MultiMedia Installation Process Log
MAPEX Thesis Exhibition 2020 (May 6th-May 18th)
Interview with the artist
As a cultural and visual anthropologist in the 21st Century, I'm equally aware of vanishing culture and emerging culture. One intriguing idea that I've been exploring is the topic of Android Ghosts, whether machines have a soul. Whether or not they do, humans seem to believe in the illusion of life they provide and form emotional attachments to devices they interact with on a daily basis. Since this project began, the world has experienced a sudden increase in social distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic and devices have become more central as tools of communication and companions in times of isolation. The cross cultural historical precedent for this phenomenon is the archeological and anecdotal concept of childhood toys, which merit naming, caring and backyard funerals. My personal and academic experience with the growing epidemic of loneliness drew me to the topic of artificially intelligent companions that may give a similar comfort. The need for attachment results in a similar human desire for a formal detachment and closure. I have attempted to create a cross-culturally ceremonial shrine where that both remembrance and mourning can occur. As humanity and technology shift to interact more closely, there will be an increasing need for a ritual that speaks to this new paradigm. Post Human Angels is an attempt to create one of those rituals.
-Chandler Zausner