Giedion/Kircher
We are an independent agency dedicated to creating transformative experiences through the art and science of interactive media.
Our solutions attract, engage and entertain audiences, express brand messages, convey stories and explain complex concepts.
We work across visual, auditory and narrative art, digital technologies and interaction design — and seamlessly integrate them. We specialize in activations that are live, real time and performance-driven — where technology and media connect with real people and bring them together in unique, compelling and memorable events.
Bringing decades of experience to the practice, we’ve developed a process spanning initial concept through production and delivery based on a deep understanding of technology and the application of proven design principles.
As an extension of our broad portfolio of creative and production services, we engage in proprietary software platform and product research and development, inventing new tools to push the boundaries of what’s possible.
History
The core of the Giedion Kircher team has a history of creating interactive digital experiences that spans the personal computer revolution, the development of digital video solutions, the early days of the World Wide Web — through the rise of social media to the current era of virtual and augmented reality.
Through all this we’ve navigated many changes brought about by the disruptive nature of technology. We’ve also observed that in the midst of the dynamism some things do — and should — remain consistent. From this continuing experience and learning we’ve developed the paradigms and principles that drive our process.
Today, from our studio and workshop in Los Angeles — arguably the preeminent global crossroads of media, entertainment, technology and storytelling — we combine strategy, technology, and creativity with experienced production chops to deliver solutions that effectively and measurably address the communication needs of our clients.
The Agency
Our team — multidisciplinary to the core — is dedicated to the integration of the latest technologies, multiple media, and design techniques both emergent and traditional into holistic solutions. We deliver experiences through video walls, kiosks, interactive exhibits, VR and more — in a wide variety of venues, from trade shows to festivals. With a broad array of delivery technology at our disposal, a key part of the design process is identifying the right media and mechanisms for a given context.
Bringing a background with industrial engineering and software industries, the team is particularly well-prepared to help technology companies explain complex ideas around highly technical product offerings. At the same time a background in performance art informs the creation of one-of-a-kind, dynamic, transitory but highly memorable experiences for audiences.
While our focus is digitally-driven experiences, the world is our canvas: live events and physical spaces, environmental designs as well as digital and connected activations, immersive technology, moving images and sound design. And the range of options available to us continues to expand.
The Future
Our mission is to continue to explore the exciting possibilities that unfold almost daily on multiple fronts. We invite you to join us in this adventure. Do you have specific communication goals in mind? Or perhaps you’re just looking for some fresh ideas for a transformational experience for your audience. Either way — let’s talk — and see what we can create together.
Creative Principals
As an agile and dynamic organization, we combine core leadership and creative with a network of production professionals and agency partners to assemble the most appropriate team for a given engagement.
Pete Johnson
As Executive Producer, Pete leads the creative process for all projects and is the principal architect of digital platforms. His background reflects the Company’s range of endeavor across digital technology and visual, auditory and narrative art with an emphasis on live, real time and performance-driven experiences. As a technologist his experience ranges from software engineering for real time industrial applications and development of post-production applications for film and video to the design and production of commercial interactive media solutions of almost every variety. As a visual artist he has shown his interactive video work at institutions including MoMA (New York), Coachella (California) and festivals and theaters in the US and Europe, and he has directed music videos for a number of international acts. As a musician he has produced several records (most recently a full-length story-driven concept album) and has performed on festival, theater and club stages. He has worked with agencies including Jack Morton Worldwide, Imagination and Digitas for major international brands and holds degrees in Computer Science and Studio Art with additional studies in music theory and performance.
Giedion and Kircher
Our company namesakes, honorary conceptual founders and philosophical advisors emeritus — you might say our “patron saints” — are the historical personages Siegfried Giedion and Athanasius Kircher. Giedion (1888-1968) was an influential Bauhaus-affiliated theorist known for his books “Space, Time and Architecture” (exploring the connections between architecture and modern art) and “Mechanization Takes Command” (examining the impact of technology in modern society). Kircher (1602-1680) is considered the last in the tradition of great Renaissance polymaths, and has been credited with the development of “early cinema” through his work involving the illumination and projection of images. He authored many works including Ars Magna Lucis et Umbrae (“The Great Art of Light and Shadow”), Musurgia Universalis (“Universal Music-Making”) and Ars Magnesia (“The Magnetic Art”).