| Simon Penny | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1955 Melbourne, Australia |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Institutions | University of Florida University of California, Irvine |
Simon Graeme Penny (born 19 October 1955) is an Australian artist, theorist, curator and teacher in the field of Interactive Media Art.[1]
Contents |
Penny was born in Melbourne, Australia in 1955. He attended Newington College (1968-1973) [2] before receiving an undergraduate diploma in Fine Art from the South Australian School of Art in 1979. He then went on to get his graduate degree form the Sydney College of the Arts in 1982 after which he began focusing on electronic and time-based media.[3]
Penny has held positions as Lehrauftrag at City Art Institute, Sydney from 1984 to 1988, Professor at the University of Florida in 1989 and Professor at Carnegie Mellon University from 1993 to 2001. In addition to creating numerous artistic installations, he edited the anthology Critical Issues in Electronic Media (1995).
Since the 1980’s Penny has been creating electronically sophisticated robotic installations, curating shows such as Machine Culture at Siggraph ’93, and writing about Digital Culture and Electronic Media Art. One of his most recent projects is a collaboration with Bill Vorn entitled “Bedlam,” which is described on the UCIrvine website as a “telerobotic/telematic interactive installation with machine vision, spatialised interactive sound and custom pneumatic robotics.” In 2001 he was awarded a grant from the Langlois Foundation (with Bill Vorn). Penny is currently working on an immersive interactive installation entitled “Body Electric” in collaboration with Dr. Malcolm McIver, Center for Neuromorphic Systems Engineering, Caltech and Art Center College of Design.[4]
Penny is currently a Professor in the departments of Studio Art and Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of California, Irvine, where he founded the Arts, Computation and Engineering (ACE) graduate program.