“Imaginary” refers to the “faculty of radical innovation,” that is, the capacity to generate new meanings that become the basis of advanced artistic forms. Artificial mechanisms (such as those epitomized by AI) play a crucial role in this process, not only because they facilitate infinite possibilities for the image and the ways to experience it, but especially because they produce a whole different way of thinking and producing knowledge. One that speaks not so much about our uncertain future, but about our reliable present. Or the other way around! While acknowledging various crises that mark our world today, this project aims to look at and work with all these issues rather optimistically, while mobilizing some of the most future-oriented tools: imaginaries, innovation and art.
The works included in the exhibition address these topics through various strategies of artistic research that put in the forefront (the future of) human presence as an individual occurrence and as a societal construction, as well as—in a post-human take—the world surrounding us: nature, plants, crystals, data. Technology is employed here both as a means of production and as a philosophical framework in installations conceived at the confluence between art and science (working with geological and biological elements, and communication technology data), or employing human presence as either a self-mythological journey, or as an artificial, intelligent, but provocative humanoid being.
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Anadary: Shadows of Intelligence
Florin Marc (RO)
The project proposes an interactive exploration of the impact AI and ML have on human intellectual capabilities, challenging visitors to reflect critically on the question: “Is AI the hope?” The experience consists of a dialog between participants and an AI non-player character (NPC), represented as a female humanoid figure.
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Coldness Drawn Together
Flavius Coman (RO)
The work addresses issues of miscommunication, of the lack of caring and connection between people. Taking the literal meaning of the word crystal (coldness drawn together), the installation will show a near-accurate representation of the aftermath of different chemical compounds merging under a microscope and being illuminated with a polarized light.
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Memory Pills
Agata Olteanu (RO), Teodora Mihăilă (RO)
Analog photography-based project using AR to tackle the theme of memory and imagination. The public is presented with different iterations of half-burnt 35mm film photographs (hung on the wall) that explore possible pasts through the intervention of objects and processes inside the negative space.
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Natura ex Machina
Adrian Crăciunoiu (RO)
Natura ex Machina is an interactive installation merging virtual and physical worlds, natural ecosystem and the data flux. Through a transparent screen overlaying real objects, users manipulate digital graphics via proximity sensors and gestures. Natura ex Machina is an interactive installation merging virtual and physical worlds, natural ecosystem and the data flux. Through a transparent screen overlaying…
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Packets
Peter Leidl (RO)
Step into a data visualization experience, where mobile phones and Wi-Fi signals will be harnessed in order to craft captivating visuals and haunting soundscapes. As your device connects to the network, watch intricate patterns unfolding and hear rhythms of modern connectivity echoing.
Babeş-Bolyai University Cluj-Napoca, Romania, Faculty of Theater and Film (RO)
The Faculty of Theater and Film at the Babeș-Bolyai University is a multicultural academic institution appreciated for the quality of education, excellence in research, active student life and opportunities for collaboration. It is one of the most important art faculties in Romania in the fields of cinema, media and theater. Digital Interactive Arts is a professional master’s program that offers a comprehensive, multidisciplinary and innovative approach to media arts theory and production.
Credits
Curator: Horea Avram / Artists: Flavius Coman, Adrian Crăciunoiu, Peter Leidl, Florin Marc, Agata Olteanu / Project Coordinators: Rodica Mocan, Cristina Pop-Tiron, Adelina-Laura Bulibasa / Institution: Digital Interactive Arts Master’s program at Faculty of Theater and Film, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania.
