Mając nadzieję, że ta próba otworzy pewne nowe ścieżki badawcze, chcę w mojej książce raczej zapr... more Mając nadzieję, że ta próba otworzy pewne nowe ścieżki badawcze, chcę w mojej książce raczej zaproponować nowy język opisu i nowe metafory. W miejsce języka zakorzenionego w reprezentacjonizmie, który rządził opisem tradycyjnych mediów audiowizualnych (w tym także cyfrowych), takich jak film, wideo, telewizja czy wczesny etap internetu, oferuję pojęcia wskazujące na odmienny sposób wiązania obrazów z rzeczywistością. Podstawowa różnica polega na tym, że te obrazy są w nią często integralnie włączone, choć sposoby łączenia bywają niestabilne i rozproszone.
Mając nadzieję, że ta próba otworzy pewne nowe ścieżki badawcze, chcę w mojej książce raczej zapr... more Mając nadzieję, że ta próba otworzy pewne nowe ścieżki badawcze, chcę w mojej książce raczej zaproponować nowy język opisu i nowe metafory. W miejsce języka zakorzenionego w reprezentacjonizmie, który rządził opisem tradycyjnych mediów audiowizualnych (w tym także cyfrowych), takich jak film, wideo, telewizja czy wczesny etap internetu, oferuję pojęcia wskazujące na odmienny sposób wiązania obrazów z rzeczywistością. Podstawowa różnica polega na tym, że te obrazy są w nią często integralnie włączone, choć sposoby łączenia bywają niestabilne i rozproszone.
[w:] "Kultura medialnie zapośredniczona. Badania nad mediami w optyce kulturoznawczej" pod red. W. Chyły, M. Kamińskiej, P. Kędziory, M. Kosińskiej, Poznań 2010
„Acoustic Space” vol. 17, „Virtualities and Realities. New Experiences, Art, and Ecologies in Immersive Environments”, 2019
Published in „Acoustic Space” vol. 17, „Virtualities and Realities. New Experiences, Art, and Eco... more Published in „Acoustic Space” vol. 17, „Virtualities and Realities. New Experiences, Art, and Ecologies in Immersive Environments”, RIXC Center for New Media Culture, Riga 2019.
The paper focuses on the art projects aimed at visualizing (grasping) the physical or biological ... more The paper focuses on the art projects aimed at visualizing (grasping) the physical or biological phenomena through interfaces and / or installations designed specifically for such purpose. Such works often mirror the post-digital condition of our time where the digital technologies constitute the common background for everyday activities, no longer having the allure of “new” and “exciting” (Berry, Dieter et al., 2015). In this process, both the networked technologies of wireless communication and the act of crossing the boundaries between the digital and the physical play the crucial role as the post-digital networked imagery increasingly becomes directly connected to the physical environment.
I would like to ponder on the questions of processuality and relationality involved in such instances where the complexity of the hybrid works of art clearly transgresses the paradigm of representationalism (Thrift, 2008;; Anderson and Harrison, 2010;; Kember and Zylinska, 2012). The particular attention is given to the fact that such artworks bond different ontological realms (discursive, physical, digital) and different agents (human and non-human, carbon-based and software-based) forging “ontological coalitions” (Malafouris, 2013). Throughout the article the mutlirealist and relational perspective is offered, inspired by the propositions of Gilbert Simondon and Etienne Souriau.
Based on the research project supported by National Science Centre Poland (“The aesthetics of post-digital imagery: between new materialism and object-oriented philosophy”, 2016/21/B/HS2/00746)
In my paper, I aim at exploring specific materializations of ephemerality and meaning through the... more In my paper, I aim at exploring specific materializations of ephemerality and meaning through the recording of vocal expression. A case study is supplied by joik and joiking, a traditional form of singing by the Sami people of northern Scandinavia and Kola Peninsula. Believed to be one of the oldest music traditions of Europe, joik is not so much a way of “singing about” as it is rather the form of embodying a landscape, a person or an animal through vocally evoking their most specific characteristics thus binding the performer and his/her environment (both in terms of that which particular song is referring to and the immediate situation of the performance where the joiker relies on the ability of the audience to decipher the meaning). A focus on the particular joik, Renhjorden på Oulavuolie (Reindeers from Oulavuolie) by Nils Mattias Andersson shows the specificity of recorded vocalization as the practice of ambivalent materialization of meaning — elusive yet tangible enough to let the audience grasp the sense of place.
