Biography
Marc Downie is a Scottish-born digital artist. His pioneering approach to digital art combines three signature elements: non-photorealistic computational imagery; the incorporation of body movement by motion-capture and other means; and the autonomy of artworks directed by artificial intelligence. Over the last decade his studio, OpenEndedGroup, has worked in the broadest variety of contexts: making art for façade, gallery, dance, cinema and VR. Always in collaboration and always crossing disciplinary boundaries, his work enters and exit fields without permission from, and without deference to, established disciplinary structures. His collaborative works respond to an ever-expanding range of materials — drawing, film, motion capture, photography, music, and architecture. In the field of dance, Downie has worked closely with Merce Cunningham, Bill T. Jones, Trisha Brown and Wayne McGregor. His public artworks include outdoor projections and performances in spaces ranging from York Minster Cathedral to Barclays Center Brooklyn. OpenEndedGroup has presented work at Lincoln Center, MoMA, Hayward Gallery, ICA Boston, Sadler’s Wells, Festival d’Automne, Detroit Institute of Art, SITE Santa Fe, the film festivals of Sundance, New York, Rome, Berlin and many others. Downie has had residencies in museums, schools and research institutions including the Gardner Museum, the University of Chicago, IRCAM, Stanford, ZKM, Le Fresnoy, the University of Michigan and EMPAC.
Teaching
Autumn Quarter 2023
CMST 67021: Performance Captured
Winter Quarter 2024
CMST 27920: Virtual Reality Production
Spring Quarter 2024
CMST 28010: Sound / Image Mapping
CMST 67820: The Image in the Age of Artificial Intelligence
Previously taught courses include: Data Driven Documentary (CMST 48210), Virtual Reality Production (CMST 27920 / 37920), Line, Trace, Motion: Computation and Experiment in Animation (CMST 25610/35610), Data Driven Dystopias (CMST 67922), Experimental Captures (CMST 27011/37011), Machine, Museum, Medium: The Collections of Paris through the Eyes of the Computer (Paris; CMST 17900) , Framing, Reframing, Unframing Cinema (CMST 67035), New Media at a Distance (CMST 27020/37020)