“Beginning with TouchDesigner” with Harshini J. Karunaratne – Artist Talk and Workshops Hosted by Innovative Media Studios

Innovative Media Studios recently hosted a talk and workshop, titled, “Beginning with TouchDesigner” by Sri Lankan-Peruvian digital artist Harshini J. Karunaratne.

TouchDesigner is a real-time visual programming platform for creating interactive multimedia projects. Artists, designers, and developers use it for interactive installations, live performances and generative art, thanks to its versatility and real-time capabilities.

Karunaratne currently works at the intersections of film, theater and technology, and develops projects that explore themes of eco-grief, the body and afterlife. Her explorations are centered on the visual, combining a background in photography and using Resolume and TouchDesigner primarily to create interactive and real-time performances.

During the workshop, participants were introduced to TouchDesigner and learned how to create an interactive projection. They were also instructed on how to create basic shapes and manipulate imagery visually.

Karunaratne is a Sri Lankan-Peruvian digital artist working at the intersections of film, theater and technology. Rooted in a practice of artistic research and performance, she develops projects that explore themes of eco-grief, gender, the body, and the afterlife. Karunaratne’s explorations are centered on the visual, combining a background in photography with VJing, utilizing Resolume and TouchDesigner primarily to create interactive and real-time performances.

Karunaratne has had her work shown in the UAE, Italy, Germany, Japan, Peru, Greece, at the FILE Festival in Sao Paulo, Burning Man in Black Rock City, Nevada and at Art Dubai. Based in Berlin, Karunaratne works with TimeLab, a transmedia studio for artistic research. 

She is also a lecturer at the University in Europe for Applied Sciences and at SRH Berlin University of Applied Sciences, specializing in media theory and performance studies. Harshini is also the organizer and lead curator for MANIFEST:IO, a symposium for new media and electronic art that launched in Berlin in February 2023.