Abstract

The hackathon format, which began as a commercial digital
model, has been modified across different communities within
the arts and cultural sectors. Adjusting the hack to work within the arts presents logistical challenges to organisers. The authors of this paper, an arts curator and artist-practitioner, have organised and run hack-style events together since 2014. In this research, they define hacks and cite examples of recent art and cultural hacks. They then present a series of three case studies, Thinking Digital Arts // Hack (2014) The City The City The City (2015) and Rewriting the Hack (2015) that describe their collaborative projects. An analysis of this research shows that the format of the hack event has been modified in a variety of ways across different projects. These include removing competitive aims, considering needs that are specific to arts participants, strategically planning materials and resources, and carefully considering exhibition and showcase formats.