electric perfume – Hand Eye Test https://test.handeyesociety.com My WordPress Blog Sat, 13 Apr 2019 03:15:17 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.1 🎉 A Decade of Toronto Gaming Arts! 🎉 HES Annual General Meeting 2019 https://test.handeyesociety.com/2019/04/12/decade-toronto-gaming-arts-hes-annual-general-meeting-2019/ Sat, 13 Apr 2019 03:15:17 +0000 http://handeyesociety.com/?p=29069 For 10 years running, the 2019 Hand Eye Society Annual General Meeting is upon us! Come on out to learn more about the organization and our plans for the year, register or renew your membership, meet cool people in the gaming arts, and see what our ever-busy pals at Electric Perfume are up to! Snacks and coffee will be provided.

DETAILS

Electric Perfume
805 Danforth Ave (short walk from Pape Station)
Sunday April 28
1 – 2:30 PUBLIC
2:30 – 4 MEMBERS ONLY

*** RSVP FORM ***

We have a limited number of seats, so please RSVP using the above form to let us know you’re coming. As always, while the first half is open to the public and a great way to find out more about what we do and how to get involved, the second half of the event is only open to official members. You can become a member and receive voting rights and more for $5-7/month by registering here. You may also qualify for membership if you have done 10 or more hours of volunteer time with any videogame arts and culture-related event in the city in 2018 — not just for HES! If you qualify, e-mail volunteer@handeyesociety.com with details on your volunteer activities. For both current and new members, when you arrive, please check in to receive your shiny new 2019 membership card.

WHAT’S ON THE AGENDA?

  • Introduction of staff and the Board
  • Overview of past, present and future activities, dreams and schemes
  • Proposals and ideas for upcoming workshops, events, community-building strategies, etc.
  • Presentation of financial activities and voting-in of new policies (voting HES members only)
  • Agenda will be sent out 1 week before the AGM proper.

2018 was an incredibly busy and prolific time for us. Our main activities included the Experimental Game Design Workshop series, Comics X Games, Camp Make-A-Game, Game Curious with Art Starts at Chester Le, the Hand Eye Society Ball, WordPlay, Fund Futures with Ontario Creates, and numerous other one-offs, partnerships, and socials in-between! And 2019 promises to be even more exciting, seeing as it’s just our 🎉 10 Anniversary 🎉 and all! Come out and see what we’ve accomplished and where we’re headed after a decade of playful arts and culture programming, with the help of our incredibly generous Membership, sponsors, partners, and of course, the community where it all happens. We would have never made it this far without you. Together, let’s shape the next 10 years of creative game-making and playing in Toronto!

For questions and concerns, please contact us at info@handeyesociety.com

ABOUT THE VENUE

Electric Perfume is a Toronto production studio and exhibition space for live gaming environments and immersive atmospheres. We aim to provide the community with access to a roster of fun and unique spatial and sensory experiences in the realms of gaming, art, entertainment, and learning. In addition, we work with creators and affiliated organizations to explore technology, innovation, and connect local networks through events, product demos, educational workshops, and talks by forward-thinking people.

]]> Annual General Meeting 2018 — Earth Dog In the House https://test.handeyesociety.com/2018/02/11/annual-general-meeting-2018-earth-dog-house/ Mon, 12 Feb 2018 00:00:58 +0000 http://handeyesociety.com/?p=26876 Once again, the Hand Eye Society Annual General Meeting is upon us! Earth Dog sounds like an environmentally-conscious kid’s show from the 90’s, but it’s also the Chinese Zodiac sign for 2018 (though it’s not too late to steal that idea and pitch it to Netflix). Come on out to learn more about the organization and our plans for the year, register or renew your membership, meet cool people in the gaming arts, and check out another game-friendly tech space in Toronto! Snacks and coffee will be provided.

DETAILS

Electric Perfume
805 Danforth Ave (short walk from Pape Station)
Saturday March 3
1 – 2:30 PUBLIC
2:30 – 4 MEMBERS ONLY

*** RSVP FORM ***

We have a limited number of seats, so please RSVP using the above form to let us know you’re coming. As always, while the first half is open to the public and a great way to find out more about what we do and how to get involved, the second half of the event is only open to official members. You can become a member and receive voting rights and more for $5-7/month by registering here. You may also qualify for membership if you have done 10 or more hours of volunteer time with any videogame arts and culture-related event in the city in 2017 — not just for HES! If you qualify, e-mail volunteer@handeyesociety.com with details on your volunteer activities. For both current and new members, when you arrive, please check in to receive your shiny new 2018 membership card.

