Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Fine Arts & Applied Arts and FAAMAI Digital Arts Hub welcomed distinguished guests to a show of original digital artworks projected on to the interior of the FAAMAI dome and projection mapping onto the dome’s exterior on 19-20 December.
FAAMAI means “Faculty of Fine and Applied Arts Multidisciplinary Art Innovation Centre”; the center includes the FAAMAI Dome, a geodesic dome located next to the university’s Centenary Park, and the state-of-the-art FAAMAI Digital Arts Lab at the faculty.
On Saturday evening 19 December, Chulalongkorn University hosted 90 university presidents from across the kingdom to a dinner at the university’s Centenary Park. Afterwards, Dean of the faculty, Professor Dr. Bussakorn Binson joined the presidents to walk the short distance from the park to the FAAMAI Dome to enjoy 360-degree projections of award-winning digital films: Fractal Time by Dutch artist Julius Horsthuis and Desconexion by Colombian artist Jorge Bandera. Seated on beanbags to enable 360 degree viewing, the distinguished guests were delighted with the light and sound spectacle.
The presidents then participated in “Move Make Create” by Rungtum Kiatsrichart and Tyler James, which involved interactive projection mapping of images on to on the dome’s exterior surface – this proved very popular with guests as they marveled at their own huge images projected on to the backdrop of the Bangkok skyline.
On Sunday 20 December, the FAAMAI dome was opened to the public, with shows throughout the day and interactive projections at night. The show, the fifth event to be held at the dome, was well attended. As with the university presidents, the interactive projections of visitors on to the surface of the dome proved to be hugely popular.
FAAMAI recently held a competition to encourage media practitioners, digital artists and students (under 25 years old) to create digital artworks for a 360 Mapping Competition. In addition, FAAMAI participated in the 14th FullDome Festival in Germany on 20-22 November 2020, which was organised by Professor Micky Remann, who is collaborating with FAAMAI on immersive forms of digital art and was a judge for the mapping competition. FAAMAI recently signed an MOU with Bauhaus-Universitaet Weimer of Germany and is a media partner with culture360, which is part of the Asia-Europe Foundation.
FAAMAI Director, Assistant Professor Dr Prapon Kumjim explained that, “the new digital facilities and equipment are accessible and available to researchers at the university and also local and international artists, especially through practice-based research. We want to encourage local artists.” He explained that the FAAMAI Dome is the site for projection mapping, digital competitions, workshops and exhibitions, and will be fully operational in 2021, along with the FAAMAI Digital Arts Lab at the faculty.