CHRISSY BRIMMAGE - 2022
Chrissy Brimmage (she/they) is a self-taught, multidisciplinary artist living and working out of Brooklyn, NY.
Chrissy’s work utilizes the opportunities and constraints of digital space to research social phenomena of the material world. Her practice integrates digital and analog mediums to explore her personal perceptions, as well as the varying perceptions between social identities on futures beyond oppressive systems, the function of identity, and definitions of freedom.
Chrissy's VMF Winter Arts 2022 installation, “meta/morph”, asks viewers to ground themselves in the present moment-space to investigate what exists beyond what the material eye can see, and how they can use the in-between to inform their relationships to the self, to others, and to the future.
As she states in her Artist Statement: “the digital and the material are often seen as opposing extremes of a binary, but eschewing that binary uncovers the fluidity of our reality: the symbiosis of the digital and the material existing in parallel, offering space to experiment, uncover, iterate, redefine and dream in the in-between.”
Experience her AR installation at the Winter Arts Hub during VMF Winter Arts (Feb11-27).
VMF: How did you get into digital art?
CB: My relationship with digital art started with learning 3D modeling for the sole purpose of 3D printing. While exploring the 3D space I fell in love with the possibilities for experimentation.
Creating a piece for VMF Winter Arts was my first time working with AR specifically, but I’ve been dreaming about using the medium for some time because of its ability to visualize simultaneously the seen and unseen.
That’s something I find really special and unique to AR, so I was excited to be able to bring some of the things I had been dreaming about visualizing into reality.
VMF: Tell us more about your AR piece. What inspires you when creating an experience like this?
CB: Something that inspired me to create this piece was a night walk around New York City. There’s so much going on in a big city that it’s easy to let everything become a blur and go whole blocks without registering any details of what you see. But on that particular night I made it a point to be curious and observe.
Taking that extra second to notice a building or a stranger in the crowd opens up questions and you wonder about the history of the building or the emotional state of that stranger.
This wonderment reminded me that at any given time or in any given space there is an interplay of the material, the things we can see with the material eye, and the non-material, things we can’t see such as history, emotions, and energy, existing together in tandem, and the only way to really tap in to all of that is to get grounded in the present moment-space.
This idea of getting grounded in the present to investigate what exists beyond what the material eye can see, and how we can use that space to inform our relationships to the self, to others, and to the future is what inspired the theme and visuals behind the piece.
VMF: What is the best way for people to enjoy your AR piece?
CB: The best way to enjoy the piece is to first get grounded in your present moment-space, and then step inside.
“It’s been such an honour to be a part of VMF Winter Arts this year. Between being amongst other brilliant artists, working with the amazing VMF team, and creating an experience to connect people during a time where physical connection isn’t always accessible, this has been an unforgettable experience for me.
I hope it’ll be an unforgettable experience for the people enjoying the festival in downtown Vancouver as well.”
From February 11-27, you can experience Chrissy Brimmage’s AR installation at the Winter Arts Hub, a free, all-ages, licensed open-air venue located at šxʷƛ̓ənəq Xwtl'e7énḵ Square on the north side of the Vancouver Art Gallery.
AR artwork supported by Downtown Vancouver Business Improvement Association
Follow @winterartfest on social media (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter) for updates on VMF Winter Arts 2022.
Presenting Sponsor: Downtown Vancouver Business Improvement Association
