Over the course of two days in Rome, packed with events, the Media Arts Festival will reflect on the Future, focusing on how and how much this future will materialise considering the progress of artificial intelligence. “Who are we? Who are we going to be? Who will we become?” These are some of the initial questions posed by the Media Arts Festival, taking place from 17 to 19 May in Rome across a number of venues which are representative of the city (MAXXI – Academy of Fine Arts – Rufa).
The exhibition “The Great Convergence: Natural and Artificial Intelligence” is the Festival’s focal point with additional events and meetings. ‘Space poetry’ by Eduardo Kac – a pioneer of tele-presence art, creator of transgenic art and new media theorist – and video art by Gary Hill and Anna Frants will be in conversation with internationally established ltalian artists such as Ra di Martino and Donato Piccolo. International curators and directors Donna Holford Lovell, Jaqueline Butler, Hege Tapio and Sarah Cook are also in conversation with the general public at RUFA – Rome University of Fine Arts and the Rome Academy of Fine Arts.
As well as showcasing works that put forward ideas and suggestions regarding the future, the Festival wants to initiate cultural synergies and, above all, look towards the younger generation, who is actively involved in the Festival through a series of workshops.
On 17 May, in the Carlo Scarpa Hall at the MAXXI Museum, 100 students will take part in an original Art Spatial Hackathon, promoted by the USA Embassy in Rome. Eduardo Kac will challenge participants to create a digital artwork around the theme of space. Please visit here the official website for the full and updated calendar of events.
Media Art Festival, curated by Valentino Catricalà, Rome (MAXXI, Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma, Rufa)
17 – 19 May, 2018
images: (cover 1) Poster (2) Kac with Thomas Pesquet for «Inner Telescope», 2016 (3) Dialogue-ElenaGubanova- IvanGovorkov (4) Number0 – AnnaFrants. Photo by Mikhail Borisoff
