Spatial Interaction and Hybrid Spaces

Abstract

The notion of spaces constantly is growing with the advancement of technology. The spatial interactions using digital media provide new possibilities to bridge between physical and digital spaces. Location is not all about longitude and latitude, but all the added digital layers may change the idea of positioning. Over the last decades, studying space faced many conceptual perceptions. The approach of having/imagining the different worlds and spaces, such as cyberspace and physical space, has been mostly formed by distinguishing them. Adriana de Souza e Silva (2006) drew a chronology for these imaginary spaces from cyberspace to virtual and hybrid space. Hybridizing of space with the advancement of nomadic technology like mobiles become more popular and indicates how the interfaces are transparent in our everyday life. So, hybridity occurs when the interconnection of the spaces is reachable for the people who can interact with, through the devices, wearables, headsets, etc. In this respect, the physical space needed to be filled with data, as Manovich (2006, p.226) defined this as augmentation of the space through “overlay[ing] physical space with layers of data.” The question of reality may not be valid anymore since both are affecting each other. And, it is time to think about the interlinked worlds and their effects rather than separating and labelling them as real and unreal. Technology can play a crucial role in changing our interaction with space. The paper will investigate the concept of hybrid spaces in relation to the production of dis-locative space. The dislocation environment reveals the interconnected spaces and their realities through new ways of interactions and narratives. The realities are created under the influence of each other. The paper will use the art project Shadows from Another Place as a case study. It will explore the idea of dis-location through spatial interaction and digital technology. The paper will profit from the theories including Production of Space by Henry Lefebvre, Supermodernity and Non-places by Marc Augé, and Relational Spaces by Scott McQuire. Paula Levine is a scholar and media artist who experiments with maps, geolocation data, and the dynamic of spaces. Shadows from Another Place is a web-based project using transposed maps, including three artworks San Francisco <-> Baghdad, The Wall, and TheWall-TheWorld. In this series, she tries to challenge the reality of geographical distances by hybridization of the spaces. Shadows from Another Place is a series of artwork that examines the discussion around dis-locative space, and spatial interaction using digital technology. The paper investigates three questions of locations and dislocation, real and unreal, and intervening in the physical space by the virtual world and vice versa. Question of Location ‘where am I’? What is un/real? How virtual world affects the physical world and vice versa?