"Being Material" Symposium

“Being Material,” CAST’s second  international symposium, used MIT Media Lab co-founder Nicholas Negroponte’s 1995 Being Digital as a touchstone to explore new and unexpected convergences of the digital and material worlds.

The Enemy at the MIT Museum

The Enemy, a virtual reality installation, introduces participants to combatants from opposing sides of contemporary conflicts. Created by CAST Visiting Artist and conflict photographer Karim Ben Khelifa in collaboration with MIT Professor Fox Harrell of the Imagination, Computation and Expression (ICE) Laboratory, the project incorporates concepts from cognitive science and artificial intelligence-based interaction models to test whether experiencing the soldiers’ testimonies in VR can engender empathy for each side.

Mr. Harrison's Gamelans

The ICA and MIT co-presented a centennial celebration of composer Lou Harrison. MIT’s Gamelan Galak Tika joined forces with violinist Johnny Gandelsman and pianist Sarah Cahill for this program of Harrison’s groundbreaking works for gamelan and western instruments, performed on instruments built by the composer William Colvig and curated by Jody Diamond.

Active Matter

CAST’s second book, edited by MIT Assistant Professor Skylar Tibbits and published by MIT Press, offers essays and sample projects from the emerging field of active matter. Active Matter is an essential guide to a field that could shape the future of design.

Rania Ghosn Awarded Faculty Grant

Maya Beiser

Cellist Maya Beiser’s residency as the 2016–18 Mellon Distinguished Visiting Artist at CAST culminated in a workshop performance of “Three Parts Wisdom,” composed by Glenn Kotche, from her album TranceClassical, along with music by Bach, Vivaldi and Hildegard Von Bingen. The works were deconstructed and reimagined in a reactive environment where lighting designs by Joshua Higgason of MIT Music & Theater Arts responded to her music.

B. Stephen Carpenter II

CAST Visiting Artist B. Stephen Carpenter II addressed issues of access, privilege and the global water crisis (particularly in Africa and Central America) through a series of seminars, performances and workshops.

Fifth Annual Hacking Arts Festival

Now in its fifth year, the Hacking Arts Festival brings together artists, engineers, technologists and entrepreneurs to ignite innovation and entrepreneurship in the creative arts. The festival is one of the key events annually for arts entrepreneurship at MIT. This year’s event addressed the theme “Why Human?” The top prize was awarded to Choreosome for their use of motion capture and other emerging technologies for the cultural preservation of dance.