May 27 - Artistic Imagination - Questions

[jamesallenevans]

Questions for Professor Patrick Jagoda, inspired by the week's readings:

Speculative Everything by Anthony Dunne and Fiona Raby, “Chapter 1: Beyond Radical Design?” p. 16-21, and “Chapter 5: A Methodological Playground: Fictional Worlds and Thought Experiments” p. 70-82.  Pumzi (Wanuri Kahiu), science fiction short film (~20 minutes) “The Mundane Afrofuturist Manifesto” by Martine Syms.  World Without Oil by Ken Eklund and Jane McGonigal, live action game website with documentation (~7 minutes) Terrarium (Fourcast Lab), alternate reality game short documentary (~17.5 minutes) “Little Brother” by Walter Mosley, short story (~25 pages)

Questions: Every week students will post one question here of less than 150 words, addressed to our speaker by Wednesday @ midnight, the day immediately prior to our class session. These questions may take up the same angle as developed further in your weekly memo. By 2pm Thursday, each student will up-vote (“thumbs up”) what they think are the five most interesting questions for that session. Some of the top voted questions will be asked by students to the speakers during class.

[starmz123]

I believe that narrative change is critical in effecting societal change, especially in the speculative fiction vein of broadening our horizons. But how do we measure the impact of narratives? For example, the WWO game seemed to effect significant change on some of its players, but to what extent did that change last or translate into broader change?

[fdioum]

Last week, one of the students shared how science or facts are dismissed and art and images are what people respond to. In the midst of all these challenges, should we disregard or present little to no facts and information and simply focus on illustrations for problems like existential threats?

[dramlochun]

I wonder what you think the reason for our lack of engagement in existential threat-related topics is? For example, this week, while researching different art forms that people have used to engage people in the issues we've discussed, I've found incredible diversity and creative projects. However, we seem to be in the same spot regardless. It seems like art helps us process the information about these threats better, but we are bombarded with information about these topics so much today that I wonder if more information or better information delivery is really the issue.

[LucLampietti]

Last week, our guest lecturer Martin Rees wrote in his book, The Future, that physics is the language of the universe and music is the language of religion. Then, at the end of Chapter 5 of Speculative Design, there is a quote from Milan Kundera about novels examining existence, not reality. Existence being the realm of human possibilities as opposed to what has occurred. Seeing as religion is arguably all about existence, what role do you see music having in the role of speculative design? Personally, I find that music is one of those mediums that is increasingly becoming the easiest way to communicate ideas and emotions across some of the biggest ideological, racial, and economic divides. I'm curious to know what thoughts you have on music as a medium of design?

[vtnightingale]

Most of the speculative fiction we read/watched this week, as well as most speculative fiction in general, are rather dystopian. They are, of course, imagining the future where little of our current life is changed: continuing climate change, increasing monopoly capitalism and corporate control of our lives. But there is a lack of utopian, or even more neutral, works, tracing out possible futures and how we would get there. Why do you believe that many speculative views of the future are so pessimistic and don't try to imagine positive futures from our present?

[TimGranzow7]

Throughout this course it has become clear to me that humanity must do SOMETHING. Business as usual, even if appropriate measures are taken to mitigate climate change, is not sustainable. We will be faced with some very big challenges in the next few decades, if not sooner. I’ve come to realize though that not all efforts to confront existential threats are productive. There will always be red herrings, pseudoscience, and failed attempts to fix our problems, but these are sometimes necessary to make meaningful change. In light of this, my question is: when imagining our future, what scenarios do you view as being the most productive. Is blissful optimism a waste of time and a means to delay the inevitable? Is a fatalist perspective overly-pessimistic, or all-too realistic? What do you see as the best use of our time and effort, artistically, socially, and/or practically?

[joshuanash]

Since you led the Red Monk Society game design for class of 2021, can you tell us what it was like developing that game, why you chose to construct that narrative, and what you wanted us as players to take away from the game? I participated in a few of the puzzles 4 years ago, but got stuck and never found a clear explanation of what we were doing. There was a certain puzzle that was a livestream of a cluttered room. A red monk would walk in and out of it every so often. Then one day the statue of books appeared in the shape of the rotunda. There's a clip of one of these in the Terrarium documentary. What was the meaning of that room and those towers? I've been wondering for four years. Thank you for constructing such a unique experience for our class.