WHAT’S ON THE AGENDA?

  • Introduction of staff and the Board
  • Overview of past, present and future activities, dreams and schemes
  • Proposals and ideas for upcoming workshops, events, community-building strategies, etc.
  • Presentation of financial activities and voting-in of new policies (voting HES members only)
  • Agenda will be sent out 1 week before the AGM proper.

There were a lot of changes in 2017, some big, some small, some behind the scenes. We’ll be officially voting on the revised Conflict of Interest Policy we presented recently, which will be sent out to members along with the agenda. There’s been some great strides towards capacity-building and sustainability, with the generous support of our members, partners, and the overall community, as well as new challenges and problems to solve. We look forward to sharing our plans with you all, as well as hearing your ideas!

For questions and concerns, please contact us at info@handeyesociety.com

ABOUT THE VENUE

Electric Perfume is a Toronto production studio and exhibition space for live gaming environments and immersive atmospheres. We aim to provide the community with access to a roster of fun and unique spatial and sensory experiences in the realms of gaming, art, entertainment, and learning. In addition, we work with creators and affiliated organizations to explore technology, innovation, and connect local networks through events, product demos, educational workshops, and talks by forward-thinking people.

]]> Curious Cabinets Arcade Exhibit: Open Submissions! https://test.handeyesociety.com/2017/04/10/curious-cabinets-arcade-exhibit-open-submissions/ Mon, 10 Apr 2017 18:41:44 +0000 http://handeyesociety.com/?p=25315

We are excited to announce a new videogame arts exhibit organized by the Hand Eye Society, Electric Perfume and Spritebox Arcade with funding from the Toronto Arts Council!

We’re looking for SIX Toronto-based game artists (or people who work at the intersection of games, interactive digital media and other artistic disciplines) to showcase work for one of two unique arcade machines — the One-Button Torontron and the SpriteBox — as part of a 1-month public exhibit to be held at Electric Perfume in mid-July.

CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT A GAME OR PROPOSAL!

Read on for more information about the cabinets, the submission process, and our April 29 Info Session!

One-Button Torontron

The One-Button Torontron, like our other Torontrons, is a vintage arcade cabinet repurposed to play local contemporary indie and art games. It encourages a return to the concept of “public play” and approachability for a medium too often seen as insular and anti-social. Unlike most arcade cabinets however, the One-Button — true to its name — has only a single button, leading to more minimalist game designs that are accessible to people from diverse levels of gaming experience and physical ability. Any game that can take input from a mouse click, button or key press can be ported to this machine, so this could be a great fit for artists with basic programming knowledge or those who are interested in exploring accessible controls.

Currently the One-Button holds just one game: Silent Skies by Michael Todd (Electronic Super Joy), made for Kokoromi’s GAMMA IV. It was also showcased at our Arcadian Renaissance exhibit for Nuit Blanche 2010.

SpriteBox Arcade

The SpriteBox is a horizontal “cocktail” style arcade cabinet for two players seated across from each other, presenting an interesting opportunity for games that utilize face-to-face interactions. There are more options for controls than the One-Button, including a joystick, roller ball, and 3 buttons per player. The exhibit version will feature a physical modification that transforms it from a commercialized object into an interactive installation: Instead of dropping in quarters to activate a game, the cabinet has been outfitted with a modified receptacle that is large enough to deposit a small item (which serves the same technical function as a coin). In order to play one of the installed games, players can insert a note, confession, poem, or trinket; perhaps even written comments about the games themselves.

Every week, Electric Perfume and the Hand Eye Society will use social media (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram) to post photographs of the recovered items to be shared as part of an online extension of the gallery exhibit.

Here is a PDF with more detailed technical information for interested developers: SpriteBox Dev Info

The SpriteBox was featured at the Hand Eye Society Ball 2015, featuring Chesh by Damian Sommer (The Yawhg, Bravery Network).

CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT A GAME OR PROPOSAL!

The deadline for Open Submissions is MAY 10 2017.

We may accept some submissions on a rolling basis, and other artists may be curated specifically for the exhibit; however, all artists who apply will hear back within two weeks of the deadline. Curated artists may also be invited to give a brief presentation of their work at the public launch event, which will kick off the exhibit and help promote awareness of it and the artists. We can pay artist fees of $300 for the exhibit of each accepted game, to a maximum of six games.

