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Surrey gallery marks TechLab anniversary with gathering of digital-art minds

‘Sentient Circuitries’ symposium on Nov. 16
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Digital media arts symposium participants wear virtual-reality goggles during a 2018 event at Surrey Art Gallery. (submitted photo: Pardeep Singh)

A group of leading digital art thinkers and makers will be in Surrey to mark the 20th anniversary of Surrey Art Gallery’s TechLab.

Since it was opened in 1999, the digital-art space/program has presented some cutting-edge electronic art, workshops, performances, residencies, film screenings and more.

On Saturday, Nov. 16, TechLab will be a focal point of a digital media arts symposium dubbed Sentient Circuitries, from noon to 4:30 p.m. Admission is free.

The event is billed as “a gathering of leaders in digital media arts who will take the pulse of the field today and speculate about where art practices are heading,” according to a news release from SAG operators. “These creative practitioners will examine the theme of interactivity in digital media in the recent past and present, and the direction this art form might take in the future.”

Presenters will include keynote speaker Beryl Graham, along with Peter Courtemanche, Garnet Hertz, Marc Johnson, Maria Lantin, Thecla Schiphorst and Leila Sujir. The afternoon will include an interactive performance with Sammy Chien. Artist Brady Ciel Marks and curator Jordan Strom will host the event.

Sentient Circuitries offers attendees a chance to witness, question and explore “critical pathways to understanding and participating in art through interactive media today.”

• RELATED STORY, from September: Surrey Arts Centre gets $400K from feds for lighting, other upgrades.

TechLab has featured the work of more than 200 digital media artists in more than 60 solo and group exhibitions.

Since 2008, Surrey Art Gallery has hosted events focusing on media art practice, history and theory. This is the first year its symposium will offer an equal focus on both sound and visual media art.

CLICK HERE to read more about the event.

This fall’s feature exhibit at the gallery, The Garden in the Machine, focuses on six artists who make large images and environments “that question the limits of technology and nature.” On view until Dec. 15, the show bridges the digital and natural worlds with art created by Faisal Anwar, Helma Sawatzky, Leila Sujir, Lawrence Paul Yuxweluptun, Paisley Smith and Robert Youds.



tom.zillich@surreynowleader.com

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Tom Zillich

About the Author: Tom Zillich

I cover entertainment, sports and news stories for the Surrey Now-Leader, where I've worked for more than half of my 30-plus years in the newspaper business.
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