Draft on Method

Writing Methods - March 22

Last Project

What/Why

My last project was a 10 minutes video work that featured motion capture animation placed into a variety of avatars. Static glow is a term used to describe when an individual’s social media presence exists online long after they do. What if all that was left of society was this Static Glow – in all media: social, creative, etc... How would a speculative consciousness interpret significance and determine human emotion and happiness from this data set?

Central Issues/Ideas for expansion

The main issues that "Static Glow" addresses centred around the cybernetic being. To unpack this notion, what I mean is that my work was created to invoke questions in the viewer regarding what it means to be human in this era of the networked self. Ideas related to gender, identity, sexuality, and emotion were brought up in the script to elucidate this response. The possibilities of extending the self were also addressed, through notions of non-linearity. In the speculative AI character that I developed, I was interested in how a being like this would assimilate artefacts of human culture, and through this process would offer an simulacrum of human emotion. In this transfer of knowledge, I wanted to raise questions of how technological media reflects society. Often the criticisms are that social media is a superficial representation of human relationships, but I think it exists in a similar reflection to books, movies, art, etc in the canon of cultural expression in that none of these actually represent the reality of our lives, and there really isn't a problem with that since it was not the original intention anyways. From this interaction then, the question becomes what is it that the character wants in this exploration. In much science fiction, robots and androids are eternally seeking that one unattainable attribute of humanity, emotion. To extend this, more fundamentally it could be they are searching for significance, and secondarily, recognition. My character, in Static Glow, is at the threshold I think of these demands, still not fully cognizant of what's going on, or pretty much exactly where humanity is currently (hah). In future works, I think exploring the existential desires of this AI would be an area rife with interesting possibilities. In Gregory Benford's book series "Galactic Centre", the human race is being squeezed out of existence by a galaxy spanning AI. In this AI's quest to understand humanity, it attempts to create artwork, as it sees this is the penultimate achievement of the human soul. It's creations appear horrific to the human characters in the series, but there is something of interest in this dynamic. Personally I think that the potentiality of the synthetic soul is huge and almost unimaginable, but the questions this speculation raises are super interesting and plentiful for future exploration. Even looking into animal relationships could offer something to this, as Donna Haraway seems to be all about the "tentacular" these days, interconnected systems of plants, birds, molluscs, wind and lava could offer some insight into the non-human consciousness. Also looking into the expansion of the human sensorium is another area that could be investigated – we only see a certain fraction of the spectrum of light, we can only detect sensation to a certain degree of pressure, same with hearing and smell. All of these questions add up to the experiential calculus of being for humans, not even getting to the deeper question of belonging, place and culture. Finally, the phenomenon of time is a very human concept, and really the one that some say give our lives meaning, that there is an expiration date for your corporeality. This was the famous notion in Blade Runner of course. But looking at this further, it could be that time itself is a fully human phenomenon, in that outside of our concept of one moment to the next, things happen in a completely different manner.

Relation to Previous Work

This work fits into the canon of my ouvre thematically. In "Patterns for the Hungry Ghost", I addressed architectural remnants and how they influenced power structures within human society, and in the 2nd act of this work, I referenced the abstract nature of the networked psyche, where the individual today is spread across a variety of platforms and media. "Static Glow" is thereby an extension of these works, by thematically continuing this exploration of the contemporary self, as a cybernetic being.

Relation to a Larger Context

Static Glow exists within a continuum of current works that goes under a variety of monikers, but generally called 'post internet'. This area of work explores ideas of the networked condition, where technology of ubiquitous computing, interconnectedness and the "the cloud" are addressed as inherent concepts of reality, no longer a novelty or nascent reality, and furthermore, this work looks at the future of ourselves and intelligences outside of the human experience. Central to this exploration is the recognition of non-human agents.

Influences

Cecil B Evans, Ed Atkins, Hito Steyerl, Donna Haraway, Ghost in the Shell, Akira, Jean Luc Godard, Chris Marker, Gregory Benford, Lawrence Lek,

Current Work

Why/How

I am primarily interested in investigating the post-human experience within the networked condition. My project would entail visual production of research into the liberating aspects of the cybernetic being. In this transformative state, societal norms regarding gender, identity, sexuality, emotion, and culture become fluid. Embracing the post-human state, transcending power structures that seek to maintain “normality” for financial gain and authority is possible. As toxic notions of identity and culture dominate national cultural dialogues, how can critical storytelling transform these ideas? What possibilities lie in the expansion of the idea of personhood to include artificial intelligences, and can the exploration of this unknown reveal new methods to relate to one another? I hope to reveal underlying correlations that offer new possibilities for allegiances for marginalized aspects of society, to combat the relentless commodification of our current reality. Now that our identity has become defined by the corporation that stores our data, how can we create new data-selves outside of this paradigm?

