WORKSHOP “Advanced Digital Practices” 20–21–22 oktober @ Le Fresnoy, France
The cross-border ON/ART project aims to create a stimulating community in which media artists, digital creators and both organisations collaborate, share tools and realise joint projects. Le Fresnoy (Tourcoing, France) brings years of experience in media art and strong links with contemporary technology. Designregio Kortrijk (Kortrijk, Belgium) has extensive expertise in networking and community building. This exchange of knowledge opens up new opportunities for new media artists and creators on both sides of the border.
In this context, Designregio Kortrijk and Le Fresnoy are organising:
Workshop 'Advanced Digital Practices'
(interactive or generative installations, video games, virtual reality and other digital forms of expression).
Transboundary Workshop With Damien Baïs
When?
20–21–22 October
Location: Le Fresnoy - Studio national des arts contemporains (22 Rue du Fresnoy, 59200 Tourcoing, France
The workshop explores the various challenges involved in developing digital art.
Objective: to provide insight into the entire process of a digital project, from idea to end result.
Program
Day 1 – 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
The first day is all about getting inspired by interactive installations in art, design and video games, complemented by reflection on interactive systems and their creative applications:
Methodological introduction: how to set up an installation? (planning, necessary resources, technical requirements, tools, technologies, pitfalls, etc.).
Presentation on independent and artistic video games, and how they can inspire new forms of interactive creation.
Installation and initial introduction to the software and workspaces that will be used in the workshop: Godot, Processing and Blender.
Day 2 – 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
The second day will focus on an introduction to programming. Key concepts such as variables, loops, conditions and events will be covered. Participants will practise with practical assignments to understand the role of code as a creative tool. Collective exchanges will deepen insights and link theory to practice.
Day 3 – 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
The third day revolves around the use of game engines, with an emphasis on Godot.
Participants build a prototype of an FPS game with movement, camera control and basic interactions. They then gradually expand this prototype with creative elements such as original graphics, game mechanics or visual effects. Each participant also has time to personalise or transform the prototype according to their own ideas.
About the teacher
Damien Baïs studied at the École supérieure d’art et design de Saint-Étienne and is the author of several video games, including SuperLevelTypo, Hide & Seek, TradeWar, NORD-OUEST, and CaveFighter.
He is co-founder of .CORP, where he develops projects at the intersection of programming, design and art. He also founded Dune(s) corporation, a studio that creates interactive installations and digital projects for industry and the cultural sector.
Since 2010, he has been teaching programming and game techniques within the Digital Creation programme at ESADSE. From 2021 to 2022, he was responsible for the digital department at HEAD – Geneva, and since 2024 he has been coordinating the Master's programme in Digital Creation at the École supérieure d'art et design de Saint-Étienne. He also teaches at HEAD-Geneva, Télécom St-Étienne and the École des Mines, among others.
Practical
- Number of participants: max. 12 from Flanders and Hauts-de-France with a digital project
- Registration: send your CV to eprigent@lefresnoy.net and freek@designregio-kortrijk.be
- What to bring: your own laptop (Windows, Linux or Mac; software will be installed on site)
Registration deadline: Tuesday 14 October
This workshop is co-financed with support from the ERDF. This call is organised as part of the ON/ART micro-project, approved under the INTERREG France–Wallonia-Flanders programme.
Location
Le Fresnoy – Studio national des arts contemporains 22, rue du Fresnoy, 59200 Tourcoing, Frankrijk
Accessibility
- Metro: Line 2, Alsace stop
- Bus: Line 30 towards Tourcoing Centre or Wasquehal Jean-Paul Sartre, Fresnoy stop
(check bus times in advance) - Train: Roubaix station
- Car: From Paris or Lille: motorway towards Roubaix–Villeneuve d'Ascq, then expressway towards Tourcoing Blanc-Seau, exit 9 – Le Fresnoy
From Ghent or Brussels: motorway towards Lille, exit 13a Croix-Wasquehal, then towards Roubaix, and exit 9 – Le Fresnoy – Studio national - GPS coordinates: 50.700318, 3.154566
Freek Clinckemaillie
Communication
