The PureData Convention Steering Committee and the PureData community in Montréal are pleased to host l'œuvre ouverte, the 2nd International PureData Convention. Montréal has a diverse artistic community dedicated to the exploration of new technology and interdisciplinary exchanges with technically engaged groups. Collaboratively developed new media tools such as PureData have found their way into several facets of our artistic landscape including visual art, music, sound art, theatre, dance and VJ culture. The ever-increasing public appreciation and interest in tools like PureData are evidence of the substantial research and development being conducted in the larger community. This is the result of the dissemination efforts and commitment of several media arts organizations and the ongoing exchanges carried out by grassroots networks such as the Montréal PureData user group (PDMTL).

L'œuvre ouverte will consist of a series of conferences, demonstrations, round table discussions, performances and exhibitions. The convention will strive to reflect on the aesthetics and politics of free Open Source software culture by focusing on the development, artistic uses and critical writing about PureData. L'œuvre ouverte will advance the collective development of PureData through group coding sessions and by fostering a constructive dialogue among programmers, users and theoreticians. We are fortunate to have the support of some of Canada's key media arts organizations and institutions as partners. Their involvement in hosting the convention not only has secured high-quality venues and locales for our activities but also ensures that the event will draw key stakeholders both from the international and national PureData community, building on the success of the first convention held in 2004 in Graz, Austria.