Artist Statement

by Joseph Vasikauskas merges the viewing of still artwork and animation using Augmented Reality, or AR. By showcasing the ease of interconnectivity between mediums through AR, Joseph aims to enlighten content creators on how they can bridge styles of work in a physical setting and increase audience engagement in their works. Using his original series Kusanagi Legacy as an example, Joseph has created a variety of real and mockup merchandising that can be enjoyed traditionally but also elevated through easy-to-watch animation through AR.

Artist Biography

Joey Vasikauskas is an illustrator, storyteller, and animator living in Long Island, NY. He graduated from New York Institute of Technology with a BFA in Computer Graphics in 2015 and is completing his MFA in Fine Art & Technology in 2023. Joey’s work focuses on telling unique and fantastical stories, creating characters and worlds for those stories, animating scenes from those stories, and integrating emerging technologies to connect these methods of art and animation together into a singular concept. His work was featured in the MFA thesis show and has a presence of various social media platforms as well as the Webtoons platform for webcomics and stories. Joey’s work continues to build upon these stories, characters and worlds, and the research and discovery of how to further meld animation and emerging tech into these creations.