Media Arts, Data & Design Center

 

Create, study and learn about critical technologies driving arts, culture, & science

The Media Arts, Data, and Design Center at the University of Chicago is a 20,000-square-foot collaborative space for inquiry and experimentation at this transdisciplinary crossroads. A partnership between UChicago Arts, the Physical Sciences Division, the UChicago Library, and the Division of the Humanities, the center supports work and research by faculty, students, staff, and community partners with cutting-edge technology.

The MADD center is a home for a number of University initiatives and activities, including:

  • On behalf of UChicago Arts, the Logan Center operates two labs through its Arts Technologies office:

    • The Hack Arts Lab (HAL): Located in the Media Arts, Data, & Design Center (MADD Center) in Crerar Library, the Hack Arts Lab (HAL) is managed by the Media Center and provides an open-access laboratory for creative digital fabrication and visualization. This maker space-styled workshop is designed to support a breadth of activity ranging from undergraduate projects to faculty-led exploration. HAL resources include 3D printers, laser cutters, soldering stations, workbenches, and micro-computing tools.

    Access to HAL resources is managed through the MADD Center Canvas course. Self-enrollment in the Canvas course is available via this link.

    • The Weston Game Lab (WGL): Located in the Media Arts, Data, & Design Center (MADD Center) in Crerar Library, the Weston Game Lab (WGL) is a place for study, development, and play. Through the WGL, students, faculty, and staff will collaborate the research and development of games—whether digital, board, card, or alternate reality—that produce social impact or experiment with form. Participants will also be able to research the history of games from technical and theoretical perspectives, attend workshops that afford new development skills, and organize collaborative groups for game-based experiments.

    Access to many WGL resources is managed through the MADD Center Canvas course. Self-enrollment in the Canvas course is available via this link.

  • An expanded Computer Science Instructional Labs (CSIL), a Physical Sciences Division facility providing hardware and software for training and education.

    To visit their website and learn more click here.

  • The UChicago Library’s Kathleen A. Zar Room houses the Research Computing Center Visualization Lab, boasting new data visualization technology, instruction sessions, symposiums, and workshops focused on research, teaching, and learning.

    For more information about RCC and their locations click here.

  • Also in the Kathleen A. Zar Room, the Library’s GIS Hubenables geospatial research and learning activities by providing access to geographical information systems (GIS) software and hardware and an expert GIS and maps librarian who offers consultations and training.

    To learn more about these resources click here.

MADD Center Resources

Expanded space and other resources for the teaching of Media Arts And Design and Media Aesthetics in the College; for electronic music in collaboration with the Department of Music; and for Virtual Reality and other courses in Cinema and Media Studies and the Department of Visual Arts. 

The redesigned first floor of the Crerar Library also contains open work and collaboration areas; an equipment help and circulation desk; exhibition and critique space for faculty and student work; and John Crerar Library Research and Teaching Services, where science librarians consult with faculty and students. The center joins the new Department of Computer Science offices and laboratories on the renovated second and third floor of the building as well as the Library’s collections and relocated Access and Circulation Desk and study spaces, now on the renovated lower level.

Visit the MADD Center

 

LOCATION
John Crerar Library, 1st Floor
5730 S Ellis Ave, Chicago, IL 60637

HOURS
MADD Center Arts Labs (HAL & WGL) + CSIL:

Monday-Friday 10am-10pm
Saturday-Sunday Noon-10pm

HAL Studio (w/ laser cutters and soldering irons available for checkout) will be open by appointment only (with at least three business days' notice, pending staff availability) — Access to HAL resources is managed through the MADD Center Canvas course. Self-enrollment in the Canvas course is available via this link

CONTACT
General Inquiries
maddcenter@uchicago.edu

Hack Arts Lab (HAL)
hal-info@uchicago.edu

Weston Game Lab (WGL)
westongamelab@uchicago.edu

MAKE A PAYMENT
Use the form below to submit payments for materials, kits, prints, late fines, and other charges from the MADD Center. If you're not sure how much you owe, stop by the MADD Center Front Desk or email the MADD Center and a staff member can look up the current charges on your WebCheckout account.

In the form below, enter your name and the amount you owe, then click ‘Submit’. After a short pause, you'll proceed to a secure Cashnet payment form where you can enter your credit card information and confirm the transaction.

Please begin the payment process here:

first name: last name: amount: