New Portable Pixel Playground artwork in progress

folly is delighted to announce that Giles Askham and Luke Hastilow are currently creating the next PPP artists' commission, Cubed3, which will be completed and added to the playground in March 2010.

You can follow the development of Cubed3 by visiting the artists' blog on the Portable Pixel Playground website.

Cubed3 will be a set of tactile programmable objects, wirelessly connected to form a physical gaming system. Designed to encourage the exploration of diverse physical spaces and interaction between players, Cubed3 will re-imagine traditional games such as Treasure Hunt for 21st century play.

In the artists’ words, “The commissioning of Cubed3 by folly is a great opportunity for us to further develop our collaborative practice, by working on an exciting, substantial project that relates directly to our artistic and research interests.”

Giles Askham is an artist and curator. Previously curator at peterborough digital arts, he now works independently and collaboratively on arts projects that explore the social implications of technology and communications networks, exploring the possibilities that technology affords us to communicate, interact, and play with one another. Previous projects include the touring exhibition Game/Play and the installation Aquaplayne.

Luke Hastilow has a background in Electronics and Software Engineering. His work has explored a range of topics, from synthesizers and circuit-bending to the design of real-time embedded systems technology for robotics on TV, with recent projects including audio-based software AUM-VST and collaborative installations such as Wall-Ball (exhibited in Germany, London, and New York). His current research examines the Human-Computer Interface, and he works in the field of Music Technology.

Askham and Hastilow met at the Digital Arts Media and Technology Action Group (DAMTAG) a cross-departmental research group at London Metropolitan University, where both are Lecturers.