The Chronus Art Center (CAC) is pleased to relaunch its Research & Creation (R&C) residency program under the new name R&C @CAC Project. The program aims to further stimulate the intricate and dynamic processes inherent in research/creation-oriented art projects within the experimental space of CAC Project.
Gottfried Haider and ZHANG Jie will be the first group of resident artists of the R&C @CAC Project, further developing and continuing the research of their project LLMscape: A Technolinguistic Exploration of Climate Narratives from June 15 through August 31. During the residency, CAC Project will periodically transform into an open and fluid space by hosting a series of exchange activities and events to advance the project, along with public programs to enhance CAC’s knowledge dissemination mission. The residency outcomes will be exhibited at CAC Project in September.
On June 29, Gottfried Haider and ZHANG Jie will open their residency studio introducing their project and further development plan.
<About the Project>
Elizabeth Povinelli summarized how geologists think about rocks, noting that "although they cannot exactly die and definitely cannot be murdered, they do come into existence". Thus, not only is the alternative existence of various entities at different scales brought into awareness by looking down to the geological substrate, but the unequal relationships between human and Other under the governance of late liberalism are also unveiled. Concurrently, art practices within the spectrum of the Anthropocene also attempt to reflect a general notion of care towards both living and non-living entities across different spheres.
This form of care is a connection at the perceptual level, a pathway between the cleavage of self and Other, the inside and the outside. When we finally realize that human quotidianity, society, politics, economy as well as biological processes are all entangled with the Other participating in the process of intra-action, an alternative ecological view emerges.
LLMscape is an exploration of climate narratives engendered from the interactions between the inside and the outside of a system, seamlessly blending the emergent wonder of Large Language Models (LLMs) with the precarious fate of island landscapes. Within this experience, participants wield agency over a sandbox terrain, witnessing the islands' vibrant emergence through a dynamic projected panorama. Every nuanced manipulation echoes through the artificial agents dwelling within, reflecting the intricate play between human actions and environmental repercussions. This installation bridges the disconnection between human perception and climate realities, rendering distant and muted habitats tangible and thus instilling a heightened awareness of the threats climate change poses. LLMscape invites contemplation on the synergies between technological agency and the palpable realities of our evolving habitat.
In such a virtual ecology, existing structures and codes are enriched and even disrupted, thereby reconstructing reality into a heterogeneous form with entitative multiplicities.
Gottfried Haider, LLMscape: A Technolinguistic Exploration of Climate Narratives ©the artists
<About the Artists>
Gottfried Haider is an artist, educator, and software tool builder. He received a degree in Digital Arts from the University of Applied Arts in Vienna, and an MFA from the Design Media Arts program at UCLA. He currently holds the position of Assistant Arts Professor at NYU Shanghai. Haider's art has been presented in numerous exhibitions and festivals internationally. He is the recipient of a Fulbright Scholarship and an Award of Distinction at Prix Ars Electronica.
ZHANG Jie is an architect, researcher and entrepreneur. She serves as part of the founding team of Design Innovation Institute Shanghai (DIIS) and is responsible for strategic development, ecosystem and incubation. Prior to DIIS, she led landmark architectural projects in the US, EU and China at various esteemed architectural studios. Her design work often addresses urban regeneration and environmental intelligence, and has been awarded by the AIA, IIDA, Red Dot Best of the Best, among others. Zhang holds a BA from Yale University and a MArch from MIT.
