Press Release

Calling All Girl Geeks! 
Techy Tea Pots at the Chi-TEK Tea Party
V&A Sackler Centre for Arts Education
London Design Festival 2011 / V&A Digital Design Weekend 
Saturday 24 & Sunday 25 September 2011

Chi-TEK, a tea inspired showcase celebrating the work of internationally acclaimed women artists who utilise computers, electronics and technology in their work, will be launched at the V&A Sackler Centre for Arts Education as part of the London Design Festival during V&A Digital Design Weekend, Saturday 24 & Sunday 25 September 2011.

20 women artists and designers have been invited to hack a teapot to showcase their unique use of technology in the arts.  This is the first time so many contemporary women artists working with technology have been brought together under one roof.  Chi-TEK, based on the acronym for Computer Human Interaction – aims to raise the profile of women artists, an under-represented group in this pioneering field.  World-renowned artists Shu Lea Cheang and Tine Bech are among the participants, who include; interaction designers, sound artists, industrial designers, bio artists, architects, and performance artists, as well as women who work with wearable technologies and sustainability. The Chi-TEK showcase will be available to view at V&A Sackler Centre for Arts Education from September (10:00 -17:45).

A two day Chi-TEK Tea Party will be held during the V&A Digital Design Weekend, Saturday 24 & Sunday 25 September 2011. Contributing artists will present their teapots and talk about their specialist techniques during a series of scheduled presentations over tea and cake. Drop-in tinkering demos will run throughout the weekend and the teapots will then be showcased until the end of November. The Chi-TEK showcase and V&A Digital Design Weekend are part of London Design Festival, 17—25 September 2011 and also coincides with the Crafts Council’s Power of Making exhibition, also at the V&A.

Chi-TEK has been organised by MzTEK, the not-for-profit women’s arts collective that provides women artists with technical skills in the fields of new media and computer arts.  Based in London and supported by Hackney arts institution SPACE, they host a range of workshops, talks and self-initiated tinker sessions across London with plans to spread across the UK in 2012.  As part of Chi-TEK, MzTEK will also host a series of crockery-themed workshops including Shiver me Tea Cups workshops where women can learn how to make their favourite tea cups wobble and shiver when their tea is getting cold.

For press information, images and interviews with participating artists please contact:

MzTEK
Jane McGrath at jane.mcgrath@mztek.org or 07960994753
Siobhan Groark at siobhan.groark@mztek.org or 07835496255

http://mztek.org

Visitor information is available from the V&A website www.vam.ac.uk

Editors Notes:
Supported by the National Lottery for Arts Council England