Based on my understanding of Accelerationism, I would think that the ideal "Accelerationist" artwork would be work that you get typical art-investors to pay a shit-load of money for but that is inherently ephemeral so that no portion of the original "investment" can ever grow or even be recouped.
On Sun, Apr 24, 2016 at 1:24 PM ruth catlow <[email protected]> wrote: > Yes Annie, > > > Ok let's discuss concrete art works, activities etc - let's leave for > a moment the theorethical philipoli stuff > > More examples would be good. > > > In this discussion we have until now Ruth's work > http://gtp.ruthcatlow.net/ on time: human time, life time, computertime, > scientific time, stone time and Rob's examples in his article > http://furtherfield.org/features/articles/accelerationist-art - what > are these doing, what duscussion, thoughts they further ... > > > > To answer your particular questions about my work.... > > > I just watched Ruth's work again, I like the reflexion it brings, how > it articulates all these times. > > I have a question: - What do the people who go to the installation > get from this, is there a live video projection?, Can they understand > how time is at stake in this work? (In the catalogue text I read Edward > mentioned a projection, but so far I didn't see any photos of it)* > > I admit I had difficulties understanding the complexity of the piece > in the beginning but now, at the end I can enjoy it's beauty. > > So probably what I want to know Ruth, is where was your focus on the > final video object or on what happened in the installation ... > > I think/hope that the work is totally explicit for gallery visitors. > But now I understand that the documentation needs more clarity for > online viewers > > The plasma screen displays this webpage http://gtp.ruthcatlow.net/ which > shows the most recent image taken by the web cam, along with the looping > video to which images are added every 3 or 4 images. > > People can pose for the web cam, or might be caught looking at the video > in which they are soon to be portrayed. > > Here is a photo which shows the set up. > > https://www.flickr.com/photos/60673926@N02/24540097322/in/album-72157663958436545/ > Here you can scroll through a set of images showing selected stills from > the video, as well as some installation shots > https://www.flickr.com/photos/60673926@N02/albums/72157663958436545 > > > > > > What did I get out of the examples Rob gave in his article? They are > almost all art, just art, as far as I can see. Objects, you can show and > sell. They function mostly in the Artworld. Holly Herndon and probably > also Morehshin Allahyari & Daniel Rourke seem to be a bit different in > the sense that they also engage with other domains and feel "whole". > They reach out. > > As feel "whole" for me someone like Hito Steyerl whose work I like a > lot. > > > > http://www.e-flux.com/journal/a-sea-of-data-apophenia-and-pattern-mis-recognition/ > > the dissappearance of an horizon - acceleration as stasis > https://vimeo.com/81109235#t=99s > > Does this have anything to do with accelerationism? I don't know and > would that be important to know? > > Acceleration as stasis. Yes I think this is right Annie. > > Yes! more examples > > Thank you > > :) > Ruth > > > > > > Please diversify examples ... > > > > Thanks for these discussions!!!!!! > > Annie > > > > *I found a photo of a screen showing what? > https://www.flickr.com/photos/szpako/24284339460/in/pool-wana2021/ a > still, a looping video? > > > > > > > > On Sun, Apr 24, 2016 at 3:33 AM, Gretta Louw > <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > This makes so much sense to me, thank you Ruth. I see so much of > this in Europe, North America and the western, urban mainstream; an > utter inability (and, probably, unwillingness) to look outside our own > narrowly defined cultural lens when purportedly studying/attempting to > understand technology, media, digitalisation, and their impacts. It > hampers real discussion and cross-fertilization of ideas. Preaching to > the (mostly white, educated, urban, western, northern) choir - as most > tech/ digital/ futurist and possibly accelerationist (I hope I'm wrong > about the last one, still too early to tell) > festivals/meetings/discussion do - is a futile endeavor and exhausting > to watch. Diversification is essential, but the way the discourse has > developed around diversity actually is counterproductive to achieving > greater diversity. Just as an example, there are studies that have shown > that reminding