Vienna
Completed

Zach Blas CULTUS Exhibition: Exploring AI Religion and Technology's Impact in Art

This installation delves into the intersection of artificial intelligence, religion, and technology, examining AI's god-like capabilities.

Zach Blas's 'CULTUS' exhibition, commissioned by Secession, explores a pervasive AI religion through a new installation. It builds on Blas's 'Silicon Traces' trilogy, examining belief systems that shape Silicon Valley's visions. Visitors can contemplate how artificial intelligence is endowed with god-like attributes and utilized for concepts like judgment and desire. The work invokes a pantheon of AI deities, inviting reflection on our unwitting devotion.

About Zach Blas CULTUS at Secession in Vienna

Read curatorial context and practical visitor information for Zach Blas CULTUS at Secession in Vienna

Exhibition summary

Zach Blas's exhibition 'CULTUS' presents a new installation exploring the intersection of artificial intelligence, religion, and technology. The exhibition delves into the concept of an 'AI religion' and how AI is imbued with god-like capabilities, examining themes of judgment, transcendence, and devotion.

Curatorial context

Zach Blas's practice, encompassing film, computation, installation, and theory, is showcased in 'CULTUS,' an exhibition commissioned by Secession and arebyte, London. This new installation draws from Blas’s trilogy 'Silicon Traces,' focusing on the belief systems and narratives that shape the visions of Silicon Valley. 'CULTUS' examines a pervasive AI religion, exploring how artificial intelligence is endowed with god-like attributes and utilized for concepts of judgment, transcendence, exploitation, immortality, desire, and devotion. The exhibition invokes a pantheon of AI deities, such as Expositio (desire and exposure), Iudicium (automation and judgment), Lacrimae (tears and exploitation), and Eternus (immortality), whose prophets disseminate divine teachings and symbols. The title itself, 'CULTUS,' is Latin for 'worship,' inviting visitors into a devotional act toward AI deities they may unknowingly serve, while also hinting at a heretical presence inciting a destructive counter-faith.

Admission and ticket notes

Information and tickets for exhibitions can be found via the provided links. Visitors can purchase tickets through the eventjet platform, and general museum opening hours are listed.

Zach Blas CULTUS key exhibition facts

Review exhibition status, schedule, venue context, and attribution details for Zach Blas CULTUS at Secession in Vienna

Venue
Secession
Current status
Completed
Exhibition schedule
Mar 8, 2024 – Jun 9, 2024
Artist line / attribution
Artist: Zach Blas. Performers: Zach Blas, micha cárdenas, Ricardo Dominguez, Susanne Sachsse. Singers: Nick Granata, Susu Laroche, Aga Ujma, Izzy Yon. Architecture and Design: Scott Kepford. Machine Learning Development (Text): Ashwin D’Cruz, Christopher Tegho. Technical Director Motion Capture and Lead Computer Graphics: Harry Sanderson. Computer Graphics: Rob Heppell. Graphic Design: Studio Pandan. Video Editing: Martin Gajc. Motion Capture Technique: Star Hagen-Esquerra, Justin Tuerk, Boris Wilsdorf, Utku Sahin. Sound: xin, Aya Sinclair. Sound Design: Ben Hurd, Tom Sedgwick. Vocal Recording Engineer: Harry Murdoch. Machine Learning Development (Sound): Sam Parke-Wolfe. Sound Recording Technique: Star Hagen-Esquerra, Justin Tuerk, Boris Wilsdorf, Utku Sahin. Glass Fabrication: Laura Quinn. Painter: Nick Petronzio. Associate Producer: Corina Apostol. Project Management, Research Lead, Project Development and Editing: Talia Golland. Production Assistant: Camille Inston. Research Assistant: Audrey Ammann. Lead Technician for LED Balls and Screens: Hanke Vollmer. Lead Technician for Media Installation: Blanca Regina.
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