Additionallly, in my project I would like to investigate non-linear approaches to experience. Marginalized aspects of society have had their history re-written or torn from them, and in creating a future history, can re-write their historiological relation to culture (as seen in the Afro-futurist movement). Also through video, hyperlinks can be investigated that spiral out from the moment of time is created/recorded, giving relational information about time, space, history, and geography. Additionally, I am interested in connections that can be made through new dialogues with planetary ecologies as scarcity in basic needs (water, housing, food, etc) become a paramount concern. In previous times when nascent technologies emerged, explanations were sought in extra-sensory areas to help discern experience. Now at a similar nexus in time, what can be gleaned from organic systems as they are meshed with silicon? And finally, what can we learn from people and places that are severely under-represented in the media landscape?

Similar

This work relates to "Static Glow" in the manner of representing various stages of communication theory. My previous work existed in the delivery stage of this process, and this current work exists in the transfer stage.

Different to Previous Work

This exploration will a much less formal structure than Static Glow, in the the end result may not necessarily involve a narrative structure, but will relate much more centrally to the subject matter itself.

Who Can Help?

I need assistance with some software, Touch Designer, so I am looking to people who may be able to help, as this is outside the realm of the tutors here. Additionally, I am looking to some writers who can help in the conceptual basis of the work.

Timetable

This work does not necessarily have a timetable, but I hope to explore it until I feel I have exhausted the possibilities within my abilities. I would imagine until the end of this year.

Where can it lead?

I would like this work to lead into a 3rd project where I can unite aspects of non-structural and informal narrative into a work that exists in the same sphere of my previous work, but incorporates all the aspects of these developments. I hope to explore the future of non-human agency and its relationship with humanity, so my intentions are to inform this process.

Future Work

What could it be?

I am seeing a common link among my research interests that focusses on the dislocative nature of technology. At any moment in time, an individual can be spread across multiple locations, both real and virtual. Information exchanges take up a specific amount of thought, and in this act transplants a portion of the mind to another place, apart from the physical body. I think a future project can involve this phenomenon and extrapolate on this idea. Through the creation of a VR experience, I would like to create a space that takes the viewer through the manifestation of dislocation through 360 video and sound --to tangibly experience the separation of their physical locale from their conscious understanding of place. Using tools such as 360 cameras, 3D modelling and real-time game engines, I would like to create an experience that highlights the possibilities of dislocating from the linearity of our relation to time and space. I hope to inject thoughts towards ideas like parallel universes and non-linear history. These technologies can offer a perspective that augments our relationship to the physical world. Social media already does this, but in such a manner that obfuscates how non-linear our perception has become. Key to the success of this project is creating a work that is accessible and understandable, and not bogged down in an over-complicated mess of imagery or functionality. In achieving these goals of my proposal, my workflow would be as such: First, creating the overall story arc and determining the locations. Second, I would storyboard the intended key shots for each scene. And finally, production, where I would shot my necessary scene and model, render, and composite the 3D elements. In this step I would also create the audio mix, from recorded sources and audio fx as necessary. Finally, I would assemble all of these components into unity in order to create a functional and easily transportable VR experience. In this proposal, I see this work existing in the post-internet cadre of works, and would contextually fit within the works of artists such as Jon Rafman, Tabor Robak, Cecil B Evans and Ed Atkins. This project is component to a series of works investigating the blurring boundaries of the real and virtual. I think through the investigation of this space, I can offer some speculative insights on the possibilities of how we can interact with an ecology of biotechnology. It seems really trendy right now in the zeitgeist of the art world to talk about our relationship to the natural world through technology. I would like to focus more on the ideas of extrapolating on what it means to be post-human. Whether this entails extending beyond the limits of perception, rationality, bodily-ness, or whatever is an area I think is rife for exploration. While our relationship to the external world is component to the definition of being human, I think the vast 'liminal' space of this definition is where my work will reside.

What form could it take?

Primarily this experience would have a very strong affect on the viewer, so in order to accomplish this an immersive experience would be appropriate, in the audio and visual aspects. Something like a VR experience may suffice to achieve this, but essentially an experience that disorients and rearranges the viewers perception would be the goal.

Peers?

Jon Rafman, Manual DeLanda, DeLeuze, Rainer Kohlberger, Susan Schuppli, Mark Fisher, Rafaël Rozendaal