Note on the morning session
So does capitalism result in the loss of enchantment? Did industrialization, as conceived of by the Frankfurt School, kill magic? A nice question to begin with. Jussi Parikka’s excellent talk is far too rich to summarise here, but it suggests a new kind of post industrial magic. Tracing a media technology trajectory through magical illusions – mirrors, projections, and film to the alchemy of the silicon business enterprise. The metallurgists and alchemists working at Apple transforming raw metals into new designed digital experiences.
This is all in sharp contrast to the claims of interaction designers who desire technology with a fun personality. Animistic design wherein technology becomes a peer to the human. The fun of it all. The magic of the AI enabled screen. Design for fun rather than getting things done. Wait till the marketers get a load of this… What kind of digital dystopia is this where fun becomes a marketing ploy. A digital capitalism fortified by the magicians in the marketing department that magically turn the labour of fun into new efficiencies and profit streams. How do you stop the corporates invading these animistic media ecologies? Where is the ethics in interactive design? Many questions unanswered.
Bring on a real magician to confirm our deepest fears. Most of us are fooled by the magic trick.
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VIRALITY 