Global Art Forum Opening Session | I Am Not A Robot

Free and open to the public, the twelfth edition of the Global Art Forum will explore the highly topical theme of automation – as well as the opportunities and trepidations brought along with it.

Art Dubai’s Global Art Forum is presented by the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (Dubai Culture) and supported by Dubai Design District (d3).

The opening session of the Global Art Forum 12 will take place on February 14, 2018 at Dubai Design District, introducing some of the key themes of ‘I Am Not A Robot’, in a series of talks, presentations and discussions with Shumon Basar, Noah Raford, Marlies Wirth and acclaimed artist/writer James Bridle, who Buzzfeed ranked 3rd in its list of “11 Tech Heroes of 2017 who aren’t CEOs”.

Dubai Design District: Between Buildings 8 and 9

6:30-6:40pm
WELCOME AND INTRODUCTION
By Global Art Forum Commissioner Shumon Basar and Co-Directors Noah Raford and Marlies Wirth

6:40-6:50pm
I AM SHE: SOME FEMALE AUTOMATA FROM CINEMA
Presentation - Shumon Basar

Cinema — that 20th century mass art form — provides one of the most fertile settings for history’s enduring experiments with man-made women. Shumon Basar outlines a brief genealogy and draws upon examples from the films Metropolis, Alphaville, Blade Runner (and its recent sequel Blade Runner 2049), Ex Machina and a few Scarlett Johansson-led titles. What are the cultural and psychological values invested in cinema’s female robots? And why are men so scared?

6:50-7:00pm
I AM AI DIPLOMAT: ALIEN PROTOCOLS AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS OF THE MIND
Polemic - Noah Raford

According to some, we are within a decade of the arrival of artificial general intelligence; machines so powerful that they can do anything a human being can, but faster, better, and more accurately. How will we handle the arrival of such a phenomena? How might this impact our world and what ways should we be thinking about possible responses? This whimsical talk explores serious issues through the lens of aliens, international relations, and medieval diplomacy to help us better understand the landscape we may face in the future.

7:00-7:15pm
ARE WE ARTIFICIAL: TWO RECENT EXHIBITIONS
Lecture - Marlies Wirth

Hello Robot and Artificial Tears were two recent exhibitions in Vienna, which dealt with the complex issues around automatization. Hello Robot looked at how design shapes our relationship with technology and with each other. Artificial Tears took a science-fiction position: asking what makes us “human” in this day and age, or if we are “artificial” after all. Co-curator Marlies Wirth talks us through both shows, and how these kinds of technologies are increasingly entering museum space in unexpected ways.

7:15-8:00pm
I AM A HUMAN ARTIST
Presentation and Discussion - Artist and Writer James Bridle, hosted by Shumon Basar, Noah Raford and Marlies Wirth

How are artists engaging with technologies of automation, as well as the ever increasing automation of the world? With a background in linguistics and Artificial Intelligence, the artist James Bridle has dealt with predictive big data, drones, and the ethical problems posed by YouTube. Here, he discusses his ideas and work, and the social and political concerns facing the current moment.

________
Image: “Legend,” originally uploaded to Google Street View by Arthur Star. (Kyle Williams via Google Maps)