The Future Behind Us

Throughout history, artists have engaged with scientific and technological developments to improve creative tools, conceive radical experiments or critique the ethical motives and socio-political implications of innovations. Just like the technologies they used and investigated, in the minds of the public, many artworks are quickly replaced by new ones.

How do contemporary artists reflect on projects they developed five, ten or even twenty years ago?

Have their artistic visions aged along with the (then) innovative technologies their work examined?

Were they naïve or visionary in their interpretation of techno-scientific progress?

Were their anxieties premonitory or unfounded?

The podcast, hosted by curator, blogger and art critic Régine Debatty, explores the lessons drawn from past artistic experiments with technology that have been considered provocative, critical and ground-breaking. Featuring guests Trevor Paglen, Nora Al-Badri, UBERMORGEN, Jill Magid, Paolo Pedercini from Molleindustria, Evan Roth, !Mediengruppe Bitnik, Sanela Jahić, Pinar Yoldas and Maja Smrekar, it examines how innovations have evolved through the eyes of artists and how much their insights remain relevant today. The conversations also delve into anecdotes, challenges and the impacts these projects have had on the artists’ careers.