A riPOSTe to Thirteen Ways of Looking at Electronic Literature, or, A Print Essai on Tone in Ele... more A riPOSTe to Thirteen Ways of Looking at Electronic Literature, or, A Print Essai on Tone in Electronic Literature, 1.0. Indirectly responding to Callus's and Aquilina's essay, Anna Nacher finds a 14th way of describing e-literature: employing the Deleuzean concept of a "minor" style.
It is no doubt that the production of digital imagery invites for the major update of theoretical... more It is no doubt that the production of digital imagery invites for the major update of theoretical apparatus: what up until now was perceived solely or primarily as the stable representation of the world gives way to the image understood in terms of “the continuous actualization of networked data”[1] or “networked terminal”.[2] In my article I would like to argue that analysis of this new visual environment should not be limited to the procedures of data processing. What also invites serious investigation is acknowledging the reliance of contemporary media ecology on wireless communication which according to Adrian Mackenzie functions as “prepositions (‘at,’ ‘in,’ ‘with,’ by’, ‘between,’ ‘near,’ etc) in the grammar of contemporary media”.[3] It seems especially important in the case of the imagery accompanying some instances of internet of things, where the considerable part of networked imagery is produced in a fully automated and machinic way, as illustrated with my main example, Air Quality Egg.[4] This crowdsourced air pollution monitoring platform consists of networked sensors transmitting signals and data which are then visualized as graphs and maps through the IoT service provider, Xively.
Such examples prompt the need for a major reconfiguration of the theory of digital image beyond the constraints of representationalism[5] and also beyond what has already been named “new aesthetic”.[6] In my opinion focusing not so much on the ontology of digital imagery as on its ontogenesis plays a key role in such undertaking. In other words, the main point of interest shifts from image’s being in the world to its becoming with and in the world. Hence I would like to propose the processual and relational concept of image as energy exchange, to some extent inspired the philosophy of Gilbert Simondon, yet with a strong posthumanist twist. Such metaphor allows for another step needed to transform how we think about production of digital imagery: shifting the focus from purely human intentionality to the machinic, hybrid and distributed agencies.
The article focuses on the practices relevant for digital mapping based on dynamic data processin... more The article focuses on the practices relevant for digital mapping based on dynamic data processing and GIS. I argue that the participatory mapping contributes to and at the same time is symptomatic of the contemporary modes of collective knowledge production which in many cases takes on the form of data driven activism. The images being produced in the process are not so much representations of the city, as they are form of the knowledge formation, the dynamic images in the making and the instances of temporary “sedimentation” or “ossification” of the computing processes permeating social relations in current technological environments of hybrid space. Map in this case is navigational platform and performative practice as well, which leads us towards shift in scope of analysis: instead of paying most of the attention to what the image represents, focusing on the complex processes of its emergence and the mode of acting out in the world seems more relevant.
The main objective of this chapter is to contribute to a more dynamic understanding of the notion... more The main objective of this chapter is to contribute to a more dynamic understanding of the notion of paratext (Genette, 1997a). The author argues that in order to fully grasp the discourse of contemporary media objects, one has to focus on the networked, hyperconnective and fluid nature of today’s media environments (Jenkins, 2008; Varnelis, 2008), where content itself often seems secondary to the modes of its circulation. In this regard, the concept of paratext still provides a valuable framework of analysis, especially when related to the widespread programming and coding procedures of contemporary Web services. In order to enable such a dynamic understanding of the notion in the contemporary digital media environment, Genette’s proposition should be read not only (or primarily) as relating to the set of subtexts, “parasitic” texts, annotations and markers accompanying the “main” text, but first and fore- most as a semiotic-technological apparatus enabling the circulation of digital content across different media platforms. Such a re-reading also calls for an updated understanding of digital media, with more prominence given to the relational characteristics of the objects, as well as to the fluidity and dynamics of the processes of circulation, rather than to digital “objects” as such.