applicants of their 'diverse' (one must ask, according to > whom, diverse from what??) background in a job ad by specifically > stating that one is an equal opportunities employer etc, will in fact > reduce the number of applicants from diverse backgrounds. > > > > I am rambling, but this issue is always tacked on to the > sidelines of debates around the pressing issues of our time; an > afterthought or a nod to political correctness. It needs to be at the > core: we should not discuss these issues unless we have sufficiently > broad input, otherwise we are just talking ourselves into > insignificance. NB: I am talking generally and from some disappointing > experiences at European 'digital futures'-type round tables and panels, > not about netbehaviourists. I do think that we all need to take a much > more radical approach to inclusivity though. Let's not participate in > mutual back-slapping or hand-wringing with ppl only from our own > sub-cultures... > > > > All the best to everyone, and thank you for sharing your thoughts. > xx > > > > > On 23 Apr 2016, at 21:54, ruth catlow > <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > > Here Baruch Gottlieb reviews “Inventing the Future”by Srnicek & > Williams (co-authors of the Accelerationst Manifesto) > > > > > https://blog.p2pfoundation.net/inventing-future-beholden-present-review/2016/04/08 > > > > > > He says > > > > > > "visions or projects for teleportation, nano-surgery and > socialist Mars colonies, are not going to convince capitalists to stop > attacking socially produced value every way they can. We need more > fundamental knowledge about how the present is reproduced in this first > place, the legacy of colonialism, imperialism, patriarchy and slavery in > the very devices we use to understand such things, and we need social > and cultural technologies to integrate that consciousness into new > behaviours, new sociabilities, new modes of exchange." > > > > > > > > >> On 23/04/16 13:15, ruth catlow wrote: > > >> So is this the accelerationist aesthetics question? > > >> > > >> Q. How can we as artists and people use the logics & tools of > automation and markets as part of making better art and better life for > us all? > > >> > > >> : ) > > > Tom said > > >> > > >>>>> when it appeared that the prognostications of the first wave > of > > >> accelerationists had partly came true: namely, that the > accelerations > > >> inherent in capitalism, specifically the tendency to mobilize > more > > >> surplus labour and resources at greater rates of efficiency and > > >> abstraction, would exacerbate the system's inherent > contradictions to a > > >> catastrophic point. Only partly came true though: the system > did not > > >> collapse but massively reorganized itself (all those would-be > John Galts > > >> suddenly all too happy to accept government bail-outs, massive > > >> expropriation of assets from the poor). This required a > recalibration of > > >> the theses of that first wave of accelerationists, a > recalibration that > > >> perhaps either is reflected in art, or in which<<< > > >> > > >> The unfettered development of automation and market-forces is > currently seen as the preserve of people on the political right (who > seek to preserve the status quo or enhance their wealth and power). But > who may at some points ask for time-out (and bail-outs) in order to > re-set their position of advantage. > > >> > > >> Rob said > > >> > > >> If I was trolling I'd argue that if you're on the left you're > either a > > >> conscious or an unconscious accelerationist. But it's possible > to do > > >> things in an un-Accelerationist way - it's not an inescapable or > > >> inevitable cultural condition. > > >> > > >> Yes, this is why I declared myself an Accelerationist- it was > not a proud declamation (a la 'I'm a feminist and I'm proud') more an > admission (a la, the declaration at meetings of people participating in > the 12 step programme). > > >> > > >> What I think is worth reflecting on (even if only idly) in this > > >> discussion is whether there is anything in one's own life or > work that > > >> this strategy would be productive for. What could each of us > better > > >> understand and reason about (in some sense) so as to be able > to better > > >> change it? > > >> > > >> Both these points indicate something that Left Accelerationism > has been > > >> criticised for from various angles - it is a *selective* > acceleration. > > >> > > >> > > >> Left Accelerationists are critiqued as these > social-power-tools (of