Mattia Casalegno

Critic - Experimental and Found Studies
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Mattia Casalegno
MFA, University Of California Los Angeles

Mattia Casalegno is a visual artist working in video, performance, immersive installations and mixed reality. His work explores the physical and sensory perceptions of its viewers, evoking experiences that are fully immersive, sensorially embodied and psychologically heightened. His art practice draws from such disparate disciplines as anthropology, ecology, biology, neurosciences and informatics and focuses on the relations and tensions between nature, society and technology.

Casalegno has won multiple prizes and received various grants and fellowships including the Lumen Prize and New Technological Art Awards, and his work has been funded by such organizations as NEW INC, the Center for Cultural Innovation, Young Italian Artists Network, NYFA, the Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts, Eyebeam, Chronus Art Center and the Asia Culture Center.

Casalegno has exhibited in more than 100 international venues and institutions including Siggraph Asia, ISEA - International Society of Electronic Artists, Ars Electronica Animation festival, Mutek festival, Untitled Art Fair, Superblue Museum, MACRO Museum, Cini Foundation, RomaEuropa Festival, Cimatics festival, Festival de la Imagem and Kuandu Museum of Fine Arts. His work has been featured in such publications and catalogues as A Touch of Code (Gestalten Books), Tactics of Interfacing (MIT Press), Deleuze and Audiovisual Art (Manchester Metropolitan University), The New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, CNN, Art Tribune, Exibart, the Creators Projects, Hyperallergic, Digicult and e-artnow.

In addition to teaching at RISD, he serves as an assistant professor in the department of Digital Arts at Pratt Institute in New York.

Courses

Fall 2023 Courses

DM 7100-01 - DM GRADUATE STUDIO/SEMINAR 1
Level Graduate
Unit Digital + Media
Subject Digital + Media
Period Fall 2023
Credits 9
Format Combination
Mode In-Person
Start date
End date

DM 7100-01

DM GRADUATE STUDIO/SEMINAR 1

Level Graduate
Unit Digital + Media
Subject Digital + Media
Period Fall 2023
Credits 9
Format Combination
Mode In-Person
Start and End 2023-09-06 to 2023-12-13
Times: TH | 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM; T | 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM Instructor(s): Leah Beeferman, Mattia Casalegno, Stephen Cooke Location(s): Center for Integrative Technologies, Room 402 Enrolled / Capacity: 15 Status: Open

SECTION DESCRIPTION

This combined studio and seminar forum for Digital + Media first year students supports the exploration of theoretical, social, material, technical and contextual research and concerns in new media arts practices during the first semester of the D+M MFA program at RISD. Students are introduced to a core set of methodologies and technologies from basic electronics, programming and interaction design to installation, and are encouraged to break comfort zones through experimentation. Students conceptualize and discuss their work and ongoing practice. The course is a mix of group discussions, individual meetings, required lecture and workshop series, and group critiques. The technical workshops are opportunities for students to experiment and test out aspects of their research in order to develop a sound practice. Guest lecturers and visiting critics may join during other portions of the class time on occasion.

Estimated Cost of Materials: $100.00 - $300.00

Majors are pre-registered for this course by the department. Enrollment is limited to Digital + Media Students.


Major Requirement | MFA Digital + Media

DM 2039-01 - IMMERSIVE SPACES
Level Graduate
Unit Digital + Media
Subject Digital + Media
Period Fall 2023
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start date
End date

DM 2039-01

IMMERSIVE SPACES

Level Graduate
Unit Digital + Media
Subject Digital + Media
Period Fall 2023
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start and End 2023-09-06 to 2023-12-13
Times: F | 1:10 PM - 6:10 PM Instructor(s): Mattia Casalegno Location(s): College Building, Room 521 Enrolled / Capacity: 12 Status: Closed

SECTION DESCRIPTION

This course explores the relationships between new media languages and physical space. Building from the history and aesthetics of installation art and relational theater and based on conceptualizations such as "Relational Architecture" by Lozano-Hemmer and the "Poetics of Augmented Space" by Lev Manovich, we will learn to leverage interactive and audiovisual elements in order to design spatial experiences that are media-rich, relational, and responsive. We will use software, video-projectors, sensors and VR equipment, and explore emergent techniques including video-mapping, computer vision and augmented reality. We will learn to deploy not only vision, but also hearing and haptics to create immersive and multi-sensory environments. Class is comprised of lectures, hands-on workshops and individual projects. Students will gain a deep understanding of topics of spatial thinking and user-generated experiences related to space, as well as a theoretical and critical understanding of the history of installation and interactive arts. Although not a prerequisite, basic coding or scripting knowledge (Processing, javascript, or MAX, Touch Designer, etc.) is recommended.

Estimated Cost of Materials: $250.00

Please contact the instructor for permission to register; registration is not available in Workday. 


Elective

ILLUS 3346-01 - AUGMENTED DESIGN: CREATING IN AND FOR VIRTUAL REALITY
Level Undergraduate
Unit Illustration
Subject Illustration
Period Fall 2023
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start date
End date

ILLUS 3346-01

AUGMENTED DESIGN: CREATING IN AND FOR VIRTUAL REALITY

Level Undergraduate
Unit Illustration
Subject Illustration
Period Fall 2023
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start and End 2023-09-06 to 2023-12-13
Times: TH | 3:00 PM - 8:00 PM Instructor(s): Mattia Casalegno Location(s): College Building, Room 521 Enrolled / Capacity: 12 Status: Open

SECTION DESCRIPTION

This course introduces students to the creative possibilities of Virtual Reality (VR) and related design strategies as they apply modeling, drawing and animation. Emphasis will be placed on VR-based professional tools such as Tiltbrush, Quill and Gravity Sketch currently used in the fields of illustration, animation, interactive arts and game design. Students will learn the professional game engine Unity 3D and will be introduced to the fundamentals of designing assets, multimedia components and interactive strategies. Oculus and HTC Vive platforms will be accessible to students through the semester. Although not mandatory, knowledge of modeling and basic coding is strongly recommended.

Open to Junior or Senior Illustration Students.

Elective

CTC 1000-01 - INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTATION
Level Undergraduate
Unit Experimental and Foundation Studies
Subject Computation,Technology, and Culture
Period Fall 2023
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start date
End date

CTC 1000-01

INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTATION

Level Undergraduate
Unit Experimental and Foundation Studies
Subject Computation,Technology, and Culture
Period Fall 2023
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start and End 2023-09-06 to 2023-12-13
Times: F | 8:00 AM - 1:00 PM Instructor(s): Mattia Casalegno Location(s): College Building, Room 521 Enrolled / Capacity: 12 Status: Open

SECTION DESCRIPTION

Introduction to Computation focuses on computational techniques, methods, and ideas in the context of art and design. Studio projects first center on the design of algorithms then shift to involve computer programming and scripting. Critical attention is given to code as a body of crafted text with significant aesthetic, philosophical, and social dimensions, as well as the tension, conflict, and potential possible when computation generates, informs, or interacts with drawings, materials, forms, and spaces. Historical and contemporary works of computational art and design will be presented and assigned for analysis. This course is open to students of all majors and is designed for those with little or no experience in programming. In order to conduct work in this course, students will need a laptop computer. Estimated Cost of Materials: $250.00

This course fulfills one of two core studio requirements for the CTC Concentration.

Requirement | CTC Concentration


Elective

Image
Mattia Casalegno
MFA, University Of California Los Angeles