I’m back from the beyond! for real this time! our final event for Y Combinator was last Friday, and now I feel like I can relax (if relax means: still work just as hard, but at least head back home in 2 weeks).
so we’re back on track for AGtC! I’m banking lots of links, and getting us all back on the regular Monday morning schedule (ok not this week, but next week I promise).
resource roundup!
April is Autism Acceptance Month! this essay by Nicole Archambault about her experiences as a woman of color with Asperger’s Syndrome working in tech is worth a read. it digs into a lot of myths about what autism really is, and gives some solid dos and don’ts on how to celebrate the month.
here’s an Instructable by Poppy Mosbacher for making an interactive Arduino dandelion. the end result is super cute, and the thoroughly documented project is a great way to play with some RGB LEDs. her project is entered in Instructable’s remix contest, so give her a vote if you like it! it’s inspired by another interactive light painting project by artist Jie Qi:
if typography is your thing, this post on the Adafruit blog digs in on the history of the early Apple fonts, in honor of the passing of the Oregon priest who inspired them. a nice lil bit of computing history.
taking down production is a rite of passage for artists and programmers alike. believe u me, the terror of finding out that your installation plan for a gallery exhibition is a no -go the day before the opening is just about the same terror as accidentally nuking a live digital product. Molly Struve talks about her first time with this experience in this blog post on dev.to. it’s a much needed antidote to imposter syndrome – sometimes we all screw up!
opportunities!
NEW INC’s Year 6 open call is now live! apply by April 20 to be considered for this new batch, which will run from September 2019 – August 2020. for Year 6 they are offering 5 tracks: Interactive Experiences, Museum Technology, Creative Experiments, Art + Code, and Ideas for the City. so apply asap if one of these tracks applies to your current work!
Grey Area’s 2019 Session 1 of their Creative Code Immersive began yesterday, but applications are rolling and kept open until all seats are filled. if you’re in the Bay Area and can’t jump on for this session, Session 2 begins in September. this looks like a great, low cost way to have some structured learning amongst a great network. plus it ends with a public showcase of the projects! check it out.
? upcoming events!
Tonight! WeWork Cervantes! Mexico City, Mexico: there’s literally one RSVP spot left for this month’s Eventloop event in CDMX, so get on it! this event is always quality, with a mix of talks on hard and soft skills, as well as presentations on interesting projects. RSVP on Meetup and check out this cool community!
April 12-14! Rich Mix! London, UK: Afrotech Fest 2019 tix are now on sale! this is a 3 day tech festival for Black people of African and Caribbean heritage in London. you can chose between a full weekend pass or individual tickets for the days you can attend. you can also purchase a donation ticket to help someone who could not afford to attend otherwise- this sounds like a great way to support this important network of communities. get your tickets here!
April 13! H0l0! Queens, NY, USA: Eyebeam resident Yo-Yo Lin will be performing an audiovisual piece with sounds completely generated her their bones and joints. she’s been researching and exploring chronic health trauma during her residency, and it sounds like this event will be pretty amazing. learn more and get tickets here.
April 27! New Museum! New York, NY, USA: tickets are on sale for this year’s Seven on Seven. every year, Rhizome pairs seven leading artists with seven luminary technologists and challenges them to just make something! they then unveil their creations at this conference at the New Museum. you can get tickets on Eventbrite, or keep an eye on Rhizome’s twitter for the live stream.
just for lulz!
ok this makes me want to mess with Unity again:
*~housekeeping~*
as always, submit to the open artist call if you have anything in the works that you are excited about! and if you have an event or opportunity to promote (anywhere), please send me all the details. the next newsletter will cover the week of April 8 to 14, but I’m happy to promote events further in the future as well and keep them on the calendar.
we also now have a Discord channel! right now it’s just a few of us, but feel free to drop in and share a gif. I’m starting to experiment with new tools for building community and moving off of Facebook, and this is just one attempt! if you have recommendations for other tools and platforms that you enjoy, please let me know!