Note that this exhibit is not intended to be a commission of new work; but in the event that you don’t already have a suitable game that can be readily adopted to either of the two cabinets, or if you are interested in developing something more custom-made, your commitment to have an exhibit-ready piece by July will be adequate as a submission. Think 1-3 months isn’t enough time to make a game? Consider perhaps using an event such as TOJam as a means to getting your proposal off the ground 😉 There are plenty of brilliant games that were made over a weekend, so if you’re starting from scratch, let the timeline be an inspiration rather than a limitation!

CURATION PROCESS

For this exhibit, we are looking to display games that are thematically and/or mechanically relevant to an “alternative” ethos: Small games that can be completed in a short amount of time which explore unconventional, experimental, or politically engaged subjects or aesthetics, and which use the specific interfaces of the cabinets to enhance the game’s theme. Although we welcome all sorts of submissions, we are particularly interested in work that deliberately explore artistic territory not usually found in mainstream games, and which have the following characteristics:

  • Short rounds: About 5-10 minutes.
  • Aesthetics: The game should be as interesting for spectators to watch as it is to play.
  • Polish: The game should be reasonably playable and include instructions for new players, as well as credits.
  • Non-violent (or at least has an unconventional take on conflict as a design concept).
  • Content should reflect the spirit of our Safer Spaces Policy.

We welcome and highly encourage work from self-identified women, BIPOC, LGBTTQQIAAP, and artists from other marginalized backgrounds, as well as emerging game-makers. Artists retain all rights to their work and may request the removal of their work from the cabinets at any time. Curated artist may ask to spend time with the machines in order to better develop for them, arranged by request and with the help of the cabinet officers; we will be on hand to work with the artists through installation and development.

CURATION TEAM: Sagan Yee (Executive Director of the Hand Eye Society), Nik Stewart (SpriteBox Arcade), Daniele Hopkins and Kyle Duffield (Electric Perfume)

APRIL INFO SESSION

In order to give interested artists as well as the general public an opportunity to check out the cabinets before the exhibit, we will be holding a FREE Info Session at Electric Perfume at the end of April where we will talk more about the hardware (featuring the creators/stewards of the cabinets themselves), how to develop for them, and more details about the exhibit itself. There will be some presentations to inspire people to think about the different player interactions each of the systems offers in terms of meaningful and effective game design, as well as look at interesting examples of existing 2-player and 1-button games such as endless runners and chess variations.

Electric Perfume (805 Danforth Ave, steps away from Pape Station)
Saturday April 29
1-3 PM
Facebook Event

Torontron Officer Ken Cho examines the One-Button Torontron.

Please send any questions to info@handeyesociety.com, and we look forward to hearing from you!

 

]]> Annual General Meeting 2017 — Kicking It Off Fire Rooster Style https://test.handeyesociety.com/2017/02/06/annual-general-meeting-2017-kicking-off-fire-rooster-style/ Mon, 06 Feb 2017 13:00:32 +0000 http://handeyesociety.com/?p=25094 It’s that time of the New Year: The Hand Eye Society Annual General Meeting is upon us! It’s not exactly a phoenix, but a Fire Rooster is just as good a metaphor for rising from the still-cooling ashes of 2016 and beginning the cycle anew. Come on out to learn more about the organization and our plans for 2017, register or renew your membership, meet cool people in the gaming arts, and check out yet another game-friendly tech space in Toronto! Snacks and coffee will be provided.

DETAILS

Electric Perfume
805 Danforth Ave (short walk from Pape Station)
Saturday March 11
1 – 2:30 PUBLIC
2:30 – 4 MEMBERS ONLY

*** RSVP FORM ***

We have a limited number of seats, so please RSVP using the above form to let us know you’re coming. As always, while the first half is open to the public and a great way to find out more about what we do and how to get involved, the second half of the event is only open to official members. You can become a member and receive voting rights and more for $7/month by registering here. You may also qualify for membership if you have done 10 or more hours of volunteer time with any videogame arts and culture-related event in the city in 2016 — not just for HES! If you qualify, e-mail our volunteer coordinator Kai Winter at volunteer@handeyesociety.com with details. For both current and new members, when you arrive, please check in to receive your shiny new 2017 membership card.

WHAT’S ON THE AGENDA?

