Oliver Grau
Encyclopedia
Oliver Grau is a German
art historian and media theoretician with a focus on image science, modernity
and media art as well as culture of the 19th century and Italian art of the Renaissance
.
.
His books include:
He has conducted international invited lecture tours, received numerous awards, and produced international publications in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Serbian, Macedonian, Slovenian, Korean, Chinese. His main research is in the history of media art, immersion (virtual reality)
, and emotions, as well as the history, idea and culture of telepresence
and artificial life
.
Grau's book Virtual Art, which received more than 50 reviews, offered for the first time a historic comparison in image-viewer theory of immersion as well as a systematic analysis of the trilogy of artist, work and viewer on conditions of digital art
. The research is linked to the novel model of an evolutionary history of media illusions that results on the one hand from a relative dependence on new sensual potentials of suggestion and on the other hand from the variable strength of alienation of the viewer (media competence).
Grau has conceived new scientific tools for the humanities/digital humanities, he managed the project "Immersive Art" of The German Research Foundation
(DFG) whose team started developing in 1998 the first international archive for digital art
written on an open source platform at the Danube-University Krems and has since been followed up by a number of spin-off projects. Since 2000 the DVA was the first online archive to regularly stream video documentations. Since 2005 Grau is manager of the database of Goettweigs Graphic Collection, Austria's largest private graphic collection that contains 30,000 works, ranging from Albrecht Duerer to Gustav Klimt
.
Grau developed new international curricula for image sciences: MediaArtHistories MA, academic expert programmes in Digital Collection Management and Exhibit Design, Visual Competencies and the masters course in Image Science. Moreover with the Danube Telelectures a new interactive format of lectures and debates came into being that is streamed worldwide.
After his studies in Hamburg
, Siena
and Berlin
and his doctoral work
, Grau lectured at the Humboldt University Berlin, was a guest in different research labs in Japan and USA and following his post doctoral lecture qualification (habilitation
) in 2003 worked as professor at different international universities. He has acted as adviser for international professional journals and different associations. Grau manages different conferences. Since 2002 Grau tried to bring together the research on media art and its history which is dispersed over many fields and therefore was founding director of Refresh! First International Conference on the History of Media Art, Science and Technology, Banff
2005 (2007 Berlin
, 2009 Melbourne
, 2011 Liverpool
). O. Grau: MediaArtHistories, MIT-Press 2007 and the online text archive mediaarthistory.org result from these conferences.
Awards among other things: 2001 voted into Young Academy of the Berlin-Brandenburgischen Scientific Academy and the Leopoldina
; 2002 InterNations/Goethe Institute; 2003 Book of the Month, Scientific American
; 2003 Research Scholarship from the German-Italian Center Villa Vigoni; 2004 Media Award of the Humboldt University.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
art historian and media theoretician with a focus on image science, modernity
Modernity
Modernity typically refers to a post-traditional, post-medieval historical period, one marked by the move from feudalism toward capitalism, industrialization, secularization, rationalization, the nation-state and its constituent institutions and forms of surveillance...
and media art as well as culture of the 19th century and Italian art of the Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
.
Works
Oliver Grau is Professor of Image Science and Head of the Department for Image Science at the Danube University KremsDanube University Krems
Danube University Krems calls itself "the only state-funded university throughout Europe that has specialized in post-graduate academic studies"...
.
His books include:
- Virtual Art: From Illusion to Immersion (MIT PressMIT PressThe MIT Press is a university press affiliated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts .-History:...
/Leonardo Books, 2003) - Mediale Emotionen (Fischer, 2005)
- MediaArtHistories (MIT Press/Leonardo Books, 2007).
- Imagery in the 21st Century. Cambridge, MA: MIT-Press 2011.
He has conducted international invited lecture tours, received numerous awards, and produced international publications in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Serbian, Macedonian, Slovenian, Korean, Chinese. His main research is in the history of media art, immersion (virtual reality)
Immersion (virtual reality)
Immersion is the state of consciousness where an immersant's awareness of physical self is diminished or lost by being surrounded in an engrossing total environment; often artificial. This mental state is frequently accompanied with spatial excess, intense focus, a distorted sense of time, and...
, and emotions, as well as the history, idea and culture of telepresence
Telepresence
Telepresence refers to a set of technologies which allow a person to feel as if they were present, to give the appearance of being present, or to have an effect, via telerobotics, at a place other than their true location....
and artificial life
Artificial life
Artificial life is a field of study and an associated art form which examine systems related to life, its processes, and its evolution through simulations using computer models, robotics, and biochemistry. The discipline was named by Christopher Langton, an American computer scientist, in 1986...
