What to Expect
Ian McLagan & The Bump Band
This year we have assembled a masterclass of amazing performers, artists, speakers and showstoppers. While it is important that the event comprehensively focuses on the “Living Systems” theme, it should be remembered that it is also time to party after a day of high-powered panels at SXSWi or SXSW Film, or just a tiring day at the “office”.
Topping the music bill is Ian McLagan & the Bump Band – ‘Mac‘ is a genuine dyed-in-the wool rock’n’roller and former member of the legendary Small Faces and the Faces.
He has toured and recorded with: The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Bonnie Raitt, Bruce Springsteen, Taj Mahal, John Hiatt, David Lindley, Paul Westerberg, Billy Bragg and Patty Griffin, to name some but hardly all of the notables that McLagan has worked with over his fourplus decade career.
The Heather Gold Show
The Heather Gold Show is back again. Her show is a live and online experience that brings together diverse passionate people and you to talk about questions you care about.
Heather is a geek comedian who likes truth, people and making connections. She does this on stage, page and screen and interactively when she can.
Bruce Sterling
World-renowned science fiction author, Bruce Sterling, best known for his novels and his seminal work on the Mirrorshades anthology, which helped define the cyberpunk genre, will be showcased.
Sandy Stone
Sandy Stone from ActLab, back from the Fourth International Workshop on Technologies of the Body, will perform on the frontier of cyborg, gender, and cultural studies, feminist theory, and media production.
Two of the key aspects of Plutopia, 2009 involve the convergence of sustainability with interactive technologies and environmental interfaces. A number of this year’s participants cover such themes such as Christian Kerrigan and his 200 Year Continuum Project. This project explores the possibilities of a symbiotic relationship between two different systems of organization, technology and nature. Christian, an architect & Editor of The Space Between magazine, investigates in his recent work how man’s ability to control his surroundings is intimately linked with his advancing capabilities of using technology, where we are now capable of creating design criteria to manipulate natural growth and development.
Ocean Conservancy promotes healthy and diverse ocean ecosystems and opposes practices that threaten ocean life and human life. Ocean Conservancy believes it’s time to understand that going green starts with living blue. It’s time to start a sea change.
Living systems considered from a different angle involves the work of Jonathan Cohen with his section on Corporate Social Responsibility & Living Systems and Joe Davis-Fleming whose work deals with socio-economic determinants that influence health care disparities between multi-racial/ethnic communities, both domestically and globally, as well as possible models for remedying the resulting inequities that exist in healthcare delivery systems.
There will be art exhibitions relating the “Living Systems” theme with exhibits from as far afield as Bangkok through the work of Sarawut Chutiwongpeti with his visions of Dystopia and Utopia. Sarawut is interested in finding out how contemporary art can enhance the distribution of information and foster a profound universality in the human nature and cross-cultural artistic and critical collaboration.
Two of the most important and inspirational participants are Stanza from London and the Black Pig Liberation Front from Boston.
Stanza creates coded abstract interactive paintings, generative artworks, mashups, and even DNA based installations. He is probably best known for his long-term Emergent City project, which uses sensor networks to create knowledge and interfaces about urban living. Recent exhibitions include in Venice Beinnale, Tate Britain, Sao Paulo Biennale Brasil, Immedia USA, and Museo Tamayo Arte Contemporaneo in Mexico, The Digital Hub Dublin.
The Black Pig Liberation Front is a killer ritualistic terror and love ensemble complete with grunt ‘n’ groove DJs led by Denis Mahoney. They have worked with Sonic Youth, J Mascis, DJ Spooky, Mike Watt, Blag Flag and many leading lights from the New York scene. Their performance here will use scenes from Josip Beuys and the idea of art as a living system
itself while reviewing the situationist history of psycho-geography.
In addition, there will be everything from fashion shows using non-traditional materials, robotic fortune telling, immersive musical instruments, an interactive Steampunk couch, robot paintings, Aztec Temples, sound sculptures and DJs such as the infamous David Demaris as Dr Strangevibe, Thomas Fang’s Furby Youth Choir and much more.
