Spark Festival of Electronic Arts and Music

Can technology facilitate new outlets for artistic expression? If the Spark Festival, the West Bank celebration of all things electronic, is any indicator, then yes. Each year the U of M invites local, national, and international artists for three days of lectures, live music, theater and dance performances, workshops, and activities. Events around town feature live music at Nomad World Pub, Temple, and the campus's Whole Music Club with local artists like Beatrix*Jar, Mystery Palace, and JamesPatrick as well as well-traveled musicians including remix master Richard Devine (Aphex Twin is one of his muses) and Romanian sound artist Iancu Dumitrescu. British pop-culture critic Simon Reynolds is featured in one of a handful of keynote talks. Founding members of New York City-based guerilla art group Graffiti Research Lab will be on hand for a lecture. Over the past couple of years, they have pioneered various technology for public usage. Recent developments include the laser-tag trolley, which can be used to project political and artistic statements on any public surface available. Taking it to the streets, the group will be giving a Minneapolis bike tour. Free; some nightclub events have a cover charge. For a complete schedule of events visit spark.cla.umn.edu or call 612.626.1094 or the hotline number 612.626.8742.
Feb. 26-March 2, 2008