[slrothschild]

We have discussed the differences between the presentation of facts and details versus artistic developments to present the idea of existential threats. How do arts and illustrations soften the blow of reality, and why have we become more receptive to these forms instead of the facts and details?

[ghost]

One thing I have always been struck by is the pure pessimism of my friends and family when it comes to humanity's ability to tackle any of the existential threats we have talked about in this class. Do we, as humans, have an aversion to being optimistic about the future? Why do we always seem to assume the worst-case scenario will come to pass?

[c-krantz]

Throughout this course, we have been exposed to many different forms of art such as the Doomsday Clock, animated movies, and live action movies – all of which are used to depict legitimate existential threats to varying degrees. Although many of these forms of art have done incredible jobs at depicting the reality of these threats, there remains the possibility that art can exaggerate certain threats for entertainment value. Why do you believe that these movies depicting devastating events are so entertaining? Do you believe that the majority of the audiences understand these threats or dismiss them as simply just entertainment?

[Samcorey1234]

What would it take for people to stop eating animals? How much plant-based meat would have to come onto the market to shift public consumption?

[sosuna22]

After watching Pumzi, where water is clearly a problem, as well as other natural resources. We cannot live without clean fresh water. What would happen in a real water shortage? Are there any plans in place to ensure this does not happen?

[AlexandraN1]

What are some of the biggest mistakes that pop-culture and media make when they try to illustrate existential or catastrophic risk? How might they be avoided?

[louisjlevin]

What do you make of this excerpt from Octavia Butler's The Parable of the Sower:

“Books aren’t going to save us”. Lauren replies: “Use your imagination. Any kind of survival information from encyclopaedias, biographies, anything that helps you learn. Even some fiction might be useful".

Do you agree? What power do books hold as think about our future?

[shanekim23]

In Walter Mosley’s short story “Little Brother”, Frendon Blythe attempts to shatter the automated court system by “defy[ing] the logic matrix” and “break[ing] down the problem into human segments that add up.” Although he doesn’t achieve his initial goal, he does succeed in eliciting an emotional response from The Court. Do you think that this would be a realistic method to combat super-intelligent AI (or more specifically automated court systems)? Or do you think that these robots would have already developed mechanisms to prevent emotional appeal?

[bdelnegro]

I was fascinated by the Terrarium project. In particular, I appreciated its ability to connect incoming students in UChicago's Class of 2019 despite many having never met, their different backgrounds, and their dispersal across the world. I am curious, how has COVID-19 (and the subsequent closure of museums, movie theaters, etc.) transformed the landscape of art and speculative design. Have alternate reality games, the use of streaming platforms, and other 'collaborative' mediums become more popular or prevalent?

[seankoons]

How does historical data and the reality of the world help shape the imagination for dystopian and non-dystopian futures for writers? Is there a research process in which writers dive into multitudes of future themed works and use their own imagination, alongside with looking at and connecting historical themes, to create their pieces? Is a mood board created?

[smshiffrin]

What hopes do you have for future projects like Terrarium that are created to raise awareness on the threats of climate change on civilization? Do you think these projects are effective as catalysts for change? Will you be creating more projects like Terrarium in the future?

[blakemoss]

Broadly, how do you view the future of Alternate Reality Games? Given their potential for promoting obsessive hunts for information, do you see the most prominent role of ARGs in the future as primarily a tool to improve the world through highlighting topics such as climate change, or simply as entertainment?

[a-bosko]

Some of the short films and videos for this week, like Pumzi, remind me of shows like Black Mirror or The Rain. These shows are very popular on Netflix and grab the attention of people. Although these shows depict what the future may possibly look like, many people still believe that these shows are far-fetched and very unlikely to happen.

How do we use media in a way to not only grab an individual's attention, but bring a call to action for these issues? How do we convince the public that some of these events may actually occur?

[chakrabortya]

Is art making it more difficult to grasp the seriousness of existential threats or is it responsible for making people more aware of the threats? What is the cost of this potential increased awareness?

