James August Luhrs

A West-Texan turned Big Apple city-slicker, August (they/he) has spent his whole life creating wild games, absurd art, and playful communities. In their past life in Los Angeles, they wrote and produced immersive theater, designed and built escape rooms, fabricated interactive installations, worked with several art collectives and performance troupes, and ran a participatory art camp at Burning Man. Then, hoping to augment his performance and installation art with tech, he attended NYU’s Interactive Telecommunications Program, where his masters thesis was on “Communal Transcendence Through Physidigital Play” — using connected devices in meatspace experiences to foster joy, power, and connection in groups as they collaborate to overcome a challenge.

Since graduating they've done a research residency at NYU ITP, a gaming residency at Snapchat, and worked as a software engineer for the AR headset company Magic Leap. He has previously taught game design at NYU’s Integrated Design and Media program and classes on creative habits at NYU’s Interactive Media Arts program.