AI:STHETICS

The uncanny unites the known with the unknown, the familiar with the unfamiliar, and thereby unfolds a dual effect of unease and fascination. The audiovisual installation AI:STHETICS stages this complex of feelings and draws the viewer into a world of uncanny-fascinating aesthetics. Resulting from the designers' own confrontation with the uncanny, distorted visual worlds emerge that stand as a visual metaphor for the omnipresent, uncanny connection between man and technology.

Art Direction & Design
Karen Kircher, Fabian Heller

Audio
Kenji Araki

Awards
Art Directors Club (ADC), Hamburg
1x Gold in Experiment
1x Gold in Exhibition
1x Silver in Motion Design
1x Distinction in Recent Technology
Featured in ADC Virtual Gallery

CCA Creativ Club Austria, Vienna
1x Bronze in Student of the Year

The One Club for Creativity, New York
1x Merit in Capstone Project
1x Merit in Experiental Design

JUNK(IES)

Our desire for new things is growing and growing – and so are the waste piles. JUNK(IES) shows the effects of our behavior in a 1000 pages thick and 2.7 kg heavy book. The topic is presented aesthetically in form of a photo report. A combination of color, image and typography provides an appealing appearance to allow easy access to the mass of the subject matter. The dimensions and weight of the book are intended to make the issue tangible in a haptic way. The goal of the book is to make the importance of the topic and its impact on people and environment accessible and furthermore to encourage each individual to rethink their own behavior.

Design
Karen Kircher

Awards
Art Directors Club (ADC), Hamburg
1x Bronze in Print Products
1x Bronze in Photography
1x Distinction in Graphic Design

CCA Creativ Club Austria, Vienna
1x Bronze in Student of the Year

European Design Award, Tallinn
1x BRONZE in Student Project

connected patterns

To this day, the refugal situation on the Mediterranean Sea is critical and dangerous. That’s why the social project “Navire Avenir” is building a ship to rescue refugees. As part of a Welcome Kit on the ship, “connected patterns” empowers self-expression and autonomy of refugees in a creative and collective way. From individual, colorful pattern stickers, the refugees jointly create an artwork that represents individuality and community at the same time. To reinforce this image of a future nation, sections of the artwork are used as flags of the ship, sending a powerful message: We are one.

Design
Karen Kircher, Fabian Heller

Awards
The One Club for Creativity, New York
1x Gold in Design for Good / Experiential Design

KNOB

KNOB is a design tool that combines design and technology through Generative Design. It lets you create layouts for Social Media intuitively with a MIDI controller, both in a controlled, manual manner as well as in an unpredictable, varied fashion at the push of a button. Corporate identity criteria such as color, font or logo are fixed parameters that provide a framework for a design result tailored to the brand. The created designs can be exported in any aspect ratio as image, movie or gif. The overall idea was to use the generative approach in conjunction with a haptic interface to produce designs quickly, easily and with many variations. The core of KNOB is the mix of autonomous design and inspiration through automation.

Design
Karen Kircher, Fabian Heller

Awards
Art Directors Club (ADC), Hamburg
1x Gold in Interface Design
1x Silver in Concept Hardware / Software Systems
1x Bronze in Innovative Technology
ADC (Jury) Choices
Featured in ADC Virtual Gallery

The One Club for Creativity, New York
1x Merit in Interactive / Innovation

CCA Creativ Club Austria, Vienna
1x Bronze in Student of the Year

salz21

For the business and innovation event salz21 in Salzburg, a progressive Motion Design combined with quadraphonic audio was conceptualized and created.  The term ‘future’ was at the core of the audiovisual exploration. For us, future is the connection between the old and the new, the known and the unknown, the transformation from analog to digital.

Design
Karen Kircher, Fabian Heller, Lukas Pattermann, Johanna Wicht

Audio
Ulrich Gahleitner, Bernd Siebenhofer

Awards
Art Directors Club (ADC), Hamburg
1x Bronze in Motion Design
1x Distinction in Concept Brand Identity

Break Boundaries

Break Boundaries is meant to be a symbol for creative motivation, rethinking and new perspectives - especially in view of the current challenges. An abandoned supermarket serves as the installation location and symbolizes the currently omnipresent dystopian atmosphere. The pink tape transforms the overall depressing feeling into a progressive and positive mood. From one point of view in the room, one can see an illusionary border undistorted, and on the other side the writing „Break Boundaries“. Through confrontation, i.e. walking towards it, these illusions are dissolved and the mental construct of „boundaries“ is broken.

Design
Karen Kircher, Fabian Heller

BBOYS

BBOYS – a photo documentary about the members of the Incredible Syndicate Crew from Ulm, who live the Hip-Hop culture and realize themselves in BBoying.

Design, Photography & Video
Karen Kircher