[elijahrain28]

How do we radicalize people? Maybe a bad question, but-- like all presidential elections, I guess-- Biden is a pretty good demonstration that the sort of fundamental changes the world needs will not be borne out of current American electoral politics. Not saying electoral politics aren't important; they are, obviously. But how do we get at the sort of collective action necessary when a large portion of the American populace is in a "well, cops murdering people is bad, but riots are also bad" sort of zone?

[aj-wu]

How do you see the role of art in not only bringing awareness to, but also directly addressing existential threats? Is there a difference between art and design in this space?

[janet-clare]

In the digital age it seems that media are making all things possible? Do you think that now, 50 years later, “the revolution” can “be televised”?1 Or to put it another way can “the television” ever “be revolutionized”? Have we made peace with “the flat screen enemy”?2

Scott-Heron, Gil. 1949-2011. "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised". New York, N.Y.: Bluebird/RCA. 1988. Fiasco, Lupe. "The Television Will Not Be Revolutionized". R.I.P. Gil Scott-Heron. Read Lupe Fiasco’s Tribute to Gil Scott-Heron. BET June 1, 2011. https://bet.com/news/music/2011/06/01/read-lupe-fiasco-s-tribute-to-gil-scott-heron.amp.html

[blakekushner]

What do you think about the impact that science fiction in both movies and novels has on society? Do these often dystopic depictions help to actually mobilize people to make change or do they tend to scare people into inaction?

[nataliamedina1202]

What power can film and media have on the mobilization around existential threats, considering they are often reliant on shock factors and cinematic effects instead of truth? Does this make mobilization more effective or less effective, if people are inclined to believe that these portrayals are all fiction and have little applicability to our reality? Further, would more realistic but 'boring' films, novels, and art forms be better suited for sparking collective action?

[jatkins21]

When delivering potentially powerful artistic works to the public, do artists typically aim to affect a particular audience? If so, how do they go about successfully reaching that specific audience? If not, do they just put the art out and hope the message lands with the right audience (if they even know what the right audience is)?

[Aiden-Reynolds]

Why do so many artistic depictions of the future portray such disastrous outcomes for humanity? Is it simply a matter of entertainment or is there some deeper psychological reason why people tend to want to view the future in such a pessimistic manner despite humanity's relatively successful history of dealing with major issues?

[jane-uc21]

What is the relative benefit of interactive vs passive forms of media in conveying and driving action against existential threat?

[panunbali]

Do you find that the reason we struggle to motivate people to care about apocalypses/threats has anything to do with the understanding of the message? Or are there other factors that stop us mobilizing around solutions? For example, I'm skeptical that any different representation of the threat of climate change might change anything, there seem to be other factors (political, primarily) that stop us from successfully resolving this threat. Does using art change anything?

[gracecwagner]

Many of the theoretical futures seen in popular media and what we read/watched for this class are presented as a utopia when they are really dystopian, due to intense government regulation and limiting of knowledge and what is possible. In the polls after each class session, we have established that society may be saved by means of societal transformation, rather than government policy or just awareness of the threats. Do you think it is possible to have a future that is "good" (i.e. the existential threats are neutralized and no longer posing a danger) without extreme regulation, or if it was implemented and the threat was taken care of, could the regulation be weaned without danger or recreating the threat? To this extent, how much of the threat(s) are of the governments' making?

[WinstonHartnett]

This is of course highly subjective, but what piece of art/culture best captures what the feeling of a future world is like for you?

[Junker24]

With us discussing the imagination of existential threats, do you think the media and/or imaginations cause harm to the reality about Existential threats?

[brettkatz]

To what extent do you think artistic expression will shift due to changing technology in the underlying society? NFTs represent a shift in the mode in which art is expressed, but do you think the actual art itself is of a shifting style, or just a digital version of the same types of art?

[ChivLiu]

Thank you for coming to this class! I wonder how artists define their works realistic or not realistic. Are all scientific fictions not realistic?

[EmaanMohsin]

Do you think there are "incorrect" visualizations of the future? We know that there are several problems facing human civilizations today. However, there are depictions of the future that show our societies becoming exponentially better than we can imagine today (i.e. The Jetsons). Do you think these depictions of the future are "incorrect" or is there really no right way to visualize the future? Also, could these more optimistic interpretations be dangerous in creating a narrative that we are not heading towards destruction?

