Text by CLOT Magazine
HeK (Haus der elektronischen Künste Basel) are presenting Cyberia by Maria Guta and Adrian GaneaStaged, a real-time 3D-generated dance performance that blurs the line between magical, digital and physical environments. The performance takes place on August 13, 2021, at 9 pm and is part of their 10th-anniversary celebration programme until the year’s end.
Maria Guta is a Romanian-born artist based and working in Switzerland since 2010. Her work mainly looks into mechanisms of self-representation which she re-enacts by placing herself both behind and in front of the camera. At the same time, Adrian Ganea (who is also a Romanian artist based between Cluj (Romania) and Berlin) is drawn to the unreal, intrigued by the magic of the intangible and the ethereal, seeking the sorcery that incarnates the virtual into solid matter. His practice ranges from designing scenography and sculptures to programming CG simulations and composing videos.
With Cyberia, the artists invite the audience on a journey into the realm of glowing cold, far eastern nature and imaginary landscapes. The live computer-generated simulation calls viewers to wander through the mysterious scenery and enter abandoned territories and living spaces. The performance serves as a meeting space between human and technological avatars and between the physical and imaginative spheres.
The proliferation of online social dating platforms that employ user-generated immersive artificial environments, such as VRChat and Mozilla Hubs, is changing the social behaviour of an increasing number of people. Cyberia allows us to explore the potential offered by creating computer-generated artificial environments and to develop a reflection on these new social behaviours.
