Call for Works: ArtBots: The Robot Talent Show

ArtBots: The Robot Talent Show


Call for Works

The third annual ArtBots: The Robot Talent Show, an international art exhibition for robotic art and art-making robots, will take place in New York City in early fall 2004. Creators of talented robots are invited to submit their work for possible inclusion in the show. Proposals and works-in-progress are welcome, provided a detailed production timeline and samples of previous work are included in the application. The deadline for entries is May 1st, 2004.

Please see http://artbots.org for more information and entry instructions.


About ArtBots

ArtBots is an international art exhibition for robotic art and art-making robots. Each year we publish an open call for submissions, inviting artists from around the world to send us information about their work. No firm rules exist on the types of work that can participate; if you think it's a robot and you think it's art, we encourage you to submit. The final list of participants is a mix of works selected from the open call submissions and additional artists invited by the ArtBots curators.

The ArtBots curators for 2004 are: Douglas Repetto (Columbia University Computer Music Center), Mark Tribe (Columbia University Digital Media Center), and Mary Flanagan (Hunter College Film/Media Department). ArtBots is sponsored by the Columbia University Computer Music Center and Digital Media Center.

The first ArtBots took place in May 2002 at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and included the work of ten artists/groups. The show was curated by Douglas Repetto and Philip Galanter (New York University). Nearly six hundred people visited the show during its one-day run, and the show received very positive coverage in many print and online publications in the USA and internationally, including The New York Times, TimeOutNY, BoingBoing.net, and NASA's Cool Robot of the Week website.

The second ArtBots show was held at Eyebeam Gallery in Manhattan in July 2003 as part of Eyebeam's summer robotics festival, ROBOT. Twenty two works by artists and groups from six countries participated in the show, which again received extensive press coverage, including national TV (CNN, NBC, NY1), radio (NPR, Future Tense, WBAI, Studio 360), print (Newsweek, Wired Magazine, New York Times, New York Press, Nature), and online publications. About two thousand people visited the two-day show, which was curated by Douglas Repetto, Philip Galanter, and Jenny Lee (Pratt Institute).


ArtBots FAQs:

Q: Is ArtBots a robot competition like BattleBots, RobotWars, etc?
A: No. ArtBots is an art exhibition featuring robotic art and art-making robots. While ArtBots is not a competition, we do give out two awards at the end: the "Audience Choice Award" and the "Artists' Choice Award."

Q: Then why do you call it a talent show?
Q: We call it "ArtBots: The Robot Talent Show" because the robots demonstrate their talents during the show. However, it's not structured like a traditional talent show. It's really an art exhibition with a funny name.

Q: How many works will be in the show?
A: Fifteen to twenty.

Q: I'm not sure if my work qualifies for your show. What exactly are you looking for?
A: As the name of the show implies, we're looking for work that is some part art and some part robot. The meanings of "art" and "robot" are left open. Possible formats/media include objects, installations, sculpture, live performance, etc. If you're still not sure, the documentation of previous participants on http://artbots.org should give you some idea of the kind of work we're looking for.

A: Are the artists that participate in the show compensated in any manner?
Q: Each participating artist/group will receive an artist's fee of $500. This fee may be used in any way the artist/group desires. All other costs, including transportation, shipping, lodging, etc. are the responsibility of the artist/group.

Q: When/Where will the event take place?
A: In early fall 2004, in New York City, most likely in upper Manhattan. The exact date and location have not yet been determined.

Q: Is ArtBots open to people outside of New York City?
A: Yes, ArtBots is an international art show, and has featured the work of artists from around the world. Unfortunately we're not in a position to offer anything in the way of support or accommodations for out-of-town participants, beyond the artist's fee described above. (Although we can probably help you find a place to stay if needed.)

Q: What's the point of ArtBots?
A: We started ArtBots because we wanted to have fun and to celebrate some of the creative, non-violent, and not-so-competitive aspects of robotics. People all over the world are making work that combines art and robotics and they're asking interesting, important questions about art, technology, creativity, responsibility, authorship, consciousness, and so on. ArtBots is our way of focusing attention on that work.