Hybrid Realities :Lab 1 (HRL1)

Lab → Output
9-week hybrid development and exhibition programme

Overview

Hybrid Realities :Lab 1 preceded the formal articulation of “surfaces” within Six Minutes. Structurally, it functioned as both a studio cycle and an experimental lab.

Over nine weeks, participating artists engaged in a structured programme combining orientation, technical exploration, critical dialogue and collaborative exhibition-building within Newart.city. The lab operated through weekly live sessions (4 hours per week), supplemented by asynchronous development and peer exchange.

The programme tested whether a distributed, digital-first studio could:

• Orient artists toward virtual exhibition architectures
• Develop voice and presence within online spatial environments
• Integrate research, critique and technical experimentation
• Conclude with a collectively constructed exhibition space

HRL1 served as a prototype for later Lab and Studio models.

Structure

Part 1 - Orienting Practice in Digital Space

• Candidate onboarding and tool introduction
• Guest lecture: Soot - “The Computer is Evolving”
• Interactive workshops and critique sessions

Focus: establishing digital literacy, shared vocabulary and critical framing.

Part 2 - Developing Voice for a Virtual Audience

• In-depth exploration of Newart.city
• Guest lecture: Clot - Experimental art forms and media theory
• Skill-based workshops and crit sessions

Focus: translating practice into spatial and virtual presentation.

Part 3 - Building a Virtual Exhibition Space

• Collaborative exhibition development
• Guest artist lecture
• Final exhibition launch within Newart.city
• Alumni space introduction for continued exchange

Focus: collective production, spatial construction and public release.

Timeline

February - April 2024
9 weeks
36 live contact hours

Context

HRL1 documented an early attempt to formalise a hybrid, digitally mediated studio environment. It combined elements of residency, research lab and collaborative exhibition production.

As an Output, it records a structured experiment in virtual-first artist development prior to the refinement of Six Minutes’ three-surface system.