series is organized by Oolite’s Digital Arts Fellow Kelani Nichole, a one-year position supported in part by John S. and James L. Knight Foundation as part of a larger grant to enhance the way Oolite artists use technology in their practice.

Welcoming salon residents at the first Oolite Arts Satellite Space in Little River will be the interactive sculpture by Madeline Gannon, a multidisciplinary designer known as “The Robot Whisperer,” for her specialization in convincing robots to do things they were never intended to do. The installation is an example of what others will be able to create from the open-source robotics toolkit she is designing with funding from John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Gannon will demo her work, and additional participants will present a digital sample library of pre-Columbian instrument recordings, the creation of generative public art in the browser, and the latest digital innovations at Perez Art Museum Miami. Each of the participants works in the spirit of transparency, exploring open culture and solidarity models online that they believe boosts innovation and the impact of their work.

The additional fall salons are:

Fluid Identity
7 – 9 p.m. Oct. 11
Oolite Satellite, 7297 NW 2nd Ave.

Part of our Media Art Salon series, this event will feature work-in-progress from artists exploring technology-mediated identity, avatars, and online performance of the self in their studio practice.

Unstable Ecologies
7 to 9 p.m. Nov. 8
Oolite Satellite, 7297 NW 2nd Ave.

Part of our Media Art Salon series, this event will feature work-in-progress from artists using simulation and critical practice to explore our lived experiences of unstable ecologies in South Florida and beyond.

Learn more about the Digital Arts Fellowship and the salon series on Oolite Arts’ website: oolitearts.org/digital-arts-fellowship/

About Oolite Arts
Oolite Arts strives to empower artists and enrich communities. Established in 1984, Oolite’s mission is to support artists and advance the knowledge and practice of contemporary visual arts. Oolite Arts creates opportunities for experimentation and innovation, and encourages the exchange of ideas across diverse cultures through residencies, exhibitions, public programs, education and outreach.

Exhibitions and programs at Oolite Arts are made possible with the support of the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and the Cultural Affairs Council; the Miami-Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners; the City of Miami Beach, Cultural Affairs Program, Cultural Arts Council; the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Arts and Culture and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture; the National Endowment for the Arts; the Jorge M. Perez Family Foundation at the Miami Foundation; the Lynn and Louis Wolfson II Family Foundation; and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
For more information, visit oolitearts.org. Follow @oolitearts on social media.