Reconceptualising Krapow : Creating Interactive 'Happenings' Using EEG Technology

Interactive art can be seen as a dynamic concept that is in a constant state of
flux and evolution as technology provides new and different ways to allow artists to
engage viewers and transform them into active participants in the creation of the art
itself. As technology permits the nature of interaction and collaboration to evolve, the
interactive nature of the art posits challenges to the traditional roles of artist and
viewer and transforms that relationship to one of collaborators.

The research practice for this thesis centres on the creation of interactive
computer systems utilising EEG technology that collects the brainwave data of
participants, which is then rearranged or reinterpreted through a system I have created
to allow the participant to have an active role in the creation of the art. This
interactive system was created through a reconceptualisation of the precepts
governing interaction utilized by Allan Kaprow in the ‘Happenings’. The research
practice also focuses on other theories for facilitating and enhancing the nature of the
interaction including art as experience, play, affect, and magical thinking, thereby
allowing the interaction between artist/system and participant to be the true nature of
the art, or the gestalt of the work.