On Wednesday, a face-painted man wearing a pink shirt and toting a green water gun wove his way through the stylish crowd assembled at the River East Art Center for Gen Art and Nokia's Art in Motion event. The colorful guest was part of one of three films that were shot on site, as emerging filmmakers commissioned by Gen Art made short movies using Nokia's N95 8GB device.
The moviemaking (a concept cooked up in a collaboration between Gen Art and Smartfusion, Nokia's experiential marketing agency) was only one of the ideas that Gen Art Chicago's regional event director, Laura Lachman, executed for the event, which was intended to showcase the cutting-edge capabilities of Nokia's N95 and N810 devices.
Guests had the option of ordering drinks the old-fashioned way (by bellying up to the bar) or by taking a more technological route: Nokia reps standing at three highboys held N810 Internet tablets that they used to type in guests' drink requests. The orders went electronically to a computer behind the bar, and a server brought the drink orders to the tables within a matter of minutes.Along the back wall of the River East Art Center, an exhibit around the theme of "Open to Anything" featured the work of seven emerging photographers, who had each captured their interpretation of the word open. Results ranged from Karine Laval's "Open Road" photo (of just that) to Matt Nighswander's more abstract photograph depicting brown stools pulled up to a counter and entitled "Dunkin' Donuts, Open 'Til Midnight." One of the artists, Brian Sorg, took his photos using the camera settings of the N95.
Back in the venue's central area, servers from Food for Thought circulated with mini grilled-cheese sandwiches stacked on Nokia-logoed trays. A bar anchored by four tall lamps bearing Nokia-logoed shades served specialty drinks with thematic names like the Connected Cocktail.
From a DJ table set up alongside the Art Center's indoor water wall, DJ Matt Magic Roan spun a mix of record-based tracks and songs that he pulled off an N95 device.
Correction: This story has been updated to properly credit the moviemaking concept and to correct the description of the photography exhibit at the event.
The moviemaking (a concept cooked up in a collaboration between Gen Art and Smartfusion, Nokia's experiential marketing agency) was only one of the ideas that Gen Art Chicago's regional event director, Laura Lachman, executed for the event, which was intended to showcase the cutting-edge capabilities of Nokia's N95 and N810 devices.
Guests had the option of ordering drinks the old-fashioned way (by bellying up to the bar) or by taking a more technological route: Nokia reps standing at three highboys held N810 Internet tablets that they used to type in guests' drink requests. The orders went electronically to a computer behind the bar, and a server brought the drink orders to the tables within a matter of minutes.Along the back wall of the River East Art Center, an exhibit around the theme of "Open to Anything" featured the work of seven emerging photographers, who had each captured their interpretation of the word open. Results ranged from Karine Laval's "Open Road" photo (of just that) to Matt Nighswander's more abstract photograph depicting brown stools pulled up to a counter and entitled "Dunkin' Donuts, Open 'Til Midnight." One of the artists, Brian Sorg, took his photos using the camera settings of the N95.
Back in the venue's central area, servers from Food for Thought circulated with mini grilled-cheese sandwiches stacked on Nokia-logoed trays. A bar anchored by four tall lamps bearing Nokia-logoed shades served specialty drinks with thematic names like the Connected Cocktail.
From a DJ table set up alongside the Art Center's indoor water wall, DJ Matt Magic Roan spun a mix of record-based tracks and songs that he pulled off an N95 device.
Correction: This story has been updated to properly credit the moviemaking concept and to correct the description of the photography exhibit at the event.
An exhibition along the back wall featured photos whose titles all incorporated the word open.
Photo: Brian Choi
Guests could have their picture taken with an N95 device; photos were printed out on site to provide thematic souvenirs.
Photo: Brian Choi
Interactive displays allowed guests to learn more about Nokia's new line of products.
Photo: Brian Choi
Small lounge areas offered seating on black leather stools clustered around flower-topped tables.
Photo: Brian Choi
A video wall, filled with N810 Internet tablets, showcased the short films from last year's event.
Photo: Brian Choi
