Media lab

For other uses, see Media lab (disambiguation).

Media lab (often referred to as new media lab, media art lab or media research lab) is a term used for interdisciplinary organizations, collectives or spaces with the main focus on new media, digital culture and technology.

Discussion of the definition

The definition of media lab is widely discussed and is open for debate. The term can describe a space, a cultural organization as well as a community or a way of working in which collaboration and experimentation plays a crucial role. Media labs usually:

• gather participants of multiple disciplines and of diverse professional backgrounds
• stimulate open knowledge exchange and sharing
• draw inspiration from, and try to work in the spirit of free culture
• often use open source softwares
• offer the possibility of non-formal learning practices

History

The name "media lab" was coined in 1985 with the creation of the MIT Media Lab by Nicholas Negroponte grew out of the Architecture Machine Group - a research group dedicated to studying man-machine interfaces - within MIT's School of Architecture and Planning.

Activities

In media labs diverse activities take place: artistic research and development, creative production, knowledge sharing and exchange, education program, workshops, tinkering, experimentation, cultural mediation.

Classification of media labs

Organization forms

Media labs can be most easily categorized by the way they are organized which often relates to the way they are funded:

• University labs
• Public funded
• Private funding
• Grassroot initiatives

Typology

Media lab

• Fab lab
• Hackerspace
• Pop-up lab (temporary space or project space)
• Art initiative with media art focus

Social-political impact

Motivation

A lot of people are motivated to use technological tools for social and political goals.

Social effect

Media labs play a role in society to understand the new ways of education, culture, communication and even political participation.

Working in a media lab context can be considered as informal ways of learning.

Related terms

working attitudes: artistic research - creative technologies - DIWO - DIY - DIY culture - experimentation - interdisciplinary

fields of activities: digital art - digital culture - human–computer interaction - interaction - internet - media art - new media art

tools, concepts: Creative Commons - F/LOSS - FLOSS Manuals - free culture - open content - open hardware - open source - public domain

See also

• Fab lab
• Bricolabs
• Hackerspace

References

• mcd musiques & cultures digitales #62, March–April-May 2011, ISBN 9782952987219 ISSN: 1638-3400
• Laboratories of the inbetween [1], in: Future of the lab, BALTAN Laboratories, 2010, ISBN/EAN: 978-90-815830-1-5, p. 49-55.

External links

• A discussion on the notion of media lab [2]
• LABtoLAB, a network of European media labs
• "Media lab role in digital culture: new collaborative creation interdisciplinary spaces in the ASTS systems (Art, Science, Technology and Society)" Reference code: [HAR2009-14667/ARTE]. (2010–2012, to be published online in August 2011)
• Media labs at the Monoskop wiki