Staff

Nigel Johnson
BA(Hons. Liv.) HDFA (UCL, Slade)

Director of PhD Studies

Tel: 01382 385248
Email: n.m.johnson@dundee.ac.uk
Research Office, Level 3, Crawford Building,
DJCAD 13 Perth Road DD1 4HT

Biography

artanddesign.dundee.ac.uk/njohnson

Professor Nigel Johnson is Chair of Interactive Arts and a Research Leader within Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design (DJCAD). He obtained an undergraduate degree in Fine Art from Liverpool in 1979 and a postgraduate degree in Experimental Media, at the Slade School, University College, London in 1981.

His research-led teaching commitments contribute to the advancement of programmes and initiatives at undergraduate, taught-postgraduate, doctoral and post-doctoral level through invited seminars, workshops, lectures and master-classes although his main area of focus is research degrees and supervision.

He has over twenty years experience of initiating, directing and managing interdisciplinary visual arts/science projects, working within the domain of creative visual applications for 'real-time' and interactive media.

Although having a Fine Art background his areas of expertise encompass programming, software and hardware development, as well as the application of contemporary technologies to creative visual practices. A recent collaborative project for example, "G-Vision", with colleagues from the School of Computing, was a Scottish Enterprise funded award for the creation of vision-based, gesture and motion recognition software for real-time performance and installations.

Fundamentally his research derives from his practice as an artist and the core of this work engages research questions and concerns that are grounded in the micro-macro nature of the world, whilst attempting to bring clarity, insight and new understanding where the art/science boundaries meet and overlap. These areas include the nature of artificial intelligence, the role of human interaction and their impact upon the development, evolution and outcomes of digital artefacts.

Research Projects

'IMM-PACT'

Intelligent Media Monitoring - Press and Communication Technologies. Funded by the Technology Strategy Board. Technology Strategy Board (TSB) & EPSRC funded - £696,878 (EPSRC element of award £226,201). Under the Creative Industries scheme - accessing and commercializing content in a digitally networked world.
Collaborators: Principal Investigator together with Co-investigator Prof. Chris Reid (School of Computing), Press Data (Edinburgh, London) & CalicoJack (Dundee).
Duration: November 2009 - 20012.

Research to develop 'intelligent media' monitoring services (press, broadcast, on-line media) utilising a novel approach exploiting argumentation-based reasoning techniques, developed at Dundee University.

'e-MobiLart' (European Mobile Lab for Interactive Artists).

Funded through the CULTURE 2007 Programme of the European Union - €197,589.
Collaborators: Duke Albada, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia and Dave Lawrence, Digital Creativity Dept., EIS, Middlesex University, London.
Duration: November 2007 - 2009.

One of 33 artists from around the world, experienced in creating interactive media art and/or actively involved in innovative interdisciplinary research selected for this prestigious project. Exhibited outcomes at Biennale 2: Thessaloniki, Greece & Academy of Fine Arts, Katowice, Poland, 24th May - 10th June 2009 & October 29th - November 12th 2009 respectively.

artanddesign.dundee.ac.uk/njohnson