Join the Boston Cyberarts
Social Network
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Join the conversation! Boston Cyberarts has recently launched our very own conversational network, where folks who are interested in cyberart can meet other like-minded people. It's like our very own private Facebook, just for fans of Cyberart. It just takes a few minutes to become a member of the network and to start meeting people. Our less-than-totally tech savvy marketing director managed to sign up in about 90 seconds, so we KNOW you won't have a problem.
 Let us know what you're thinking. What's your connection to cyberart and the Boston Cyberarts Festival? What projects are you working on? What events and exhibitions have you seen recently that you'd like to recommend to others?
Join us! Click here to get started. And pass the word!
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The Milwaukee Experience
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 Festival Director George Fifield is curating a fantastic show called "Act/React: Interactive Installation Art," which is making its world premiere at the Milwaukee Art Museum on October 4. The exhibition showcases a growing body of contemporary art that is viewer-dependent, responding to the physical presence of visitors without the use of specific interfaces like keyboards or touchscreens. "Act/React" features the work of six pioneers of responsive art - including our good friends Brian Knep and Camille Utterback - in the Museum's Santiago Calatrava-designed Baker/Rowland Galleries. (Brian's "Drift Grid" from the 2007 Festival is shown above.) Click here for more information.
To get a behind-the-scenes peek at the process of getting a major museum show up and running, check out George's blog. And while you're at it, we'd like to rename the blog something other than "blog," so if you have any creative suggestions, please send them along to . The winning entry will get ... well, nothing really, except the grateful thanks of our staff.
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Attention Artists!
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 Is the "starving artist" thing getting a little tired?
The Artist's Professional Toolbox is an exciting career development program that empowers practicing visual artists with the skills and confidence they need to master the business challenges of being an artist. It's the only comprehensive training program for the professional working visual artist in Greater Boston. The Toolbox is NOT a one-time workshop or "101-level" intro but an eight-month intensive course for a select group of artists. Artists have a chance to learn and practice using their newfound marketing, networking and business skills during the program, with one-on-one guidance and feedback throughout.
The Arts & Business Council is now taking applications for this year's class. The application deadline is October 20; visit the website for applications and instructions.
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 IDEAS Boston is a jam-packed one-day event that brings together leading thinkers in a variety of fields to share ideas and promote innovation. Just the kind of stuff that Friends of Cyberarts will enjoy!
Among the speakers for this year's event are a number of thinkers who are working at the intersection of art and technology. We're especially delighted that long-time Boston Cyberarts supporter Martin Wattenberg, a mathematician with IBM and a new media artist, is on the roster. Other Cyber-friendly folk on the agenda are Joseph Ayers, a biomimetic roboticist best known for his RoboLobster; David Edwards, founder of Le Laboratoire, an artscience center in Paris dedicated to experimental collaboration between artists and scientists; Sheila Kennedy, architect and inventor; John Lester of Linden Lab, creator of Second Life; and John Maeda, designer, creative innovator and President of the Rhode Island School of Design. Wowie zowie - what a line-up!
IDEAS Boston takes place on Thursday, October 30, at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. For more information or to register, visit www.ideasboston.com.
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Nora at EMPAC
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 The brand new Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center (EMPAC) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY celebrates its grand opening the weekend of October 4-5. Included on the program for the gala opening is the film "Nora," by filmmaker Alla Kovgan. Alla has been a participant in Boston Cyberarts' Ideas in Motion events over the past several years, and we're delighted that her film is getting such a prominent debut!
"Nora" is choreographed by Nora Chipaumire (above) and is based on true stories of Nora's childhood in Zimbabwe. Using performance and dance, Nora brings her history to life in a swiftly-moving poem of sound and image. Shot entirely on location at the Mozambique/Zimbabwe border, the film includes a multitude of local performers and dancers of all ages, from young schoolchildren to ancient grandmothers. The film is part of the DANCE MOViES series of works commissioned by EMPAC.
For more information, visit the EMPAC website.
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Tea and Sympathy
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 Peter Pizzi's provocative new work in video, photos, and dioramas is on display at the Atlantic Works Gallery in East Boston. The exhibition "Tea and Sympathy" takes its cue from the innuendo-laced 1956 film of the same name, and touches on themes of sexuality and identity.
Peter Pizzi is a filmmaker, photographer, and installation artist. His films have shown at venues that include The Directors' Guild in Los Angeles, The Anthology Film Archive in New York, and the London Historical Film Society. Locally, his short films have screened at the Coolidge Corner Theatre, The Brattle Theatre, and The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. His "Coffin Diorama" is shown above.
The show runs from October 4-25, and there are receptions on October 4 and 16. For more information on the gallery and the exhibition, go to the gallery's website or call 617.347.8539. Note that this exhibition contains adult subject matter and is not intended for all audiences; parental discretion is advised.
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2009 is fast approaching!
The 2009 Boston Cyberarts Festival is really just around the corner. We've already got some wonderful events and exhibitions planned for next spring: video art at the DeCordova, electronic literature, a brand new multimedia opera, an Ideas in Motion dance project. But there's still plenty of room for more!
We're celebrating our tenth anniversary in 2009, and intend to make this the best Festival yet. Any arts and cultural organization - visual art, music, dance, educational institution - is eligible to become part of the Festival, so if you're planning an event or exhibition with a cyber-theme for next spring, we want to know about it.
The Festival is scheduled for April 24 - May 10, 2009. If you're interested - or if you just think you might be and have an idea you'd like to talk over with us - contact us at .
And, if you have friends or colleagues who might be interested in what's happening here in Cyber-land, please forward this email to them - there's a link at the bottom you can use.
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We want to hear from you!