Rotterdam

Montréal/Rotterdam based media designer, artist and researcher

I often work around forms of (mediated) collective storytelling. I tell the stories through a different interface, revealing or questioning structures and assumptions inherent to the underpinning systems. Central to my practice is working with FLOSS and hardware hacking as a means to re-purpose objects and to endow them with functionalities that challenge perception.

Since 1996 I have collaborated with Riek Sijbring and Femke Snelting under the name, De Geuzen: a foundation for multi-visual research. Our work has employed a variety of strategies to explore female identity, critical resistance, representation and narrative archiving.

Throughout my practice with De Geuzen, writing has been as important as the visual. Whether blurbs for announcers, slogans for stickers or critical essays and interviews for thematic projects, writing has not only been a vehicle of expression, but also a means of speculation. As our work migrated to online environments, I became fascinated by the potential of digital writing and the multiple expressions it takes in a variety of media.

Donna Metzlar (1969) has a varied background. The one aspect which remains constant is her commitment to social change. Over the past 7 years she has actively been involved in the Genderchangers, a group of women enamoured with technology, especially free software, open source hardware and the universal interoperability of systems. She takes a lead role in the annual event the Eclectic Tech Carnival (/ETC) and the Systerserver. This server is run by women only, hosts feminist websites and offers women interested in gaining system administration skills a work experience space. Together with Melanie Rieback she initiated the Girl Geek Dinner social network in Amsterdam and is board member of the WAITS Foundation.