OPI(u)M

OPIM is the name of a Bachelor course offered at Hedmark University College in Hamar, Norway. It stands for “opplevelsesproduksjon og interaktive medier”, which, in English roughly translates to “entertainment production and interactive media”.

This blog is a collection place for the concept art courses I teach, though I tend to call the study OPIUM – it gets pretty weird sometimes. My background is as a choreographer (in a very broad sense – working with Live art, physical computing, etc) – and, departing from Duchamp’s Fountain (1917) my understanding of “conceptual art” is somewhat different from the students’. At least that is how things appear with each new group I meet. In fact, if you look up “conceptual art” in wikipedia, you’ll find the comment “not to be confused with concept art”, and vice-versa. I do not agree. While those three letters (ual) tagged on to the end of “concept” can cause maelstroms of chaos and confusion, they can also open up pockets of new insights and discoveries.

I took the photo above in 2006 at the entrance to the Museum of Jurassic Technology in Culver City, Los Angeles. A fantastic place (it blew my mind open) and a great motto! I’ve adhered to it ever since. More used to working in institutions of art (theatre, dance, visual arts, etc), I started teaching at OPIM in the autumn 2007. It is a challenge. It can be a battlefield. A collision of seemingly disparate worlds. But never the less, it is a stamping ground for serious play.

A concept is an idea, and concept art is about finding the best way to express that idea and to communicate it to others. Whether it is your idea or an assignment you have been given, the best place to start is with yourself; your curiosity, knowledge and imagination – and then expand them.

NB: My teaching period at OPIM is now over, so this blog is resting.