Dr Anna Nacher, dr Magdalena Zdrodowska
Institute of Audiovisual Arts, Jagiellonian University
... more Dr Anna Nacher, dr Magdalena Zdrodowska
Institute of Audiovisual Arts, Jagiellonian University
Kraków, Poland
Nodes and flows of Kraków urban cultural life
The paper discusses the dynamics of participation in urban cultural life in the age of postfordist affective capitalism based on the logics of activating particular consumer niches and cooptation of cultural resistance. The main point of interest is how the bottom-up, participatory and spontanous forms of cultural activity interweave with events and institutions of the official cultural offer of the city.
In 2012 in cooperation with Małopolska Institute of Culture we carried out a research project aimed at investigating the everyday practices of participation in Kraków cultural life. In particular we wanted to capture relationship between online activity within social media and various forms of experiential urban walks and movements. The offline and online actvity has been perceived as continous, according to the the concept of hybrid space [de Souza e Silva, 2006] and critique of “digital dualism” [Jurgenson, 2011]. Kraków is notoriously a place offering the rich palette of both everyday and artistic cultural pleasures ranging from classic city strolls along the historical routes of the old town to the possibilities of getting involved in the vibrant life of underground artistic initiatives, with thriving clubbing scene and a number of idenpendent venues. At the same time official discourse of Kraków marketing strategies is based on the concept of culture as a form of a capital and aimed at drawing the creative class [Florida, 2005; Glaeser, 2011]. Hence the significant amount of funds and energy is devoted to spectacular international cultural events, often dubbed locally “Big Festivals” and coordinated by Kraków Festival Office and organised as an umbrella project. Currently the city hosts twelve major festivals within such “Six Senses” scheme: among them two dedicated respectively to baroque and contemporary music (Misteria Paschalia and Sacrum Profanum), two festivals of literature (Conrad Festival and Miłosz Festival), a film festival (Off Plus Camera), a contemporary art festival (Grolsch Art Boom Festival) and a number of other important events.
It is interesting how in such densely woven urban fabric, the participants of city space create their own routes and how their practices of urban drifts both recreate and oppose the official marketing strategy of Kraków as the city of culture. Throughout our project we had a chance to examine some of the tactics employed to articulate the relationship between official and underground (the latter often disruptive toward the former) discourse of the city.
In my paper I would like to focus on various bottom-up tactics of articulating the opposition aga... more In my paper I would like to focus on various bottom-up tactics of articulating the opposition against dominating discourses through a cluster of practices organised around consumption of popular TV series in the enviroment of converging digital media. Poland, strongly marked by conservative identity ideologies (gender, national and political), in many regards can be perceived as peripheral, considering the global circulation of popular TV programmes and services (which does not mean total exclusion). Watching popular series is possible on cable TV but at the same time various semi-legal and illegal ways of getting favourite programmes proliferate among the audience (including recording from cable TV and further dissemination through You Tube and peer-to-peer networks or hacking proxy servers to get the access to Hulu.com). As some of those series often are marked with the history of inflicting serious conflicts and debates in the local context („Little Britain”, „Californication” or „Queer as Folk” come to mind), the participatory practices of Web 2.0 should be seen in the wider realm of cultural opposition: active consumption of TV texts may serve as a platform of proto-political community formation. It leads to the conclusion that the apparent technological end of television as we know it does not necessarily translates into disappearance of television at large, far from it – the practices formed through and around TV consumption still shape the basic features of new mediascape.
Meat, Metal & Code: Contestable Chimeras. STELARC / Mięso, metal i kod: rozchwiane chimery. STELARC, edited by Ryszard W. Kluszczynski, Centrum Sztuki Współczesnej / Centre for Contemporary Art, Gdansk 2014
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Books by Anna Nacher
Papers in Polish by Anna Nacher
I would like to ponder on the questions of processuality and relationality involved in such instances where the complexity of the hybrid works of art clearly transgresses the paradigm of representationalism (Thrift, 2008;; Anderson and Harrison, 2010;; Kember and Zylinska, 2012). The particular attention is given to the fact that such artworks bond different ontological realms (discursive, physical, digital) and different agents (human and non-human, carbon-based and software-based) forging “ontological coalitions” (Malafouris, 2013). Throughout the article the mutlirealist and relational perspective is offered, inspired by the propositions of Gilbert Simondon
and Etienne Souriau.