.
Grau's book Virtual Art, which received more than 50 reviews, offered for the first time a historic comparison in image-viewer theory of immersion as well as a systematic analysis of the trilogy of artist, work and viewer on conditions of digital art
Digital art
Digital art is a general term for a range of artistic works and practices that use digital technology as an essential part of the creative and/or presentation process...
. The research is linked to the novel model of an evolutionary history of media illusions that results on the one hand from a relative dependence on new sensual potentials of suggestion and on the other hand from the variable strength of alienation of the viewer (media competence).
Grau has conceived new scientific tools for the humanities/digital humanities, he managed the project "Immersive Art" of The German Research Foundation
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft is an important German research funding organization and the largest such organization in Europe.-Function:...
(DFG) whose team started developing in 1998 the first international archive for digital art
Digital art
Digital art is a general term for a range of artistic works and practices that use digital technology as an essential part of the creative and/or presentation process...
written on an open source platform at the Danube-University Krems and has since been followed up by a number of spin-off projects. Since 2000 the DVA was the first online archive to regularly stream video documentations. Since 2005 Grau is manager of the database of Goettweigs Graphic Collection, Austria's largest private graphic collection that contains 30,000 works, ranging from Albrecht Duerer to Gustav Klimt
Gustav Klimt
Gustav Klimt was an Austrian Symbolist painter and one of the most prominent members of the Vienna Secession movement. His major works include paintings, murals, sketches, and other art objects...
.
Grau developed new international curricula for image sciences: MediaArtHistories MA, academic expert programmes in Digital Collection Management and Exhibit Design, Visual Competencies and the masters course in Image Science. Moreover with the Danube Telelectures a new interactive format of lectures and debates came into being that is streamed worldwide.
After his studies in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, Siena
Siena
Siena is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena.The historic centre of Siena has been declared by UNESCO a World Heritage Site. It is one of the nation's most visited tourist attractions, with over 163,000 international arrivals in 2008...
and Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
and his doctoral work
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
, Grau lectured at the Humboldt University Berlin, was a guest in different research labs in Japan and USA and following his post doctoral lecture qualification (habilitation
Habilitation
Habilitation is the highest academic qualification a scholar can achieve by his or her own pursuit in several European and Asian countries. Earned after obtaining a research doctorate, such as a PhD, habilitation requires the candidate to write a professorial thesis based on independent...
) in 2003 worked as professor at different international universities. He has acted as adviser for international professional journals and different associations. Grau manages different conferences. Since 2002 Grau tried to bring together the research on media art and its history which is dispersed over many fields and therefore was founding director of Refresh! First International Conference on the History of Media Art, Science and Technology, Banff
Banff, Alberta
Banff is a town within Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada. It is located in Alberta's Rockies along the Trans-Canada Highway, approximately west of Calgary and east of Lake Louise....
2005 (2007 Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, 2009 Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, 2011 Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
). O. Grau: MediaArtHistories, MIT-Press 2007 and the online text archive mediaarthistory.org result from these conferences.
Awards among other things: 2001 voted into Young Academy of the Berlin-Brandenburgischen Scientific Academy and the Leopoldina
Leopoldina
Leopoldina is a municipality in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. , it has a population of 51,136.It is situated in the southeastern Zona da Mata mesoregion of the state....
; 2002 InterNations/Goethe Institute; 2003 Book of the Month, Scientific American
Scientific American
Scientific American is a popular science magazine. It is notable for its long history of presenting science monthly to an educated but not necessarily scientific public, through its careful attention to the clarity of its text as well as the quality of its specially commissioned color graphics...
; 2003 Research Scholarship from the German-Italian Center Villa Vigoni; 2004 Media Award of the Humboldt University.
Selected publications
- Oliver Grau (Ed.): Imagery in the 21st Century. MIT-Press, Cambridge 2011. With contributions by James ElkinsJames ElkinsJames Elkins is an art historian and art critic. He is E.C. Chadbourne Chair of art history, theory, and criticism at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago...
, Eduardo KacEduardo KacEduardo Kac is an American contemporary artist internationally recognized for his interactive net installations and his bio-art. Kac was born in 1962, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He lives and works in Chicago....
, Peter Weibel, Lev ManovichLev ManovichLev Manovich is an author of new media books, professor of Visual Arts, University of California, San Diego, U.S. and European Graduate School in Saas-Fee, Switzerland, where he teaches new media art and theory, software studies, and digital humanities...
