S (or: exploring more-than-human entanglements in a post-digital culture)

Abstract

MA seminar "S (or: exploring more-than-human entanglements in a post-digital culture)" for PXL-MAD students (2024 - 2025).

In a world where digital technologies are often developed to meet human-centered needs and desires, the interconnectedness with more-than-human actors, such as plants and animals, as well as machines and AI, risks being overlooked.

Conceived as a book club, with James Bridle’s “Ways of Being” as a guide for reflection, this master seminar teaches you to critically question contemporary technological, social, ecological, and cultural challenges.

By exploring important societal issues, such as ethics in technology or the environmental implications of AI, in relation to your own artistic and/or design practice, you will participate in contemporary discourse on critical issues with students from a variety of artistic disciplines.

We examine, among other things, the roles of non-human entities in creative processes, with attention to shared authorship and agency, and consider digital media not merely as tools for human expression but also as mediators for intra-actions (Barad) between humans, 'nature', machines, and broader ecosystems.

This master seminar can be both a first exploration of these themes, and a deepening for those already familiar with them. Even those who do not work with digital technologies, who feel opposed to Artificial Intelligence, prefer 'analog' tangible materials, or have never heard of terms like 'more-than-human' and 'post-digital', are welcome. In a diverse group of students and teachers—with different interests, backgrounds, opinions, and expertise—you will learn how to navigate contemporary and future challenges as an artist or designer and help shape worlds in a more sustainable way.