David R. Burns is a digital media artist and publishing scholar who explores the relationships between humans, technology, and nature in his creative-research. More specifically, he focuses on the tensions between technology, culture, and nature in the public and private spheres; mediating memory and postmemory; and participatory self-expression through visual music. Burns takes an interdisciplinary approach to creating digital media art by combining computer animation, 3D modeling, 3D printing, sound design, interactive media, and physical computing to push the boundaries of artistic expression. In addition to creating hybrid projects that are both artistic exhibitions and scholarly publications, Burns publishes scholarly essays where he contextualizes his artistic projects and critically analyzes contemporary issues in media arts.

Burns’s digital media artwork has been internationally exhibited and screened at over 130 museums, galleries, theaters, and festivals including the National Media Museum in England, the Musée des impressionnismes in France, the Chelsea Art Museum in New York City, the Red Stick International Animation Festival in Baton Rouge, the Currents International New Media Festival in New Mexico, the Athens Video Art Festival in Greece, the National Center for Contemporary Art in Russia, and the National Film Theater in London.

Burns’s scholarly research has been widely disseminated and published at international conferences, peer-reviewed journals, books, and proceedings. He has presented his research at venues including the International Society of Electronic Arts (ISEA) symposiums in Singapore, Ireland, Turkey, and Canada, and the Electronic Visualisation and the Arts (EVA) conference in London. Burns’s publication credits include journal article and book chapter contributions to Leonardo Electronic Almanac (LEA), The Wider Worlds of Jim Henson, and Jim Henson and Philosophy.

Burns, a Fulbright Senior Research Fellow, has received funding and support from public and private institutions including the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, the U.S.-India Educational Foundation South and Central Asia Regional Travel Program, and the Bissaya Barreto Foundation in Portugal.

Burns holds a MFA in Design and Technology from Parsons School of Design in New York City. Presently, Burns is an associate professor at Southern Illinois University where he developed the Digital Media Arts + Animation specialization and teaches courses in 3D computer modeling, animation, and digital media arts studio practice and theory.