Design in Action: Unpacking the Artists’ Role in Performance-Led Research (original) (raw)

This paper illustrates design work carried out to develop an interactive theater performance. HCI has started to address the challenges of designing interactive performances, as both audience and performers' experiences are considered, and a variety of professional expertise become involved. Nevertheless, research has overlooked how such design unfolds in practice, and what role artists play in exploring the both the creative opportunities and the challenges associated with digital technologies. A two-day workshop was conducted to tailor the use of an interactive mask within a performance. The analysis highlights the artists' work to make the mask work while framing, exploring and conceptualizing its use. The discussion outlines the artists' skills and design expertise, and how acknowledging them reconfigure the role of HCI in performanceled research.