Author: Maja Stark

The dates for the final round of XR BASICS at HTW Berlin have been set, and we warmly invite independent artists and cultural professionals in Berlin to take part! Thanks to EU funding, the courses are, as always, free of charge.

• Course 1 on 10.11.25: Examples, Conception and Design of Extended Reality Applications in the Cultural Sector
• Course 2 on 11.11.25: Digital Media Production with Blender – 3D Modelling and Animation for Extended Reality
• Course 3 on 13.11.25: Introduction to the Production of Augmented Reality Applications (without Programming)
• Course 4 on 14.11.25: Introduction to the Production of Virtual Reality Applications (without Programming)

Further information, requirements, and registration can be found in the menu under COURSES.

On September 25–26, 2025, the XXII. International Conference KUI – Culture and Computer Science will take place at the Kulturforum Berlin.

As the final networking event of our current project funding, we warmly invite Berlin’s independent arts and culture scene to join us for the public Conference Session III »Hybrid Encounters« from 3:30–4:40 pm! Look forward to exciting talks on current research in art, XR, AI, and robotics. Full details can be found in the conference program.

At 5:00 pm, we will open the highly anticipated poster and demo exhibition of the conference. To conclude the exhibition, don’t miss the live performance of »Phygital Intimacy« starting at 6:15 pm.

»Phygital Intimacy« blends mixed reality and gaming with contemporary dance and generative music production. This participatory performance is the result of a nine-month collaboration between the AURORA team and artists Lisa Kaschuabat, Tasha Hess-Neustedt, and Jane Arnison.

Admission to the talks, exhibition, and performance is free of charge. To help us with planning, we kindly ask for a short registration.

Herzliche Einladung zu unserem 6. Jahresevent XR ART & NETWORKING am Mittwoch, 25. Juni 2025, an der HTW Berlin! Dieses Jahr ist es eine gemeinsame Veranstaltung mit dem neuen Immersive Technologies Hub (ITH) an unserer Hochschule.

Freut euch mit uns auf inspirierende Talks, eine offene Fishbowl-Diskussion, XR-Workshops und großartige XR-Projekte an der Schnittstelle von XR-Development, Kunst & Kultur, Gaming – und Journalismus!

Zum vollständigen Programm geht es hier.

Happy to be part of this year’s MANIFEST:IO, the Symposium for New Media and Electronic Art in Berlin! 💫

Our AURORA XR School for Artists is partner of the festival organised and curated by Harshini Karunaratne, Basel Naouri and team – and together with our Artistic Fellows, we will present 2 XR artworks there:

– from hostile to hospitable, with artist Martin Binder: Using augmented reality technology to visualize utopia of friendly urban spaces.

– NOVOCENE, with artist Jens Isensee: Using mixed reality technology to unfold a narrative that explores the Anthropocene, the geological era dominated and shaped by humans, and to reflect on a possible future.

Tickets and further info can be found HERE!

The AURORA XR Fellowship 2024/25 goes to Lisa Kaschubat, Tasha Hess-Neustadt and Jane Arnison with their concept for PHYGITAL INTIMACY!

PHYGITAL INTIMACY (AT) is a speculative vision of the future that combines live performance, mixed reality (MR), gaming and AI with contemporary dance, performance and generative music production.

Performers and the participating audience enter a multiplayer MR environment where they interact with both AI-driven digital content and a generative sound layer. Inspired esp. by Sophie K. Rosa’s concept of radical intimacy – care and community are emphasized as political fields of resistance – the aim is to create connection and intimacy between the users, but also between humans and machines.

A big thank you goes to our expert jury – Pablo Dornhege, Sebastian Keppler and Peggy Schoenegge – and to the many artists and cultural professionals for their submissions to our annual XR Open Call!

Leonid has recorded two new XR tutorials for you – both with a focus on possibilities and current tools for using augmented reality in public spaces. Tutorial language is German (subtitles via Youtube are possible). Please find them under XR Tutorials (digital), German version, and scroll down, as our tutorials no. 19.1 and 19.2. Have fun working with them!

On 27 September, we are part of the awesome festival Transferale in Berlin to present and discuss »from hostile to hospitable«, the interactive WebAR application for inclusive urban spaces that we developed in close collaboration with the artist Martin Binder! The experience explores discriminatory design in urban public spaces and visualizes (mostly) utopian alternatives.

Transferale is the first transfer and science festival with a focus on climate and health, organised by our HTW Berlin in cooperation with four other universities of applied sciences in Berlin. In over 70 events with more than 150 scientists from different disciplines, you can experience the diversity of applied research.

Link to the event: https://zukunftstadt.berlin/transferale (last access: 25.09.2024).