  • Introduction of coordinators, staff, the venue
  • Overview of past, present and future activities, including perennial favourites and new kids on the block
  • Proposals and ideas for upcoming workshops, events, community-building strategies, etc.
  • Voting-in policies and board member nominees (HES members only)
  • Agenda will be sent out 2 weeks before the AGM proper.

We did a lot in 2016 and have continued to expand while constantly thinking of the best ways to serve the gaming arts community here in Toronto. Our members have done so much to support our efforts, and now is a great chance to contribute to the direction and vision of the organization. We look forward to hearing you questions, suggestions and concerns!

ABOUT THE VENUE

Electric Perfume is a Toronto production studio and exhibition space for live gaming environments and immersive atmospheres. We aim to provide the community with access to a roster of fun and unique spatial and sensory experiences in the realms of gaming, art, entertainment, and learning. In addition, we work with creators and affiliated organizations to explore technology, innovation, and connect local networks through events, product demos, educational workshops, and talks by forward-thinking people.

For questions and concerns, please contact us at info@handeyesociety.com

]]> Annual General Meeting 2016 (and a new Executive Director!) https://test.handeyesociety.com/2016/01/26/agm2016-new-executive-director/ Tue, 26 Jan 2016 17:57:44 +0000 http://handeyesociety.com/?p=23446 It’s that time of the New Year: The Hand Eye Society Annual General Meeting is upon us! We have a lot of exciting news as the organization welcomes a whole lot of new faces and continues to plan for the future with a fresh outlook. Come on out to learn more about our plans for 2016, register or renew your membership, meet cool people and check out a videogame-positive arts space in the East End!

ElectricPerfume

DETAILS

Electric Perfume, 805 Danforth Ave (near Pape Station)
Saturday February 13
1 PM

We have a limited number of seats, so please RSVP using this quick form to let us know you’re coming. As always, while the first half is open to the public and a great way to find out more about getting involved, the second half of the event is only open to official members. You can become a member and receive voting rights and more for $7/month by registering here. You may also qualify for membership if you have done 10 or more hours of volunteer time with any videogame arts and culture-related event in the city in 2015 — not just for HES! In both cases, when you arrive, please check in to receive your 2016 membership card.

WHAT’S ON THE AGENDA?

  • Announcing a new Executive Director: Sagan Yee! See her statement below.
  • Introduction of coordinators, staff, the venue
  • The future of Game Curious, WordPlay, To The Streets, the Torontrons, Comics vs Games, the Hand Eye Society Ball, YYZ Gameshow, and more
  • Proposals and ideas for upcoming workshops, jams, and events
  • Strategies for membership, volunteers, advocacy and artist support, public outreach, community-building
  • Voting in policies and board members (HES members only)


ABOUT THE VENUE

Electric Perfume is a Toronto production studio and exhibition space for live gaming environments and immersive atmospheres. We aim to provide the community with access to a roster of fun and unique spatial and sensory experiences in the realms of gaming, art, entertainment, and learning. In addition, we work with creators and affiliated organizations to explore technology, innovation, and connect local networks through events, product demos, educational workshops, and talks by forward-thinking people.

STATEMENT FROM SAGAN YEE

SaganHi everyone, I’m so happy to be able to introduce myself here! It has been a long, interesting, and strangely circular journey.  I first became involved with the Toronto videogame community in 2011, when I participated in a 6-week women-focused game-making incubator run by the Hand Eye Society called the Difference Engine Initiative. Prior to that, I had enjoyed videogames as a hobby and even dabbled with making my own, but had never considered them as an artistic practice or vocation.

Having made my first game through DEI, little did I know how I would be spending the next five years of my life: Co-coordinating subsequent programs including the Artsy Games Incubator: Animation Edition and Game Curious; speaking at various conferences and events across North America; and collaborating with incredible people on projects that have been showcased at events like Montreal’s Sight & Sound Festival and IndieCade in Los Angeles. I’ve made many new friends and games through other local organizations like Bento Miso and Dames Making Games, and gotten to know artists and facilitators from all over the world. Videogames changed my life, and I’m so grateful for the opportunity to continue learning, teaching, and growing alongside this medium and its community.

Jim Munroe, co-founder and former executive director of HES, will be moving into a Funding and Partnerships role. I’d like to thank him and the Board for their continued support in this time of transition, as well as the many many other people who have encouraged and mentored me over the years. I’m looking forward to whatever comes next, and see you at the AGM!

For questions and concerns, please contact us at info@handeyesociety.com

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