ART, TECH, & WAR-MACHINES
/ 🖼 + 🤖 + 💣 /
ART, TECH, & WAR-MACHINES / 🖼 + 🤖 + 💣 /
Tools of conflict and their utilization within contemporary fine arts
[CW - this page contains depictions of the use and aftermath of weapons of war. There’s no gore, but it ain’t pretty either]
No Network
Julian Oliver, 2013, German
Mobile network jammer in the form of a battle tank
This piece, taking the form of a model tank with an antenna in place of a cannon, incorporates a wide range signal jammer. If turned on, it would render all cell phones within 6-15m (~18-45ft) unable to send or receive data or calls.
Julian Oliver is part of a group called Critical Engineering, a Berlin based collective that approaches emerging technology with a critical lens.
Photo of an RAF Avro Lancaster B Mark I, equipped with an “Airborne Cigar” jamming system, the antennas on top of the bomber (1944 - Via Wikimedia)
Aerial photo of a Russian jamming system deployed in Ukraine (2022 - Via Forbes)
Drone Shadow 001
James Bridle, 2012, UK
This work is a 1:1 scale drawing of the General Dynamics MQ-1 Predator drone, which at the time was the primary drone utilized by the US and the UK in Afghanistan. By placing this drawing within the setting of one of the countries that would have utilized this tool, it makes the viewer consider the scale and proximity of these tools that is lost when discussing their use abroad.
Recommended Viewing - James Bridle’s 2011 lecture, “Waving at the Machines”, a detailed description can be found here - booktwo.org
The burning remains of an SUV that was carrying General Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran’s elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC’s) Quds Force, at Baghdad International Airport. (2020, Via Al Jazeera)
An MQ-1 Predator, armed with AGM-114 Hellfire missiles, on a combat mission over southern Afghanistan. (2008 - Via Wikimedia)
Aftermath of an August 19th, 2021 drone strike in Kabul, Afghanistan, that mistakenly killed 10 civilians, including 7 children. (2021, Via CNN)
Liberator Vases
Addie Wagenknecht, 2016, USA
These vases are composed of the repeated form of the first widely available 3D-Printable Firearm, the 2013 Liberator Pistol. Through the duplication of this object into a new form, the original file loses meaning, transforming from a weapon into a Vessel for flowers.
Layout showing the individual components that assemble into the Liberator Pistol. Note that there’s only one metal component - a standard nail. (?)
A now infamous test of the 3D printable Liberator Pistol as conducted by the US ATF (2013 - Via Youtube)
Triple-Chaser
Forensic Architecture, 2019, UK
Created in protest to a Whitney museum board member holding stake in the company that originated this product, Forensic Architecture created and trained an ML model to recognize in photos the use of the Triple-Chaser, a tear gas canister often used on protesters.
American protester holding the top of a Triple-Chaser tear gas grenade, used during the 2014 Ferguson Protests. (2014, Via New York Times)
Egyptian protester holding up multiple tear gas cannisters, used during Anti-Mursi protests in 2018 (2018, Via The World)
Hong-Kong protesters dousing a tear gas canister using a safety cone (2019, Via The Borneo Post)
My work …
Project video for The Liberator 1650 (2020)
Overview shot of Sights Unseen (2022)
Video - Sights Unseen - GAN output
Upcoming Exhibition …
Sentiments & Sentience
Jun. 8–26, 2022
Opening Reception:
June 16th, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM
By positioning objects typically considered inanimate as sites of sentient activity, Sentiments & Sentience imagines the potential for consciousness in vessels that recall lived experiences, modified toys that shoulder the ethical concerns of humans, and artificial intelligence contained within the machine. These works collectively explore agency, memory, and systems of care as living elements of synthetic objects. Retro and contemporary technologies facilitate these experiments in the material boundaries of the psyche.