ICAT sparks international collaboration with an art exchange
Surrounded by an immersive 140-channel audio system with saxophone in hand, Kyle Hutchins played a song. The immersive sound enveloped the five-story-high, state-of-the-art theatre and high-tech laboratory known as the Cube at Virginia Tech.
“Immediately afterward, I realized: There is nothing else I can do with this piece because there is nowhere else for the music to be presented,” said Hutchins, assistant professor of practice at Virginia Tech’s School of Performing Arts. “A stereo version will never be remotely the same experience.”
The difficulty of duplicating this work elsewhere inspired the creation of the Art, Research, and Technology Exchange (ARTx), a multiple-institution network of such specialized venues. Since its founding in Blacksburg, ARTx has grown to include more than 10 universities and organizations across the globe and has given Virginia Tech researchers the opportunity to lecture, perform, and engage internationally.
“ARTx is an incredible global distinction initiative to advance the arts and technology,” said Ben Knapp, executive director of the Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology (ICAT). “We are proud to support it and continue fostering innovation and collaboration on an international scale.”
ARTx already has completed multiple iterations of its “art exchange” program. During the past year, Virginia Tech faculty have visited institutions in Canada and Ireland, and the university has hosted faculty from abroad.
Founded by Knapp and directed by Hutchins, ARTx is supported by ICAT and Outreach and International Affairs at Virginia Tech.
“In our increasingly interdependent world, initiatives such as ARTx exemplify Virginia Tech’s commitment to fostering meaningful global partnerships at the nexus of arts and technology with leading universities around the world,” said Guru Ghosh, vice president for outreach and international affairs. “This program not only advances our research capabilities in these fields, but also creates vital channels for cross-cultural dialogue and innovation.”
First exchange: April to October
In spring 2024, ARTx hosted a group of researchers from the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Music Media and Technology (CIRMMT) at McGill University in Montreal on the Blacksburg campus.
“They came here last spring and performed in the Cube during the New Music + Technology Festival. We went there in the fall,” Hutchins said. “Next year, we'll host another delegation from the center. Hopefully, this project will continue in the long term, alternating every other year.”
The center is an interdisciplinary research space made up of members from five universities in Montreal. Mirroring ICAT, the center features the Multimedia Room, a 70-channel peer studio of the Cube.
Knapp and Hutchins, along with School of Performing Arts faculty Charles Nichols, Eric Lyon, Betsy Lantz, and John Irrera, took part in the initial trip last October.
They spent five days presenting their research, giving six lectures, and performing the five-piece performance “ICAT at CIRMMT.”
Additionally, they established an ARTx SEAD grant of up to $12,000 to foster collaboration between Virginia Tech and McGill University. The funding will support two teams, one at each institution, to create work for the Cube and the McGill Multimedia Room to be exhibited in 2026.
Second exchange: September to November
During the fall New Music + Technology Festival, Irish artists Ruth Clinton and Niamh Moriarty participated in an art residency at Virginia Tech. They engaged with students on the Blacksburg campus, giving research presentations, performing in the Cube, and teaching a class.
In November, Assistant Professor of creative technologies Chelsea Thompto spent two weeks in Ireland. Her first four days were spent at the Center for Creative Technologies at the University of Galway, where she worked in the studio as part of her residency. She then spent three days at Burren College of Art, giving talks, sharing her work, and meeting with undergraduate and graduate students.
The remainder of her residency allowed her to develop a project she had planned in 2023 before returning to the University of Galway to conclude the exchange. Her work "A Walk in the Dark" is a browser-based experience exploring the liberating power of being enshrouded by darkness or fog.
“I went from no material but with a brief idea to a working prototype of my project in about two weeks,” she said.
Upon returning to Galway, Thompto participated in a workshop on diversity and inclusion in virtual reality and extended reality spaces led by Ida XR, a United Kingdom-based organization focused on promoting inclusive practices and accessibility in virtual and extended reality environments. She also reconnected with Clinton and Moriarty to engage with their work on display at the City Museum of Galway, continuing the conversations sparked during their Blacksburg residency.
As ARTx continues to evolve, its mission to bridge the arts and technology across borders will continue to create artistic opportunities and a global community of researchers aimed at redefining how creativity and research intersect on an international scale.
