The NODE Institute
The NODE Institute is dedicated to empowering artists, designers, and technologists by providing high-quality education in visual programming and creative computing. Through expert-led courses, workshops, and community-driven events, we foster an open and collaborative learning environment where innovation and artistic expression thrive. Our mission is to make cutting-edge digital tools accessible, helping creators of all levels develop the skills they need to work naturally with data, media, and code, becoming intuitive and informed creators who shape their own experiences with confidence and creativity.
The NODE Institute was founded in 2019 in Berlin by David Brüll and Stefan Kraus with the mission to empower the visual programming communities. The Institute was founded in the spirit of the known media art festival NODE Forum for Digital Arts to extend the festivals workshop program throughout the year.
Stefan Kraus, media artist and educator, is co-founder of The NODE Institute, the projection mapping festival, Genius Loci Weimar, and the media art studio, MXZEHN. Trained as an architect, Stefan explores the augmentation of physical structures using interactive and generative media and the narrative potential of abstract imagery.
David Brüll, media system designer, is co-founder of The NODE Institute. He is also the creative mind behind Studio Brüll, a creative technology studio specializing in interactive design and real-time media installations. He was also the key organizer and founding force behind NODE Forum for Digital Arts, a festival for digital culture, creative coding, and interactive media.
Harshini Karunaratne, Sri Lankan-Peruvian visual artist and curator, is the program manager and head of communications at The NODE Institute. With a background in Film & New Media and Theater from New York University Abu Dhabi, she brings a multidisciplinary approach to creative education. She also runs Manifest:IO, a platform dedicated to fostering artistic expression and media arts.
Networking
Fostering a Creative Community
Let’s be honest. If you do what we do, you do it because you love it. That passion is what makes it so rewarding to connect with others who share the same drive. Our networking events are a space for this community to come together, exchange ideas, find inspiration, collaborate on new projects, and support one another. It’s about more than just meeting people—it’s about fostering a network of creators who inspire, challenge, and grow together.
Education
Empowering with Knowledge and Skills
Our mission is to provide structured learning paths designed for professionals. As a platform, we connect students and educators in a way that benefits both: educators focus on creating meaningful learning materials and providing guidance, while students gain access to curated content that helps them develop the skills they need to become confident, creative creators. Through this synergy, we empower both educators and students to thrive in a supportive, skill-driven environment.
Stronger Together
Respect, Support, Grow: Our Approach to Collaboration
United we stand, divided we fall. We don’t believe in competition; we believe that great talents thrive when they collaborate, creating exceptional work together. By fostering a mindset of respect and mutual support, we aim to contribute to a world where people value each other’s work and perspectives, helping one another grow.
What we can do for you
At the NODE Institute, we invest a lot of time in staying up to date with the newest developments in the field. With our vast network, we know about emerging technologies and design trends before they hit the mainstream, and we know who to ask if we don’t have the answer ourselves. This is especially true for the visual programming environments VVVV and TouchDesigner, which are at the core of our expertise. We know the developers as well as many users across various fields personally and maintain a constant dialogue with them, giving us unique insights and an extensive overview.
We would love to share that insight with you. Whether you are a curious student who needs real-world experience to draft an ambitious project, an agency looking for advice in novel fields of interactive communication, or an artist that needs a custom-crafted tool to bring their vision to life – we are here to help.
Consulting
Advertising and marketing agencies, as well as design and architectural practices, often face challenges when integrating innovative technologies into their projects. We help you navigate this dynamic landscape, identify potential opportunities, and create reliable workflows for turning the seemingly impossible into reality.
Team Workshops
We offer tailored workshops designed to professionalize agency teams in creating real-time driven experiences. These sessions equip your team to integrate cutting-edge technologies into their workflows, enabling them to innovate and collaborate more effectively on interactive and dynamic projects.
Individual Lessons
Most of our instructors are available for private lessons, offering personalized guidance on design and software projects or providing expert advice on best practices tailored to your needs. Talk with us. We can make it happen.
About Visual Programming
Visual programming, is a paradigm that allows developers to create applications by visually connecting nodes or blocks that represent functions, variables, and operations. Unlike traditional text-based coding, visual programming relies on graphical representations of logic and data movement. Many artists and designers find traditional text-based coding to be intimidating, abstract, or restrictive to their creative process. Visual programming provides an intuitive, graphical approach that allows them to focus on ideas and interactions rather than syntax and debugging code.
TouchDesigner
TouchDesigner is a visual development platform that equips you with the tools you need to create stunning realtime projects and rich user experiences, while having fun exploring.
vvvv & VL
vvvv equips you with visual object-oriented programming. Extend your node menu with any .NET library. Anything you need for your interactive installations.
Where to find us
Wipperstarsse 13
12055 Berlin
Germany
info@thenodeinstitute.org
+49 179 5265105
5 min walk from S+U Bahn Neukölln