The University of Winnipeg community is invited to stop by the third floor of Richardson College for the Environment on Thursday, October 14, 3:00 – 6:00 pm to celebrate the opening of the Aabijijiwan New Media Lab and Kishaadigeh Collaborative Research Centre.
The shared space is designed for workshops, intergenerational gatherings, dialogues, and creative research.
Grounded in Indigenous and racialized communities practices, methodologies, and artistic creation, the Kishaadigeh Collaborative Research Centre is a bright, open space designed for workshops, intergenerational gatherings, dialogues, and creative research, which is co-directed by Dr. Jaime Cidro and Dr. Julie Nagam.
The Aabijijiwan New Media Lab, directed by Dr. Nagam and Lab Coordinator Jasmin Winter, houses four separate labs, each equipped with technologies that have a specific production focus to support artistic and innovative residencies and projects. This includes 3D printers, VR gear, embroidery and sewing machines, green screen, sound, and so much more.
“I’m excited and proud of this new Indigenous space on campus, which will showcase Indigenous ways of knowing and doing and be a welcoming place for community,” said Cidro. “I’m especially looking forward to inviting our Indigenous community partners to the space for ongoing collaboration and research to engage with the questions that matter most to them.”
The larger vision for the space is to make room to transform institutional spaces through art, technology, and community-focused design approaches. This will ultimately increase accessibility, foster collaboration, and elevate diverse voices and worldviews.
“There is real excitement around integrating theory and practice into design and new media that can demonstrate new ways to build relationships to digital and new technologies. It’s invigorating to think about the long-term impact of the lab and the research space on the UWinnipeg student body, faculty, artists, and the wider Winnipeg community.” said Nagam.
Everyone in the UWinnipeg community is encouraged to stop by, tour the space, and learn about some of the exciting research taking place. There will be demos of emerging technologies such as virtual reality, augmented reality, 3D printers, STEAM kits, and more.
You can follow the Aabijijiwan New Media Lab and Kishaadigeh Collaborative Research Centre on Instagram, as well as The Space Between Us project.
