Playfulness of Public Space by Sonja Leboš

Playfulness of Public Space

Sonja Leboš

In this presentation, the main point of reference is the possibility of interaction of media and random audience in public space.

In my opinion, media art could release a sort of dynamic power which should enable playfulness of content in public space. While now we are having a dictatorship of commercial substance in mediascapes of public spaces, this presentation emphasizes the importance of drafting (even the smallest of the scale) projects which use public space as its playfield. In the presentation I will be talking about few of such projects, where playfulness of virtual space (expanding that notion to its wider referential field) clutches into dull and instant mediascape of a city, while transforming streets and squares towards some new forms of a less sullied urbanity.

Bio: Sonja Leboš (CRO) is cultural practitioner, living and working in Zagreb. Trained as architect and set designer in Zagreb and Prague, and educationist in art and craft in Stuttgart, she rounded her formal curriculum with mastering Cultural Anthropology and Hispanic Languages and Cultures at Zagreb University. As the chairwoman of AIIR (Association for Interdisciplinary and Intercultural Research) she initiated, produced and implemented various project, as e.g. some recent ones: ‘Cybercinematography – Semantics of Cities’ Retrodynamics’, on-going project, ‘Return to the City (of Dubrovnik)’ – 30’ documentary in cooperation with CroatianTV, 2007, ‘Space of identity, space of interaction, space of change’, research in urbanity, 2006-2008, on-going, ‘Body as a Site of Alteration: Croatian cinema d’auteur of 60’s and 70’s of the XX.Ct’, investigations in the history of the Croatian cinema, 2007; in cooperation with MM Centre, Student Centre Zagreb, 2007, ‘Narrative structures and the notion of subject: space of identity in the Croatian cinematography in the middle of XX.Ct’, investigations in the history of the Croatian cinema, 2006.