an exhibition within the scope of ever elusive—thirty years of transmediale
February 2–March 5, 2017
On the occasion of its 30 year anniversary transmediale presents the special exhibition alien matter, curated by Inke Arns, at Haus der Kulturen der Welt. The exhibition will be on view from February 2 to March 5, 2017 within the scope of ever elusive—thirty years of transmediale.
“Alien matter” refers to man-made, and at the same time, radically different, potentially intelligent matter. It is the outcome of a naturalization of technological artifacts. Environments shaped by technology result in new relationships between man and machine. Technical objects, previously defined merely as objects of utility, have become autonomous agents. Their capacity to learn and network throws into question the previously clear and dominant division between active subject and passive object.
30 exhibiting artists from Berlin and around the world present works about shifts within such power structures, raising questions about the state of our current environment and whether it has already passed the tipping point, becoming alien matter. Content-wise, the works cluster around four thematic focal points: Artificial intelligence, plastics, infrastructure, and the Internet of Things—subcategories that are deemed to merge into the nascent great machine and thereby, to speak with Günther Anders, are future obsolete.
Exhibiting artists: Aliens in Green (Bureau d’études, Ewen Chardronnet, Mary Maggic, Julien Paris, Špela Petrič), Morehshin Allahyari & Daniel Rourke with Ami Drach & Dov Ganchrow, Joey Holder and Kuang-Yi Ku, Constant Dullaart, Ignas Krunglevičius, Mark Leckey, Joep van Liefland, Jeroen van Loon, Nicolas Maigret & Maria Roszkowska with Jonathan Beilin & Magnus Pind Bjerre, Katja Novitskova, Sascha Pohflepp, Johannes Paul Raether, Evan Roth, Suzanne Treister, Addie Wagenknecht, YoHa, and Pinar Yoldas
The program is accompanied by a series of dialogic tours together with curator Inke Arns and various guests such as Suzanne Treister, Thibaut de Ruyter, and Joep van Liefland, as well as thematic panels held during the festival. Read more
External venue: As part of alien matter, the DAZ (Deutsches Architektur Zentrum) hosts the work Plastic Raft of Lampedusa by artist duo YoHa.
Partner exhibitions: The group show On the Far Side of the Marchlands at the Ernst Schering Foundation is a partner exhibition to alien matter. It explores the potential of radically new topographies—border regions (marchlands) created by artists and composed of inextricably linked realms of experience, culture, and materiality.
Additionally, panke.gallery initiates a critical evaluation of 1990s net art in Berlin with the exhibition Net art of the Berlin in the 1990s: a critical evaluation and a series of panel presentations.
Related program
Exhibition Dialogues: Curator Inke Arns in conversation
with Suzanne Treister
February 5, 11am–12pm
with Thibaut de Ruyter
February 12, 4–5pm
with Marie Lechner
February 19, 4–5pm
with An Paenhuysen
February 26, 4–5pm
with Joep van Liefland
March 5, 4–5pm
