Graham Wakefield
Graham Wakefield is currently exploring the creation of music and art through the computational embodiment of creative becoming. This work expands upon his musical practice to re-asses computational composition from its natural grain towards the generation of open-ended environments for exploratory discovery, engaging with enduring questions of creativity, emergence and experience. It is informed by process philosophies emphasizing continuation over closure and integrates bio-inspired computation and run-time code generation. He is a Ph.D. candidate of Media Arts and Technology at the University of California Santa Barbara USA and graduated with a Master in Composition from Goldsmiths College, University of London UK and a BA in Philosophy from the University of Warwick UK. He is currently employed as a researcher for the AlloSphere (a multi-user spherical immersive instrument in the California Nano-Systems Institute) producing interactive environments for art-science research and co-developing an open-source multimedia framework (LuaAV). He is a software developer for Cycling '74 (Max/MSP) and lecturer at the Southern California Institute for Architecture (SCI-Arc). His works and publications have been performed, exhibited and presented at international events including SIGGRAPH, ICMC and ISEA.
Education
University of California, Santa Barbara
Ph.D. (ABD candidate) in Media Arts & Technology: Composing Artificial Natures.
M.S. Media Arts & Technology (2007): Thesis/project: A Platform for Computer Music Composition, Interleaving Sample-Accurate Synthesis and Control.
Awards: National Science Foundation IGERT Fellowship (Interactive Digital Media, 2007-2009), Interdisciplinary Humanities Center (Visual, Performing, Media Arts award, 2008), Sherrill C. Corwin-Metropolitan Theatres Award for Excellence in an Electro-Acoustic Work (Green Tara, 2005).
Advisors: Curtis Roads, Marcos Novak, JoAnn Kuchera-Morin, Steven Travis Pope.
California CA 93110, USA.
Goldsmiths College, University of London
M.Mus. Music Composition, with Distinction (2004), Goldsmiths Music / Electronic Music Studios. Composition portfolio: Green Tara, Camino Outset, Audio-Visual Canvasses.
Advisors: Katharine Norman, Nye Parry, Michael Young, John Drever.
London SE14 6NW, UK.
University of Warwick
B.A. (Hons) Philosophy (with additional study in AI, Psychology, Mathematics and Film Studies). Dissertation: Consciousness as an Emergent Phenomenon.
Coventry CV4 7AL, UK
Publications
Smith, W. and Wakefield, G. Augmenting Computer Music with Just-In-Time Compilation. Proceedings of the International Computer Music Conference 2009, International Computer Music Association, 2009.
Wakefield, G. and Ji, H. Artificial Nature: Immersive World Making. Applications of Evolutionary Computing (Proceedings of the Evolutionary Music and Art Workshop, Tubingen, 2009), LNCS5484. Springer, 2009.
John Thompson, J., Kuchera-Morin, J., Novak, M., Overholt, D., Putnam, L., Wakefield, G., Smith, W. The Allobrain: An Interactive, Stereographic, 3D Audio Immersive Virtual World. International Journal of Human Computer Studies (to appear 2009).
Smith, W. and Wakefield, G. Computational Composition and Creativity. Proceedings of the Media Arts Science and Technology Conference, Santa Barbara, 2009.
Ji, H. and Wakefield, G. Artificial Nature. Proceedings of the Media Arts Science and Technology Conference, Santa Barbara, 2009.
Ji, H. and Wakefield, G. Artificial Nature as an Infinite Game. Proceedings of the 2008 International Symposium of Electronic Arts, Singapore, 2008.
Wakefield, G., Kuchera-Morin, J., Novak, M., Overholt, D., Putnam, L., Thompson, J., Smith, W.: The AlloBrain: an Interactive Stereographic, 3D Audio Immersive Environment. Proceedings of the 2008 ACM Sonic Interaction Design Computer Human Interaction Conference, Florence, 2008.
Ji, H. and Wakefield, G. Artificial Nature as an Infinite Game. In Proceedings of ASIAGRAPH 2008, Shanghai, China 2008.
Smith, W., Wakefield, G.: Computational Audiovisual Composition using Lua. Transdisciplinary Digital Art: Sound, Vision and the New Screen, Communications in Computer and Communication Science, Springer, 2008.
Amatriain, X., Castellanos, J., Höllerer, T., Kuchera-Morin, J., Pope, S., Wakefield, G. and Wolcott, W.: Experiencing Audio and Music in a Fully Immersive Environment. Sense of Sounds, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Springer-Verlag, 2008.
Wakefield, G., Smith, W.: Using Lua for Multimedia Composition. Proceedings of the International Computer Music Conference 2007, International Computer Music Association, 2007.
Wakefield, G.: Real-Time Third-Order Ambisonic Extensions for Max/MSP with Musical Applications. Proceedings of the International Computer Music Conference 2006, International Computer Music Association, 2006.
Exhibited Works
Makeshift. Computational composition / generative installation. Exhibited at SoongSil Information Science Gallery as part of the Machine Dreams exhibition, Seoul, Korea (2009).