automation and market-forces) are seen as > inherently dehumanising and destructive of solidarity and freedom? > > >> > > >> > > >> > > >> > > >>> On 23/04/16 02:49, Rob Myers wrote: > > >>>> On 22/04/16 03:27 AM, ruth catlow wrote: > > >>>> Not that we all need to be in an unending frenzy of > communication and > > >>>> exchange. More that we have ever-more nuanced ways to sense the > > >>>> significance of different kinds of participation: in a loop > of unwitting > > >>>> participation and active collaboration and organisation. > > >>> I think this (and Simon & Pall's conversation) raises two > important > > >>> points about "Accelerationism". > > >>> > > >>> The first is that contemporary society appears to have speeded > up > > >>> anyway. We can debate whether progress or the economy has > stalled, but > > >>> our experience of life seems to involve the compression of > time by > > >>> technology and by socioeconomic demands. > > >>> > > >>> The obvious critic of this kind of speed and acceleration, as > Paul > > >>> mentioned, is Virilio. Who I think relates speed to power in > a way that > > >>> makes sense of our experience of it as disenfranchising. > > >>> > > >>> Wanting to slow down from *this* kind of acceleration isn't a > bad thing > > >>> and is in fact the end point of MAP/Fixing The Future -style > > >>> Accelerationism: let's get the machines to do the busy-work > so we can do > > >>> something actually useful with our time instead. > > >>> > > >>> The second is that Accelerationism isn't a historical epoch like > > >>> postmodernism or globalisation. It's a *strategy*. > > >>> > > >>> If I was trolling I'd argue that if you're on the left you're > either a > > >>> conscious or an unconscious accelerationist. But it's > possible to do > > >>> things in an un-Accelerationist way - it's not an inescapable or > > >>> inevitable cultural condition. > > >>> > > >>> What I think is worth reflecting on (even if only idly) in this > > >>> discussion is whether there is anything in one's own life or > work that > > >>> this strategy would be productive for. What could each of us > better > > >>> understand and reason about (in some sense) so as to be able > to better > > >>> change it? > > >>> > > >>> Both these points indicate something that Left > Accelerationism has been > > >>> criticised for from various angles - it is a *selective* > acceleration. > > >>> > > >>>> I am currently showing a live networked video piece, I > created with > > >>>> Gareth Foote, called /Time is Speeding Up/ at 20-21 Visual > Arts Centre > > >>>> up in Scunthorpe as part of the show We Are Not Alone. I > have no idea > > >>>> whether this is an Accelerationist artwork. > > >>> It's increasing our ability to perceive and reason about our > situation, > > >>> so quite possibly. > > >>> > > >>>> I agonized about the aesthetics of the work- at first- so > un-"cool", so > > >>>> un-cyber - because the humans are so alive AND they make the > work. > > >>>> But now I'm really happy with it and would like to assert a > place for > > >>>> this almost folksy aesthetic (rather than a rush to slick, > black > > >>>> fluidity) in post-capitalist art. > > >>> Bladerunner's lived-in street-culture future is > paradigmatically cyber, > > >>> but I do know what you mean. The work is qualitative (or has > a strong > > >>> qualitative element), and this is in contrast to the strong > quantitative > > >>> bias of shiny information graphics and *some* proposals for > > >>> Accelerationist aesthetics. > > >>> > > >>> - Rob. > > >>> > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > NetBehaviour mailing list > > [email protected] > > http://www.netbehaviour.org/mailman/listinfo/netbehaviour > > > -- > Co-founder Co-director > Furtherfield > > www.furtherfield.org > > +44 (0) 77370 02879 > Meeting calendar - http://bit.ly/1NgeLce > Bitcoin Address 197BBaXa6M9PtHhhNTQkuHh1pVJA8RrJ2i > > Furtherfield is the UK's leading organisation for art shows, labs, & > debates > around critical questions in art and technology, since 1997 > > Furtherfield is a Not-for-Profit Company limited by Guarantee > registered in England and Wales under the Company No.7005205. > Registered business address: Ballard Newman, Apex House, Grand Arcade, > Tally Ho Corner, London N12 0EH. > _______________________________________________ > NetBehaviour mailing list > [email protected] > http://www.netbehaviour.org/mailman/listinfo/netbehaviour > -- P Thayer, Artist http://pallthayer.dyndns.org
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