, Olaf Breitbach, Martin KempMartin KempMartin Kemp may refer to:* Martin Kemp , British musician and actor* Martin Kemp , professor of the history of art in the University of Oxford...
, Sean Cubitt, Christa Sommerer, Marie Luise Angerer, Wendy Chun a.o. - Oliver Grau (Ed.): Истории на медиумската уметност (Media Art Histories, Macedonian Translation), Генекс, Кочани, 2009
- Oliver Grau: Lembrem a Fantasmagoria! Política da Ilusão do Século XVIII e sua vida após a morte Multimídia, In: Diana Domingues: Arte, Ciência e Tecnologia (Media Art Histories, Portuguese Translation), São Paulo, Editora Unesp: 2009
- Oliver Grau (Ed.): Virtuelna umetnost, (Virtual Art: From Illusion to Immersion, Serbian Translation), Beograd: Clio, 2008
- Oliver Grau: Media art needs Histories and Archives (Korean Translation), In: The 5th Seoul international Media Art Biennale, conference proceedings, Seoul: 2008
- Oliver Grau: Intermedijske etap navidezne resni`cnosti v 20. stoletju: Umetnost kot navdih evolucije medijev (Intermedia Stages of Virtual Reality in the Twentieth Century: Art as Inspiration of Evolving Media, Slovenian Translation), In: Mojca Zlokarnik: Likovne Besede, Ljubljana, Janus: 2008
- Oliver Grau (Ed.): Media Art Histories, MIT PressMIT PressThe MIT Press is a university press affiliated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts .-History:...
/Leonardo Books, 2007. - Oliver Grau (Ed.): Virtual Art: From Illusion to Immersion, (Chinese Translation), Tsinghua University Press 2006
- Oliver Grau (Ed. a.o.): Mediale Emotionen. Zur Lenkung von Gefühlen durch Bild und Sound Fischer, Frankfurt/Main 2005.
- Oliver Grau: Arte Virtual. Da Ilusào à imersào (Virtual Art, Portuguese Translation), São Paulo, Editora Unesp: 2005
- Oliver Grau: Virtual Art: From Illusion to Immersion, MIT Press/Leonardo Books, 2003.
- Oliver Grau: The Database of Virtual Art: For an expanded concept of documentation, in: ICHIM, Ecole du Louvre, Ministere de la Culture et de la Communication, Proceedings, Paris 2003, S. 2-15.
- Oliver Grau: Telepräsenz: Zu Genealogie und Epistemologie von Interaktion und Simulation, in: Peter Gendolla u.a. (Hg.): Formen interaktiver Medienkunst. Geschichte, Tendenzen, Utopien, Frankfurt/Main: Suhrkamp 2001, S. 39-63.
- Oliver Grau: Zwischen Bildsuggestion und Distanzgewinn, in: Klaus Sachs-Hombach und Klaus Rehkamper (Ed.): Vom Realismus der Bilder: Interdisziplinare Forschungen zur Semantik bildlicher Darstellungsformen, Magdeburg: Scriptum-Verl. 2000, S. 213-227.
- Oliver Grau: New Images from Life, in: Ryszard Kluszczińsky (Hg.): Art Inquiry. Recherches sur les Arts, Volume II (XI), Lodž 2000, S. 7-25.
- Oliver Grau: Hingabe an das Nichts: Der Cyberspace zwischen Utopie, Ökonomie und Kunst in: Medien. Kunst.Passagen, Nr. 4, 1994, p. 17-30.
Boardmember of scientific journals and institutions
- RUNDBRIEF FOTOGRAFIE, Deutschland
- International Journal of Art and Technology, United Kingdom
- EKFRASE: Nordisk Tidsskrift for Visuell Kultur, Norway
- International Journal of Media & Cultural Politics, United Kingdom
- IMAGES, Journal for Visual Studies in Southeast Europe
- IJArt Journal, United Kingdom
- JUNCTURES The Journal for Thematic Dialogue, New Zealand
- Jordan Journal of the Arts
- SECOND NATURE: International Journal of Creative Media, Australia
- Interdisciplinary Research Center Humanities/Art/Technology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznan, Poland
External links
- Department for Image Science, Danube University Krems, Austria
- Database of Virtual Art
- MediaArtHistories Archive
- Graphic Collection Göettweig-Online
- Danube Telelectures
- MediaArtHistories (MIT Press/Leonardo Books) edited by Oliver Grau
- Virtual Art: From Illusion to Immersion (MIT Press/Leonardo Books) by Oliver Grau