Computers & Art: Postinternet Art and Design

Lecture I.
From post-internet to speculation at local art scene – Veronika Sellnerová
For the purpose of this lecture we will start in 2007 by introducing the term post-internet and follow its development in the context of speculative turn in philosophy. In what ways has our perception of the world changed under the condition of constant connectivity and how did it manifestate in art production? Was post-internet just an aesthetic trend or a state of being? What does the speculative philosophy has to do with it? We will follow answers on these questions in relation to artistic production, focusing on local - Czech and Slovak - artists.

Lecture II.
Speculative design: overcoming human and inventing the future – Roman Novotný
The design was human-centered from the beginning. But what if the design task is not just to create smooth surfaces and easy-to-use products and services? At present, it is proving that our dominant design approaches often contribute to climate change and inequalities in the world. Perhaps we should start thinking about design differently, not only as a human perspective, but one that gives a role to other actors and can not only preserve the status quo, but also help to imagine better futures.

Case study I.
Veľký Krtíš, a small town, an infrastructure space fulfilled with stories – Martina Růžičková
The case study interprets the origin and the development of Veľký Krtíš, a small town situated on the periphery of southern Slovakia. A special focus is given on the adaptation of Veľký Krtíš to market economy conditions. Together with theoretician, architect and urbanist Keller Easterling we understand Veľký Krtíš as a so-called infrastructure space. That is characterized by shared standards, ideologies, reproducible patterns, generic architecture and urbanism. What purposes do the visual representations of infrastructure spaces in the Veľký Krtíš case study fulfill, how are they transmitted and which forms do they take?

Case study II.
Videogames and post-anthropocene speculations – Ondřej Trhoň
Videogames are able to model complex systems and interactions, a power that can be utilized when dealing with large, distributed problems. Using the videogame Lichenia by Paolo Pedercini, I will inquire into ways we can understand videogames an their ludic/procedural potential as vehicles for envisioning new futures, ways of relating to the in-human, with special focus on the "medium design" theory (by Keller Easterling), a perspective that has a lot to do with videogame models of our world.

Lectures and case studies will be held in English. Full syllabus available here, the list of all lectures available here. Lessons take place every Thursday at 14.00 as a part of New Media and Entertainment (M_VIRTUAL) course held at TIM FF MU. In case of any questions, please contact us at virtual@phil.muni.cz.