[chasedenholm]

Art is able to expand our imaginaries of the future and open our minds to various future scenarios. In terms of educating the population on climate change, is art going to be more of a common medium in the coming years? How would art sort of transform emotions regarding a specific threat? How does art extend a narrative about threat?

[benindeglia]

Art is one of the most important mediums for human communication. What do you think is the best way to try and convince modern culture that it is as important as science, that the expression of artist and this medium is a critical partner in the dance of doing what is best for humanity?

[isabelmw]

There are many themes, events, objects, experiences that science fiction novels and films first depict in their fictional world that have come to light in the real world later. This makes sense as these writers and directors are taking inspiration from the current world as they write on a future imaginary. The tv show Black Mirror is often basing the futuristic devices in their episodes off of a subdued version of what exists today. We even read about writers like William Gibson whose sci-fi books have contained predictions and plot points that have played out years later. So my question for you is, do you think sci-fi movies/novels have the power to speak/write their future imaginaries into existence? Of course the very nature of sci-fi material is it's an elaboration/prediction on what could happen in the future -- but do you think that the very act of putting the idea out there (for an object, event, technology, etc) has impact? If I write about a futuristic object I've invented and publish my work, am I increasing the likelihood of that thing coming into real existence later?

[ishaanpatel2022]

Do you think the artistic rendering of threats through art, film, novels etc. have the ability to enact change regarding existential threats? That is, do you believe the aforementioned methods can influence society and policy makers to enact true change so that we can lengthen the lifespan of our planet and humanity, or do they serve more as entertainment pieces that can frame threats in an engaging way?

[bbroner]

While there are many different apocalyptic stories out there, what do you think would be the key aspects of the next 6 months for America and the world if 95% of humans were suddenly wiped out?

[cjcampo]

Do publishers and producers of popular art/literature/film/culture that oversee projects dealing with existential threats or dystopias have a moral obligation to ground such universes in reality? More than anything else (other than maybe Twitter), is pop culture dictating the public sentiment around the question of if we are doomed or not?

[kaiyamerz]

Art about existential threats/challenges/dangers, to me at least, always seem to focus on things going wrong. Whether it be a world plunged into chaos after a global climate disaster, or a dystopian ai-ridden future. What, if anything, do you think this tells us about how humans understand and cope with looming threats? Why might movies/novels/art which portrays a world coming together to overcome and avoid a climate disaster be less commercially viable compared to a movie portraying the downfall to, or fallout from, a climate disaster (or any other existential threat)?

[dnaples]

While narratives and artistic representations of threats can make people empathize with the dangers, and potentially see how it could affect them, could they ever really drive the masses to action? While they can be accurate, I imagine most would still assume "oh well, that was just a story" and not real life. Also, with the rising popularity of virtual reality, is this something you think we will see play a large role in artistic representations of threats? And if so, do you think it would it be any more effective than a book, film, art installation or any other method of artistic imagination?

[jrgill-coder]

What types of portrayals of existential threats do you think are most effective at changing things on a policy level? What are some common characteristics of such pieces?

[ydeng117]

When we develop and depict our imagination of the future and threats, how should we demarcate between making the warnings about the potential threats and turning the threats into entertainment?

[nikereid]

What do you believe to be the most effective medium for inspiring the discussion of existential topics?

[laszler]

One issue with reporting/conveying news can sometimes be the oversimplification of certain events or concepts. What are some ways art can help make an issue accessible/understandable to the viewer without sacrificing the some of the information itself?

[shiruan-uchicago]

Gamers are a very intra-heterogeneous, complicated community in which there are a conspicuous proportion of cultural conservatives, incels, climate-change-deniers and Trump supporters. How can game industry crack that clan and change the ideological landscape of the gamers in the face of existential threats?

[nobro011235]

Throughout history, art has been an extremely poignant way to convince world leaders of important actions they need to take. A stunning recent example of this was during the recent refugee crisis in Europe, where a photograph of a refugee dying on the beaches of Europe was asked to be removed from the room where politicians were deliberating over steps to take to solve the crisis. Is there any issue that you think is "too big" for art? In other words, is it possible for art to properly showcase the damning realities of climate change or a possible nuclear holocaust?