MzTEK Unplugged: Julie Freeman & Open Source :: April 29, 2009; 7;00 - 9:00 pm :: Leon Bankside (directly behind & facing the Tate Modern) - closest tubes: Southwark, London Bridge.

If you were ever curious about Open Source — what it is, who uses it, why, and how you can too — artist Julie Freeman will chat about the politics of Open Source software and code, and will introduce some of the useful programs, packages and tools available for artists, and tools she uses in her work.

Julie Freeman’s work explores transforming complex processes into sound compositions, objects and visualizations. Her work spans visual, audio and digital art forms and explores the relationship between science, nature and how humans interact with it. For the past 12 years, Julie’s work has focused on using electronic technologies to “translate nature” — whether through the sound of torrential rain falling on a giant rhubarb leaf, a pair of mobile concrete speakers lurking in galleries haranguing passers by, or by providing an interactive platform from which to view the flap, twitch, and prick of dogs’ ears. Her pioneering artwork, The Lake, used hydrophones, custom software and advanced technology to track electronically tagged fish and translate their movement into an audio-visual experience.

Julie holds an MA in Digital Art from the Lansdown Centre for Electronic Arts, Middlesex University, and is a NESTA fellow and Wellcome Trust arts awardee. Her work has been exhibited across the UK, including at the Institute of Contemporary Arts and the Science Museum, and internationally in Brazil, Croatia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Russia, and the USA.

MzTEK Unplugged is a fortnightly talk series running through June 2009. Open to everyone & free. We gather around a table for a drink and interesting conversation, inviting artists and technologists to discuss topics at the intersection of the arts, computing, and politics.