KAPITAL CREATION

Set within the largest infrastructure buildout in the history of mankind, “Kapital Creation: Chasing the Chinese Dream” examines the urban explosion of Beijing through the eyes of creatives who see the need for a different future and why the rest of the planet is bound to their fate. Once a majestic imperial city, Beijing is now one of the largest urban sprawls in China with over twenty million people and rising. From here the Chinese state sets new precedents for the rest of the country using propaganda and censorship. It is becoming clear, however, that the city is tearing up its past in order to build an uncertain future. “Kapital Creation” tells the story of artists, musicians, architects, and writers striving to forge a new path forward, and why this is absolutely critical not only for China, but also the rest of the world.

This century belongs to the city. An additional 2.7 billion people are anticipated to live in metropolitan regions around the world by 2050 and the ecological fate of the planet is bound to their lives. The Megacity Initiative is a new media venture that seeks to illuminate this process of urbanization through films, exhibitions, journalism, and a mobile platform allowing people to respond to and potentially participate in city planning. Urgent challenges are facing developing metropolitan regions around the world, and they need new ways to champion sustainable development, social equity, and more accountable municipal governance. Research is conducted with the support of the MIT Center for Advanced Urbanism, Columbia University’s Studio-X, and the Pulitzer Center for Crisis Reporting. Check out more here: The Atlantic Citylab – Vice Motherboard – The New Republic – Sensorium Works.

CYBORG FUTURES

Cyborg Futures, an interactive performance and exhibition platform produced in collaboration with the Cyborg Foundation, introduces audiences to the potential of expanded perceptual realms through the art of Neil Harbisson, Moon Ribas, and other cyborg practitioners who are reimagining the creative applications of cybernetics. Understanding the inner workings of the mind and how to interface them with computers is quickly becoming a reality. Such use of cybernetics and sensory augmentation is opening a massive spectrum of new possibilities for artistic practices that confound both a sense of self and the outside world. These technologies will continue to deliver increasingly immersive multimedia experiences and advanced brain computer interfaces. Cyborg Futures introduces the possibilities of expanded bodily and mental dispositions that allow for new forms of communication, exploration, and expression.