On May 14, 2016, Rhizome held their eighth Seven on Seven conference. The event pairs leading artists and technologists, who are then responsible for creating something to share with the audience in reaction to a social issue.
In previous years, participants were given 24 hours to produce their work, but in 2016 that limitation was removed in order to allow more developed, unique concepts to flourish.
Below, we break down the seven presentations (and the keynote) delivered over the six hour conference in order to provide an extensive but streamlined breakdown of the themes and ideas that were on display.
The conference can be viewed in full here. We have listed the commencement time for each presentation below, so that you may skip to the topics that interest you most.
KEYNOTE PRESENTATION
Astra Taylor – Filmmaker, artist, activist.
Presentation begins at 00:44:00
Due to her involvement in the Occupy Wall Street movement, Taylor has developed a reputation as an activist, which makes her recent essay, Against Activism, particularly intriguing.
In her keynote speech, Taylor is quick to denounce activism as a false means of movement. It may seem like a strange point to make during this type of conference, but in making it, Taylor highlights the importance of events like Seven on Seven in addressing issues through collaboration of industries and mindsets for the sake of progression.
She also talks about the digital space as a throne of power for the people, which makes for the perfect segue into the first presentation.
IN THE REALM OF ROUGH TELEPATHY
Ingrid Burrington – Artist, and
Meredith Whittaker – Founder, Google’s Open Source Research and Security group.
Presentation begins at 01:13:25
The opening presentation represents the radical concepts that Seven on Seven enables.
Burrington and Whittaker address the issue of bureaucratic control of the people via the internet by comparing it to a collection of documents detailing ancient magic that they say they uncovered at the New York Public Library. Specifically, they relate the modern day infrastructure to what they dub ‘rough telepathy’; a non-physical network of signals that connects its users.
It may sound confusing – a feeling enhanced by how seriously the women present their ‘findings’ – but it is undeniably brilliant.
The pair discuss Fragile Contingencies – the work being developed outside the tech mecca of Silicon Valley – as a means to breaking the bonds of digital governance; a concept that aligns with Whittaker’s own work at Google.
For those overwhelmed by the complexity of the presentation, a full breakdown of Burrington and Whittaker’s ideas can be found at Grimoire.Computer.
PATCHING INTO THE REAL WORLD
Junglepussy – Rapper, and
Jenna Wortham – Staff Writer, The New York Times Magazine.
Presentation begins at 01:44:00
In The Matrix, Neo takes a pill that grants him insight into the real world.
If Junglepussy (real name Shayna McHale) and Wortham have any say in it, those of us obsessed with digital relationships will be replacing that pill with a patch in order to create more human connections.
This is one of the more lighthearted projects, probably due to the participant’s young ages, but this also means that the pairing features the two individuals who have spent the highest percentage of their lives online.
The patch they pitch to the audience is designed as a symbol of the wearer’s desire to create relationships with people as they are in an organic reality, rather than trying to learn about the other person by ‘Googling’ them or browsing their social media pages.
If they have their way, patch wearers will be attending ‘patch parties’ to provide a safe setting for likeminded individuals to connect.
They want to bring the vulnerability back to the real world, and few would argue against that being an intriguing idea.
PLATFORM FOR POLITICAL MATHEMATICS
Hito Steyerl – Filmmaker, writer, and
Grant Olney Passmore, Cofounder of Aesthetic Integration.
Presentation begins at 03:09:00
As Steyerl put it, this presentation is all about “mathematics as a mugshot”.
The truth is that maths does influence real political policy targeted at particular groups of people, often in very disturbing ways.
So what better policy for Steyerl and Passmore to illuminate this fact through than Trump’s suggestion that he would make the President of Mexico pay for a wall that would divide their country?
When the pair crunch the numbers, the chances that a Mexican president would agree to such a plan are exactly what you’d imagine them to be.
The presentation culminates in Steyerl and Passmore tweeting Trump the link to Polimath.org, a wiki on which they have used maths to create what they call (with tongue firmly in cheek) “an infinitely profitable” system for housing illegal immigrants, duly named Trump Trident Detention Hotel.
ALLOWING AI TO READ OUR EMOTIONS
Jennifer Steinkamp – Installation artist, and
Rana el Kaliouby – Cofounder of Affectiva.
Presentation begins at 03:47:50
The low point of the conference, this presentation feels less like a collaboration and more of a pitch.
“Emotions influence every aspect of our lives,” notes Kaliouby, whose company Affectiva creates technology that measures emotion. She raises the idea of giving artificial intelligence an ability to read a user’s emotion in order to manipulate the user into carrying out certain actions.
The actions Kaliouby notes as examples – eating more healthy food, staying motivated and on task – make the concept sound great, until she links the idea to two films, Her and Ex Machina, both of which are stories of AI that exceeds its purpose to terrible ends. And here she is talking about plans to sell ’emotion chips’ for use in all digital devices.
When she finishes, Steinkamp reveals a prototype app that demonstrates how a computer system or AI could read a person’s emotions. Unfortunately, it doesn’t quite work.
S.V.S: A PLAY FOR FOUR BOTS IN THREE ACTS
Claire L. Evans – Artist, writer, and
Tracy Chou – Software Engineer, Pinterest.
Presentation begins at 04:09:45
One of two ultimately artistic presentations, Evans and Chou present a digital play about the value of AI ‘life’.
The play asks the question of how constantly developing intelligence should be maintained or disposed of entirely if an AI system is thought to be becoming uncontrollable.
There is little more to say, except go and experience S.V.S. for yourself.
A SENSE OF SELF IN THE WORLD OF VIRTUAL REALITY
Trisha Baga – artist, and
Mike Woods – Cofounder of White Rabbit VR.
Presentation begins at 05:14:35
Should users of Virtual Reality (VR) technology have a sense of self when in the VR world?
It’s an interesting question, but one that doesn’t really amount to anything in this presentation. Baga doesn’t seem to be taking it seriously – she talks about how she usually doesn’t participate in events because the pay isn’t good enough, and admits that she put together their slideshow on the morning of the event – and often gets off-track.
You can’t help but feel sorry for Woods, who mostly sits and nods in silence.
When Baga gets to the point, remarking that a user’s presence is only portrayed in the world of VR by a black circle on the ground, Woods is quick to point out that, for most users, the absence of a body is less immersion-breaking than when the software incorporates a body that is not the user’s own.
Baga then recalls hearing about first-person VR pornography that features such an experience. Woods once again sits and nods in silence.
THIS IS YOU
Miranda July – Filmmaker, artist, writer, and Paul Ford – Writer, programmer, and Cofounder of Postlight.
Presentation begins at 05:49:35
Seven on Seven definitely kept the best until last this year.
In the performance, July and Ford begin by recounting elements of people’s normal lives – places of birth, educational achievements, family members – before getting into even more personal detail – wedding present’s received, what someone did while playing Grand Theft Auto, a mediocre result at a swimming competition.
What is this presentation about, and why are they reciting such strange information?
You must watch the video to find out.
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2016 was another fantastic year for Seven on Seven. Each presentation was fresh, innovative, and for the most part, captivating.
Remember to watch the event in full here.