Based on the research project supported by National Science Centre Poland (“The aesthetics of post-digital imagery: between new materialism and object-oriented philosophy”, 2016/21/B/HS2/00746)
Such examples prompt the need for a major reconfiguration of the theory of digital image beyond the constraints of representationalism[5] and also beyond what has already been named “new aesthetic”.[6] In my opinion focusing not so much on the ontology of digital imagery as on its ontogenesis plays a key role in such undertaking. In other words, the main point of interest shifts from image’s being in the world to its becoming with and in the world. Hence I would like to propose the processual and relational concept of image as energy exchange, to some extent inspired the philosophy of Gilbert Simondon, yet with a strong posthumanist twist. Such metaphor allows for another step needed to transform how we think about production of digital imagery: shifting the focus from purely human intentionality to the machinic, hybrid and distributed agencies.
Chapter is available on the author's private website, https://nytuan.files.wordpress.com/2015/02/nacher-chap_desrochers-book.pdf (Fair Reuse Agreement with the publisher)
Institute of Audiovisual Arts, Jagiellonian University
Kraków, Poland
Nodes and flows of Kraków urban cultural life
The paper discusses the dynamics of participation in urban cultural life in the age of postfordist affective capitalism based on the logics of activating particular consumer niches and cooptation of cultural resistance. The main point of interest is how the bottom-up, participatory and spontanous forms of cultural activity interweave with events and institutions of the official cultural offer of the city.
In 2012 in cooperation with Małopolska Institute of Culture we carried out a research project aimed at investigating the everyday practices of participation in Kraków cultural life. In particular we wanted to capture relationship between online activity within social media and various forms of experiential urban walks and movements. The offline and online actvity has been perceived as continous, according to the the concept of hybrid space [de Souza e Silva, 2006] and critique of “digital dualism” [Jurgenson, 2011]. Kraków is notoriously a place offering the rich palette of both everyday and artistic cultural pleasures ranging from classic city strolls along the historical routes of the old town to the possibilities of getting involved in the vibrant life of underground artistic initiatives, with thriving clubbing scene and a number of idenpendent venues. At the same time official discourse of Kraków marketing strategies is based on the concept of culture as a form of a capital and aimed at drawing the creative class [Florida, 2005; Glaeser, 2011]. Hence the significant amount of funds and energy is devoted to spectacular international cultural events, often dubbed locally “Big Festivals” and coordinated by Kraków Festival Office and organised as an umbrella project. Currently the city hosts twelve major festivals within such “Six Senses” scheme: among them two dedicated respectively to baroque and contemporary music (Misteria Paschalia and Sacrum Profanum), two festivals of literature (Conrad Festival and Miłosz Festival), a film festival (Off Plus Camera), a contemporary art festival (Grolsch Art Boom Festival) and a number of other important events.
It is interesting how in such densely woven urban fabric, the participants of city space create their own routes and how their practices of urban drifts both recreate and oppose the official marketing strategy of Kraków as the city of culture. Throughout our project we had a chance to examine some of the tactics employed to articulate the relationship between official and underground (the latter often disruptive toward the former) discourse of the city.
Kraków Festival Office http://en.biurofestiwalowe.pl/
Six Senses http://www.6zmyslow.pl
de Souza e Silva, A., 2006, From Cyber to Hybrid. Mobile Technologies as Interfaces of Hybrid Spaces, “Space and Culture” no. 9
Florida, R. 2005, Cities and the Creative Class, New York and London: Routledge
Glaeser, E., 2011, Triumpf of the City. How Our Greatest Invention Makes Us Richer, Smarter, Greener, Healthier and Happier, New York: Penguin Press
Jurgenson, N., 2011, Digital Dualism versus Augmented Reality,
http://thesocietypages.org/cyborgology/2011/02/24/digital-dualism-versus-augmented-reality/ (accessed: 5.01.2012);
Jurgenson, N., 2011, Digital Dualism and the Fallacy of Web Objectivity,
http://thesocietypages.org/cyborgology/2011/09/13/digital-dualism-and-the-fallacy-of-web-objectivity/ (accessed: 5.01.2012).