MÉLANIE COURTINAT (Fr, 1993)
Residency period: August 2021
During my one-month residency at La Becque, I had the opportunity to push through my investigations and research about the future of grief. Working with a speculative design approach to the subject, I took the time to analyse the indicators of the present, notably the ecological awakening and the evolution of emerging technologies. I also studied many funeral rites around the world in depth. I was thus able to fuel my ongoing project which consists of a new post mortem ritual, using virtual reality. I intend to showcase it soon by taking over the swing in the garden at La Becque, facing the lake.
I also took time to think through and write the talk I will give in a few days for the digital symposium “Visual Contagions” organised by the University of Geneva. With this in mind I produced an example video illustrating the concept of being “out of bounds” in video games, using the terrain generator Flowscape and a song by Lausanne-based artist Yatoni. — Mélanie Courtinat
Artist and interactive designer Mélanie Courtinat creates virtual spaces and speculative environments using mediums such as virtual and augmented reality, video games or 3D. By questioning the technical and narrative particularities of the technologies she uses, she actively participates in the mediation and perpetuation of these mediums in the art world.