Artificial Nature (with Haru Ji). International Electronic Art Exhibition ‘thisAbility vs. Disability,’ Total Museum of Contemporary Art, Seoul, Korea (2008). Artists presentation at ISEA (International Symposium on Electronic Art), Singapore (2008). Universal Exhibition of Arts, Seongnam Art Center, Seongnam, Korea (2008). Allosphere, California NanoSystems Institute, USA (2009). International Art Exhibition A.L.I.C.E. (Art Center Nabi), Seoul Olympic Museum of Art, Korea (2009). SIGGRAPH ASIA Art Gallery, Yokohama, Japan (2009).
t0 Coincident. Computational composition: generative virtual world based upon strange loop feedback. Exhibited in the College of Creative Studies gallery for the Primavera festival (2005). Also formed part of the BitSignalFabric multiverse, an installation of multiple interacting environments as part of the University of California Institute for Research in the Arts (UCIRA) State of the Arts conference, UCSB (2006). Performed at Art Space Gallery Loop, Seoul, Korea as part of SUB/SCAPE event (2009).
AlloBrain (for Marcos Novak). Sterescopic 3D/Ambisonic immersive environment based upon brain imaging and algorithmic behaviors. Installation at AlloSphere, California Nano-Systems Institute, UCSB (2006-2010), TU Delft ProtoSpace (2006).
Synecdoche (with Wesley Smith). Audiovisual performance blending sonic architecture and spatial music. Performance at UCSB Music (2006), UC Digital Art Network (UCDarNet) conference, UC Riverside (2007).
Green Tara (voice by Nicolas Oyarzun). Electro-acoustic composition elaborating a Buddhist mantra through resonance, repetition and sympathetic metaphor. Performed in Traces concert, UCSB (2006).
Takeaway. Electro-acoustic composition with vizualization, on the theme of reduction. Performances: Wave*Pulse concert, CREATE, UCSB (2005), Cal Exchange, CalIT2, UCSD (2006), Stanford (2006).
SeoNang (with Eunsu Kang, Wesley Smith, Rama Holtzein). Sound and interaction design for telematic installation between Seattle, USA and Seoul, Korea (2005).
Camino Outset. Electro-acoustic composition creating a conceptual and material hybrid from Steve Reich’s Come Out and Jean-Claude Risset’s Mutations I. Diffusions: Autumn Concert, Goldsmiths College (2004), CREATE, UCSB (2006).
Cafiaspirina. Mobile electroacoustic composition engaging with regions between complexity and indeterminacy. Performances: Spring Concert, Goldsmiths College (2003), Newborn Creations, CREATE, UCSB (2005).
Gomez: additional production and one remix in this major UK rock group’s discography (2000-2002).
Something Somewhere. Online e-card art based upon alien movements in foreign landscapes (1999).
Hombres in Circulo en el Hechizo del Tiempo. In-situ photography and video assistance for contemporary dance project, Patagonia, Chile (1998).
Independent Arts. Fundraising events and broadcast documentary for the disabled in the Isle of Wight, UK, using the SoundBeam equipment to convert minor muscle movement into expressive sound (1998).
El Fetiche. Foley and music for a 16mm short film by Martin Westcott, premiered at Alameda Art Center, Santiago, Chile (1997).
Synergy. A series of award-winning multimedia events at the University of Warwick, including live performances, film projections, radio shows, surrealist activities and renowned DJs (1995-1997).
Employment
Developer, Cycling ‘74, San Francisco, CA, USA 2008-present
Research & software development for the Max/MSP/Jitter software.
Faculty Lecturer, Southern California Institute for Architecture (SCI-Arc), Los Angeles, CA, USA, 2009-present. A practice-based course in computational composition and the fundamentals of spatial interactive computing, using Max/MSP/Jitter.
Graduate Researcher, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA 2008-present
Development of distributed audio-visual software and generative, immersive multimedia content for the CNSI Allosphere.
Contractor, WorldViz, Santa Barbara, CA, USA 2007 & 2009
Development of a 3D audio solution using higher order Ambisonics with distance simulation to enhance an in-house existing virtual reality system.
Teaching Associate, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA 2006-2008
Organizing and delivering three Art Music Video courses, enabling music composition students to produce animated, cinematic and processed moving images for their recorded works, with grounding in film, media and art theory.
Research Associate, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA 2005-2006
Design & development of animated web-based instructional tools for the NSF-funded ITEMS project (Education).
Interactive Media Manager, Stafford Long & Partners advertising agency, London UK 1999-2004
Leading the new media development team, project management and client facing roles, and launch of a new business brand. Programming, design & animation with Flash, ActionScript, Director, JavaScript, HTML, DHMTL, CSS, XML, XSLT, ASP, C#, .Net, SQL Server and Windows server administration.
Self-employment - new media design, development & training, London UK 1998-2005
For corporate, service & entertainment clients. Highlight: Produced immersive and playful website for major UK rock group Gomez (2004), and an animated music video for a subsequent single.