MEDIA ART AS THINKING SPACE

The artist duo Monika Fleischmann (*1951) and Wolfgang Strauss (*1951) define interactive media art as a transformative process. Their concept of "thinking space," understood as both a "spatial mode of thinking" and as a "space fused with data," is central to their exploration. This concept, similar to that of Aby Warburg's "Thought Space" (1929), is essential to their work. [1] [Images of the Body in the House of Illusion, 1998 / [2] Imagine space fused with data, 2001].

In interactive, immersive, participatory, virtual, and mixed reality environments, their work allows visitors to interact with data and reimagine human knowledge to act with moral intelligence. It doesn't just blindly implement AI. The artists know that the real question is not whether machines can think, but whether humans will retain their ability to think. They also challenge the future of automated reasoning. Their idea of the performative interface turns the traditional interface maxim, "what you see is what you get," on its head. It boldly declares, "What you get is what you have not seen before." [3] [The art of the thinking space—a space filled with data, 2020].

In 1987, the artist duo laid the groundwork for their ongoing journey by founding ArtWork and ART+COM in Berlin, Germany. At the same time, they held artistic workshops and lectures at "La Première Rue" in Le Corbusier's Unité d'habitation, in Briey-en-Forêt, France, which they founded in 1989. In 1992, they joined VisWiz, and in 1997, they founded MARS Lab at GMD - the German National Research Center for IT in Sankt Augustin/ Bonn and eCulture Factory 2006 at Fraunhofer AI in Bremen, Germany. Their pioneering projects, including Berlin-Cyber City (1989-90, MR, Video), Home of the Brain (1989-91, VR, Video), Liquid Views (1992 /2022, MR, Video), Energy Passages (2004, MR, Video), and more than 30 other works, have captivated and intrigued audiences worldwide at prestigious art festivals, museums, and galleries. [4] [New Media Arts—The Thinking Space for Digitality, 2023]:

After the fall of the Berlin Wall, Berlin-Cyber City (1989-90) was created to explore the evolving urban landscape of Berlin. The Wall divided Berlin into a communist and a democratic part between August 13, 1961 and November 9, 1989. With simulations of the city and a sensor-based real-time navigation interface, this installation allows visitors to explain to each other their familiar part of the city in East and West. The interactive table invites participants to navigate Berlin's past, present, and imagined shared future by moving a sensor across the city map. The historical and architectural layers of the city encourage dialogue between East and West Berliners. The work aims to empower the public to help shape the future of a reunited Berlin. The viewer's finger sensor comes from the VPL Data Glove. It detects the position of the finger on the map and transmits the data to the sensor under the table so that the digital city model and the video wall perspectives correspond in real time. The vertical video wall corresponds to the facade of the city. The interactive table and the virtual city facade are the reference plane for communication between viewers. [link]

Home of the Brain (1989-91), is the world's first Virtual Reality installation using the VPL Data Glove and Head Mounted Display [link]. It is a journey into the minds of four influential philosophers to understand the dawn of digitalization. The furious ideas of Joseph Weizenbaum, Marvin Minsky, Paul Virilio and Vilém Flusser are presented in this virtual environment as a debate on the digital future. Their opposing positions on digital culture are made visible and audible in a heated debate. The visitor becomes both an observer and a participant in the philosophical exchange. The virtual replica of the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin is projected onto a large screen. It is the setting for the debate, where the audience can become part of the navigator's journey. The work invites reflection on the future of digital culture and the evolving relationship between humans and technology. [link] 1992 Winner of the Golden Nica of the Prix Ars Electronica.

