Conscientious objector and Ars Electronica Futurelab artist in residence Tom Bogaert seeks to bend technology and engage with weaponry within a discourse of refusal, viewing it both as an act of protest and a generative process of renewal. Struck by the banality of the global arms industry after visiting an international arms fair and fascinated by the ease with which the logic of war has infiltrated our daily lives, Tom Bogaert chose to allocate a portion of his grant money into investments within the Military Industrial Complex. He subsequently utilized the profits generated from these investments to support his thought provoking weapon hacking project. The artist’s prototypes and AI generated imagery of hacked weaponry include tear gas canisters with blueberry flavored smoke, bullets with built-in painkillers, firework bombs that seem to make buildings bleed, snow cannons instead of water cannons, and much more.
Objection / Tom Bogaert (BE), Photo: DALL E2
Objection / Tom Bogaert (BE), Photo: Tom Bogaert
Objection / Tom Bogaert (BE), Photo: Anna Oelsch
Credits
Artist: Tom Bogaert
This project is funded by the Flemish Ministry of Culture, Youth and Media.