Virtual Narratives of Dislocation

This is a paper presentation of, Translational Spaces, a project that consists of a series of 2D and 3D animations combined with written fictions of virtual narratives of dislocation. This project investigates processes of self-identification, social interaction and physical perception through multimedia works, that emerge from digital and textual components. Translational Spaces combines various projects where multiple layers of digital and physical elements come together. Through Interactive and immersive gallery installations, along with participatory workshops, this project questions the notion of a homogeneous self within multiple physical and virtual realms. Dislocation, familiar to those who have experienced cultural migration, has become more apparent as subjects now live as virtual immigrants within the realm of the digital. In cyberspace, subjects and objects exist as images that are constantly moving from one screen to the next; a virtual dislocation similar to the one of a migrant body. The sense of being present and belonging to a specific place, is constantly affected by today’s digital culture. As augmented digital elements merge with the physical world, a mixed reality emerges in which subjects and objects become re-presentations of themselves. This paper will be published in the upcoming ISEA 2017 Special Issue of the Journal of Virtual Creativity- Intellect Books.

Santiago Tavera is an interdisciplinary Canadian and Colombian artist. He explores virtual narratives of dislocation and perception through the construction of interactive and immersive experiences. His work intends to place bodies in spaces of translation between the physical and virtual, to simulate the state of a displaced body in a constant process of being and becoming. His work has recently been presented at Montreal’s 2016 International Digital Art Biennial (BIAN), The Wrong- A New Digital International Art Biennial (online exhibition), the 2017 Ottawa International Animation Festival, and the Besides the Screen 2017 conference in Brazil, as well as the 2017 International Symposium on Electronic Arts in Colombia. www.santiagotavera.com