Ensouled Things
07 | 2015
›Ensouled Things. Design from the Perspective of Animism.‹ was a conference which I organized at Hochschule Niederrhein. It aimed to discuss objects that are technologically enchanted, or that gain agency during social interaction.
In the 19th century, animism was regarded as a naive misconception of children, the mentally ill or indigenous people. They were blamed to treat objects as if they were alive. Yet, due to technological innovations, some kind of techno-animism seems to re-emerge. What is going on, when people start to talk with their phones or wave to their heating system? Moreover, how do designers handle or create anthropomorphism, magical behavior or acting things? Do we need a renewal of negotiating concepts of subjectivity and objectivity?
The topic of the conference was closely related to my doctoral thesis.
Talks of Prof. Dr. Hartmut Böhme,
Prof. Andreas Muxel, Prof. Dr. Georg Kneer, Judith Seng, Dr. Susanne Witzgall and myself were part of the program.
Cooperation:
The visual identity of the conference was created within a student project I lead with
Pictures:
Sarah Hüttenberendt, Karolin Krülls.
