Ayah Bdeir
Encyclopedia
Ayah Bdeir is an interactive artist and engineer. With an upbringing between Lebanon
and Canada
, Bdeir uses experimental media and technology to look at deliberate and subconscious representations of Arab identity. She is the creator of littleBits, an open source kit of pre-assembled circuits made easy by tiny magnets
She received her masters degree from the MIT Media Lab
and undergraduate degrees in Computer Engineering and Sociology from the American University of Beirut
. In 2008, she was awarded a fellowship at Eyebeam Art + Technology Center in New York City and remains an honorary fellow. In 2010, she was awarded a fellowship with Creative Commons
for her work including spearheading the first Open Hardware Definition that was adopted by CERN
for their Open Hardware License and co-chairing the inaugural Open Hardware Summit. She has taught graduate classes at NYU's Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP) and Parsons The New School for Design
.
In 2010, she served as a design mentor on the reality TV show, Stars of Science. In January 2011, in its second season, Stars of Science, initiated by Qatar Foundation
, is the first Pan-Arab reality-TV program dedicated to innovation, aiming to shine a spotlight on the next generation of young Arab innovators.
In 2011, Ayah Bdeir received the highly prestigious TED Fellowship which includes an invitation to give a talk at the TED
event in Long Beach in 2012.
library of discrete electronic components pre-assembled in tiny circuit boards. littleBits makes prototyping with sophisticated electronics a matter of snapping small magnets together. All logic and circuitry is pre-engineered, so users can play with electronics without knowing electronics. littleBits aims to move electronics from the latter to the earlier part of design process, and from the hands of experts to those of makers and designers. In April 2009, littleBits was exhibited at MakerFaire Bay Area and received wide acclaim from the audience, in addition to winning an Editor's Pick Blue Ribbon Award in 2009 and 2011. In 2011, littleBits was acquired by the Museum of Modern Art
for the permanent collection.
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Bdeir uses experimental media and technology to look at deliberate and subconscious representations of Arab identity. She is the creator of littleBits, an open source kit of pre-assembled circuits made easy by tiny magnets
She received her masters degree from the MIT Media Lab
MIT Media Lab
The MIT Media Lab is a laboratory of MIT School of Architecture and Planning. Devoted to research projects at the convergence of design, multimedia and technology, the Media Lab has been widely popularized since the 1990s by business and technology publications such as Wired and Red Herring for a...
and undergraduate degrees in Computer Engineering and Sociology from the American University of Beirut
American University of Beirut
The American University of Beirut is a private, independent university in Beirut, Lebanon. It was founded as the Syrian Protestant College by American missionaries in 1866...
. In 2008, she was awarded a fellowship at Eyebeam Art + Technology Center in New York City and remains an honorary fellow. In 2010, she was awarded a fellowship with Creative Commons
Creative Commons
Creative Commons is a non-profit organization headquartered in Mountain View, California, United States devoted to expanding the range of creative works available for others to build upon legally and to share. The organization has released several copyright-licenses known as Creative Commons...
for her work including spearheading the first Open Hardware Definition that was adopted by CERN
CERN
The European Organization for Nuclear Research , known as CERN , is an international organization whose purpose is to operate the world's largest particle physics laboratory, which is situated in the northwest suburbs of Geneva on the Franco–Swiss border...
for their Open Hardware License and co-chairing the inaugural Open Hardware Summit. She has taught graduate classes at NYU's Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP) and Parsons The New School for Design
Parsons The New School for Design
Parsons The New School For Design, known colloquially as Parsons, is the art and design college of The New School university. It is located in New York City's Greenwich Village, and has produced artists and designers such as Marc Jacobs, Dean and Dan Caten, Norman Rockwell, Donna Karan, Jane...
.
In 2010, she served as a design mentor on the reality TV show, Stars of Science. In January 2011, in its second season, Stars of Science, initiated by Qatar Foundation
Qatar Foundation
Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development is a government-funded, chartered, non-profit organization in the state of Qatar, founded in 1995 by decree of Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Emir of Qatar and chaired by Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser Al Missned...
, is the first Pan-Arab reality-TV program dedicated to innovation, aiming to shine a spotlight on the next generation of young Arab innovators.
In 2011, Ayah Bdeir received the highly prestigious TED Fellowship which includes an invitation to give a talk at the TED
TED
TED may refer to:* TED , an annual multidisciplinary conference* TED spread, the yield spread between U.S...
event in Long Beach in 2012.
Major works
- Ejet Ejet: Elusive Electricity (Ejet Ejet) is an interactive neon installation that embodies the immaterial persona of electricity in the Arab world. The piece shines a bright neon light intriguing the passer-by, but as one comes closer, the light flickers, dims, buzzes, and ultimately pops: power is out and the room is dipped into darkness.
- Teta Haniya's Secrets: A line of electronic lingerie inspired by a Syrian tradition of hacking electronic toys, integrating them into panties, and selling them in the most casual of fashions at popular ‘Damascan’ souks.
- Les Annees Lumiere: A bird’s eye view of 3 years of violence, strife, and very bright lights rocking Lebanon, remembered and replayed in 45 minutes of proportionally timed light display.
- Arabiia: Arabiia is a caricature of media stereotypes typically associated with Arab women. The convertible burka is equipped with two servo motors and a switch. It enables its wearer to voluntarily choose which of two extreme representations fits her mood and audience.
- Random Search: Random Search is a subtle, reactive undergarment. It records, shares, and analyses the experience of invasive airport searches on behalf of our silent, abiding, fearful bodies.
Shows and exhibitions
- "Subtitled: Narratives From Lebanon", RCA (Royal College of Art) (London), 2011
- "Talk To Me", MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) (New York), 2011
- "Electronics as Materials", Eyebeam (New York), 2010
- "7 on 7", New Museum (New York), 2010
- "Identities in Motion", Peacock Visual Arts Gallery (Aberdeen, Scotland), 2009
- "Impetus", Ars Electronica (Linz, Austria), Works from the MIT Media Lab, curated by Hiroshi IshiiHiroshi Ishiiis a Japanese computer scientist. He is a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Ishii pioneered the Tangible User Interface in the field of Human-computer interaction.-Biography:Ishii was born in Tokyo and raised in Sapporo....
& Amanda Parkes, 2009 - "Open Stitch", Location One Gallery (New York), 2005
littleBits
littleBits is an open sourceOpen source
The term open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's source materials. Some consider open source a philosophy, others consider it a pragmatic methodology...
library of discrete electronic components pre-assembled in tiny circuit boards. littleBits makes prototyping with sophisticated electronics a matter of snapping small magnets together. All logic and circuitry is pre-engineered, so users can play with electronics without knowing electronics. littleBits aims to move electronics from the latter to the earlier part of design process, and from the hands of experts to those of makers and designers. In April 2009, littleBits was exhibited at MakerFaire Bay Area and received wide acclaim from the audience, in addition to winning an Editor's Pick Blue Ribbon Award in 2009 and 2011. In 2011, littleBits was acquired by the Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
for the permanent collection.
External links
- littleBits
- Hillary Batchelder and Sarah Lilleyman, "No Escaping the Memories", Time, 29 July 2006
- Regine, "littleBits, pre-engineered circuit boards connected by tiny magnets", We Make Money Not Art, 14 May 2009
- Stars of Science website