On Tuesday and Wednesday, December 10 and 11, 2024, a workshop on extended reality (XR) technology and biotechnology took place at the Academy of Applied Arts in Rijeka. The event was organized in collaboration with the Academy, KONTEJNER, and the UR Institute, based in Zagreb and Dubrovnik.

Participants had the opportunity to explore the highly experimental world of biodesign and the potential of XR technology in creative and artistic domains over the course of two days. They also experimented with various biotechnological and biohacking methods. The workshop was led by Mihael Giba, a multimedia artist and professor at the Academy of Applied Arts, and Gjino Šutić, an artist, biotechnologist, and the founder and director of UR Institute, which focuses on independent interdisciplinary applied scientific research, project production, and advocating for STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics) in sustainable development. In addition to Giba and Šutić, support for 3D modeling was provided by Zoltan Djeke, a lecturer at the Academy of Applied Arts.

Students were introduced to the fundamentals of biodesign and experimented with digital microscopes to study the structures and textures of various organic and inorganic materials, some of which they collected themselves during a short field trip. They later artistically interpreted their findings and, with the guidance of experienced mentors, transferred them into the realm of virtual reality, creating a collaborative virtual environment inspired by biotechnological experiments and research.

The workshop was part of the European project Realities in Transition.