From fresco painting to virtual reality, the figure of Narcissus is an exploration of shifting identities. In the Internet age, it examines issues of self-reflection, self-awareness, and the observation of self and other. Liquid Views (1992) is a digital well in which the media Narcissus meets its reflection. Visitors close the gap between reality and virtuality by touching the surface of the watery screen, creating ripples, and observing its blurred images. The body becomes an interface to virtuality, mediating different perceptions through touch. Liquid Views invites participants to immerse themselves in an interactive narrative that blurs the boundaries between performance, video, and virtual reality. The artists invented the first touchscreen display to create this artwork, which has been shown in over 100 cities and exhibitions since 1992. [link]

The immersive audio-visual installation, Energy Passages (2004) explores the interconnectedness of language as an energy system, the influence of the newspaper as a mass medium, and human interaction in the space around us. Through the lens of daily news, participants are encouraged to create poetic or random sequences of words and explore how language influences perception. The complex dynamic between media, technology, and human behavior invites viewers to reflect on their role in shaping the evolving mixed reality of our current environment. [link] Winner of the iF Industry Forum Design Award in the category Art in Public Space in 2005. [link]

Most important honors:

1. In 1992, Home of the Brain (1989-91) was awarded the Golden Nica of the Prix Ars Electronica. The journey through networked computers as the new world brain into the minds of four influential philosophers is the world's first virtual reality installation. Demo Video 1991/92, Live Video from Ars Electronica, Linz, Austria 1992, TV Austria 1992. 
2. In 2000/01, TIME Magazine named Monika Fleischmann to its "People to Watch" list in its special issue, Winter 2000/2001, Fast Forward Europe. [link]
3. In 2002, the work of the MARS Lab of Itau Cultural in Brazil was exhibited in the context of the best international media labs. After less than 3 years, MARS is considered one of the 15 most important art & technology labs in the world. 
4. From 2002-07 Monika Fleischmann was appointed advisor to the German State Ministers for Culture and Chairwoman of the Advisory Board of the House of World Cultures in Berlin. [link]
5. In 2008, Monika Fleischmann was appointed Honorary Professor for the Theory and Practice of media art and teaches students at the Bremen University of Applied Sciences, the University of Bremen, and the Bremen University of the Arts.
6. From 2008-12, Monika Fleischmann was a member of the International Advisory Board: Bringing Great Ideas to Life of the ERC European Research Council Panel "Cultures and Cultural Production: Literature, Visual and Performing Arts, Music, Cultural and Comparative Studies". [link]
   
7. In 2017, Monika Fleischmann is one of 25 women whose inventions are changing our lives. Women Inventors Award. Bilder. EDITION F Magazin.
8. The 2018 ACM SIGGRAPH Distinguished Artist Award for Lifetime Achievement in Digital Art was given to Monika Fleischmann and Wolfgang Strauss. [link]
9. In 2018, Monika Fleischmann became a member of the SIGGRAPH Academy. [link].
10. In 2023 the ADA Archive of Digital Art Magazine featured the work of Monika Fleischmann and Wolfgang Strauss [link].
11. In 2023 Anilla Cultural in Montevideo, Uruguay, awarded them the e-Culture Pioneer Award. [link].
12. In 2024 Monika Fleischmann and Wolfgang Strauss, two of the first VR artists, creators of Home of the Brain (1989-91),  the Pioneers at the forefront of applying virtual, mixed, and augmented reality to art and culture are inducted in AWE's XR Hall of Fame. This is a fitting tribute to the Pioneers who have shaped and advanced AR and VR environments with their invaluable contributions. Overall, it is a testament to their remarkable achievements, which have been recognized with numerous other awards.
    

References:

[1] "Images of the Body in the House of Illusion". M. Fleischmann. In Art and Science. Vienna: Springer, 1998, (pdf)

[2] "Imagine Space Fused with Data". W. Strauss. In CAST01 - Living in Mixed Realities, Fraunhofer IMK. Proceedings 2001 pp. 41-4, (pdf)

[3] "The art of the thinking space—a space filled with data". W. Strauss. In Digital Creativity, 2020, 31:3, 156-170, Taylor and Francis Online. https://doi.org/10.1080/14626268.2020.1782945, (pdf)

[4] "New Media Arts - The Thinking Space for Digitality". M. Fleischmann. In Creating Digitally, 2023. Intelligent Systems Reference Library, vol 241. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-31360-8_1, (pdf)

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