My Moment Discovery Experience By Dylan Rominik

I have always been surrounded by art. My mom is an author, my family is musical, and I often do visual art as a pastime. In Edmonton, there are a lot of opportunities to experience art, such as the Art Gallery of Alberta, the city’s many festivals, and the various examples of public art installations. Despite being surrounded by art, I have only recently learned the value in shared experiences of art works that are not only beautiful, but functional. Making art creates a very special feeling, and it is even more special to share it.

My journey with Moment Discovery started about four years ago, when I was ten years old. Occasionally I would go to my mom’s work where Pamela Anthony had an art technology box set up called the Dot Box. One day, Pamela and I were messing around and decided to make something for the Dot Box. I was taking hip hop lessons, so we wanted to incorporate my hobby into our new creation. When we were done, we had created an avatar called “idunno”. idunno is red, yellow and blue. It takes the shape of a human-like figure, and it copies your arm legs and elbow movements, just like in hip hop. Ever since, Moment Discovery has been using our avatar to demonstrate DotBox to the public, and it has become a crowd favourite.

“This has sparked a real interest in functional art for me.”

I began working with Moment Discovery a month ago, and it has been such a great opportunity. My job was to help open the studio to the public for The Works Festival. I had tasks such as creating graphic animals, greeting the public, and even demonstrating some of the technology. Every coworker of mine was on task and there to help one other. For example, I always knew I could count on someone to help debug the DotWall. When the public visited the space, I was able to see how people responded to the work I helped create, and I was encouraged by people’s positive reactions. Through this experience, I have met amazing creatives who are passionate about what they do.

My time with Moment Discovery has introduced me to techno art, and has illustrated the different ways art can be interpreted. I’m so glad I had this opportunity. This has sparked a real interest in functional art for me. Moment Discovery is such a cool place to go, hang out, and work. Thank you to everyone who I’ve met at Moment Discovery. You are the best!