This year's festival is all about the 'Kepler's Garden'. The 'Bozar garden' will be titled Speculating about the future. Collaborations between art, technology, science and AI speculate about the future and look for new opportunities for our future. The role of the artist? A catalyst that can inspire and trigger innovative processes. Have a look at the three events we have in store for you!
09.09 STARTS Talk: Art & Tech for Urban Resilience
The concept of the ultra-technological and connected "smart city" has given way, in the light of climate change and health crisis, to that of the search for a resilient and sustainable city, enhancing accessibility, social inclusion, and citizen wellbeing. What place should be given to the dialogue between art, science and technology in this transition process? How can artists help to create new collective imaginaries, spaces for reflection and criticism for the future of our cities? All these questions and many more will be discussed during this STARTS Talk.
This event is co-organised in partnership with French Tech Grande Provence.
12.09 Talk: Genetic Biotech through the eyes of artists
Modern biotechnology is developing very quickly. In Prometheus' footsteps, we use new biological tools to transform our healthcare and wellbeing. In the future, researchers may develop personal medications and therapies that stop us feeling fatigue or pain, or babies with the DNA of three people that may have been made resistant to COVID19. But these applications are not without danger. Some activists and critics point to the possible social and ethical consequences: what if only the super-rich can make their children more athletic and intelligent?
In the light of current debates on the use of genetic modification, BOZAR, Gluon and the Flemish Institute for Biotechnology (VIB) invite the public to a guided tour in the most fascinating labs in Europe, and discuss scientific, ethical and social issues of the latest technology used in biology labs, through the eyes of artists from the Studiotopia art&science residency programme, Kuang-Yi Ku and Sandra Lorenzi.
13.09 AI x Music Festival: Bot Bop
Musical creation and innovation with AI
BOZAR will also be part of the AI x Music Festival with our garden. Live coding expert and drummer Dago Sondervan and multi-instrumentalist Andrew Claes team up for an experimental exploration of artificial intelligence in music performance. Armed with an arsenal of specifically developed tools and applications, the duo will train a virtual agent towards musical autonomy and realtime interaction, becoming a trio along the way.
After the performance there will be a panel discussion with the artists and some guests where amongst other things the developing process of the new project will be discussed. In addition, they will debate about the importance and challenges of using AI modules in live music performances, more specifically in live impro-settings. Can there be a real live discussion between man and machine? How do the artists see the future off these technologies? What can art organisations do in developing these kind of new projects?
Our programmer Roel Vanhoeck will give you a glimpse of BOZAR's programme in the context of AI X MUSIC.
Discover more
The BOZAR garden is just the tip of the iceberg. More than 100 cities/countries take part in the Ars Electronica Festival with their own programme. Discover other European gardens from Athens and Amsterdam, among others.
