Datafield is a cross-discipline collaborative & participatory performance artwork created for video.
The first iteration of Datafield was co-created in February 2020 with 30 Bath Spa students. The final cut was shortlisted for the Visions of Science ArtPrize at The Edge 2020 and long-listed for UK New Artist 2022. Screenings have included, amongst others, Centre of Gravity, Bristol 2020, and Wiltshire Creative, Salisbury Playhouse 2021.
Expressions of interest in developing further iterations of the project on a growing scale are welcomed, especially as an induction activity for freshers on creative university courses.
Datafield was originally conceived for 100 participants in a 10x10 grid, anonymised by wearing second-skin bar chart costumes revealing their individuality and difference in unique silhouettes, ‘animated’ through movements that represent the participants’ choices.
The work has been created in collaboration with post-graduate research students at University of Bath specialising in sociology & maths. Surveys and workshops with students exploring the impact of information and data overload on the ability to make choices in life have informed the costumes & performance, whilst also supporting young people’s mental well-being, increasing confidence to engage with knowledge to help shape their own futures.