FORUM+ - Volume 31, Issue 2, 2024

When different disciplines coexist within the same work or operation, we speak of a “multidisciplinary” practice. In addition, there are also artistic practices that develop a coherent artistic vision across the boundaries of disciplines. In such cases, various disciplines are so closely intertwined that distinguishing between them is actually irrelevant. In that case, one can speak of a “transdisciplinary” practice. This transdisciplinarity is not limited to the arts: some artists or organizations also break down the boundaries with other societal domains such as science, care, or education in the artistic process. Kristof Timmerman, chairman of the research group Maxlab on digital art within the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp, advocates for more transdisciplinary collaboration with non-artists within the ecosystem of an art academy.

The interactive installation “I’m sorry I made you feel that way” explores the intimate connection between a virtual body and physical well-being by linking real biometric data to a digital body representation. Developed during Martina Menegon’s research visit using open-source tools, the interactive installation was exhibited in Vienna, London, Lisbon, and Pristina. It highlights generative AI’s potential to create empathic digital connections, raising questions about the value and care of virtual bodies when linked to the well-being of a physical person.

Society is facing significant societal challenges that require a transdisciplinary approach. The arts are increasingly recognised as essential in addressing these complex issues. But what exactly can they contribute? In this article, Veerle Spronck explores the project ON the LINE: The Art of Digital Citizenship as a case study. She unravels the various artistic strategies that were employed in this transdisciplinary project, in which HKU and Utrecht City Library collaboratively conducted research on digitisation.

In this essay, some thoughts are collected regarding the role of performance as a way of getting in touch with reality. Even as fictions, these performative actions exist in reality, and rather peculiar formats ‘come into existence’ for demarcating these fictions from reality: applause, whistle blows, frames… What is the role of these demarcations when thinking about the relation between fiction and reality? And what if the demarcations become part of the to-be-demarcated fictions?