PROJECT PHONETHICA – SERENDIPITY ENHANCER EXPLORER THE WORLD THROUGH THE PHONETICS

By TAKUMI ENDO

Project Phonethica is an interdisciplinary art project, which explores the world through the phonetics of language. Combining scientific technology with art, Project Phonethica maps out the diversity and similarity of the worlds 6,000 existing languages. Project Phonethica aims at developing a practical strategy for vigorous survival in the post-modernized society, which has been openly enjoying chaos as a conclusion of its own fragmentation.

INTRODUCTION

Project Phonethica began in Tokyo and Paris in 2004, aiming to collect fundamental data through a wide range of interviews with for example: artists, scientists, composers, linguists, phoneticians, anthropologists, philosophers, and sociologists. During this period of time, research has also been undertaken in order to develop Phonethica System – a computer system based on the phonetic feature of language

The project will be disseminated to the public in the form of online tools, interactive installations and other media in all over the world from 2007.

TAKUMI ENDO

Takumi Endo, Japanese, 1971, Artist, www.inexhale.net, www.phonethica.net, tkm(at)inexhale.net

Combining scientific technology and art, Takumi Endo seeks out a springboard for further evolution of human beings.

Kunitachi College of Music (Tokyo) / Bachelor of Music [1995]. Agency for Cultural Affairs, Japan (Bunka-Cho): Fellowship [2002]. The City of Paris and The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (France): Fellowship [2003]. POLA Art Foundation (Japan): Fellowship [2004]. Berliner Kunstlerprogramm des DAAD (Germany) : Fellowship [2005]. UNESCO-Aschberg Bursaries for Artists: Fellowship [2006]. Mitoh – Exploratory Software Project/IPA, Japan: Grant – Acknowledged as a “Super Creater” [2006]. MapXXL-Pepinieres Europeennes pour Jeunes Artistes  (European Union) : Fellowship [2007].

LOOKING ASIDE: COLLECTIVE CONSTRUCTS, AUTARCHIC ASSEMBLAGE

By ELIF AYITER and MURAT GERMEN

This paper describes a proposed electronic, art educational syllabus/methodology focusing primarily on, but not limited to Web 2 communal photography; one which aspires to translate Arthur Koestler’s definition of creativity as a process of “thinking aside”, into an educational approach which can be characterised as “looking aside”; of which, associative content, materialising as a confluence of text and image; as well as the layering and clustering of images, ideas and concepts into complex creative structures/systems are envisioned as the basic building blocks.

ELIF AYITER and MURAT GERMEN

Elif Ayiter, Turkish, 1953, full-time professor, Sabanci University, Visual Arts and Communication Design Program, http://www.citrinitas.com, ayiter(at)sabanciuniv.edu. Artist, designer and educator, specialising in the development of hybrid educational methodologies between art & design and computer sciences. She has presented research output at conferences including Siggraph, Consciousness Reframed, Creativity and Cognition and Computational Aesthetics. Ayiter is currently studying for a doctoral degree at the Planetary Collegium, CAiiA hub at the University of Plymouth.

Murat Germen, Turkish, 1965, full-time professor, Sabanci University, Visual Arts and Communication Design Program, http://www.muratgermen.com, muratgermen(at)sabanciuniv.edu. Artist, photographer, architect and educator. Having many articles, photo essays published on architecture, photography, art, digital design at various magazines & books; he has presented in several seminars, symposia and conferences like Siggraph, eCAADe. Germen has opened over thirty inter/national (Turkey, USA, Italy, UK, Uzbekistan, Greece, Japan) exhibitions. He has been invited as a jury member for reputed national photography competitions.

CULTURAL EVOLUTION AND THE INTERNET: A CRITICAL INQUIRY RESPECTING THE CONVERGENCE OF ART & SCIENCE

By HANS H. DIEBNER

VIRAL DYNAMICS

Memetics is a controversially debated evolutionary theory of culture. The basics have been introduced by the notorious popular scientific writer R. Dawkins (1976) in his book "The Selfish Gene" as an analogy to genetics. In his view, a "meme" corresponds to a "cultural gene" that determines "cultural evolution" through its "cultural fitness." The theory affected people in either a fascinated or an averse way. This is partially because of Dawkins’ rather extreme social Darwinistic thinking and anti-religious attitude: "Religion is an evil virus of the mind." (Dawkins 2006).

Although memetics is widely regarded as an immature theory (Blackmore et al. 2000) – I agree –, it has nevertheless migrated as a fundamental paradigm into what is called "sociophysics" and "econophysics" and, more relevant for the general public, into "viral marketing" (Hermann 2004). The propagation and survival of trends, ideas, opinions, and so on – i.e., of memes – is described within the memetic approach on the basis of epidemiological models. The analogy between the propagation of memes and the spread of viruses motivated the notion of "viral marketing", which is often synonymously used for "Guerilla marketing." Innovative measures that are often related to the networked structure of the internet like the famous "Moorhuhn" video game or YouTube’s "lonlygirl" phenomenon try to brake up traditional marketing design. At a first glance, nothing reminds to advertising. Instead, the activities appear like art or other subversive activities. A gradual dissolution of the borders between art, science, and economics can be observed. Analogously, there exists an increasing community within the arts called "Guerilla art" (e.g. Bielicky 2007), which also explicitly refers to viral dynamics of word-of-mouth.

Innovative measures in marketing and design are accompanied by dynamical models and monitoring systems in order to predict trends and to intervene accordingly. IT and the internet are vital for the viral marketing success. There is no doubt that the internet has the potential to support enlightenment. The reverse of the "medal" is the growing risk for the society to be "designed."

HANS H. DIEBNER

Hans H. Diebner (*1960) is currently project manager at the Institute for New Media, Frankfurt/Main, Germany. From August 1999 till December 2005 he used to be founding director of the Institute for Basic Research at the Center for Art and Media in Karlsruhe, Germany. He received his physics diploma degree in 1994 and the doctoral degree in 1999, both supervised by Otto E. Rössler, in the fields of complex systems research. His current focus is "Performative Science and Operational Hermeneutics". Confer: H.H. Diebner: Performative Science and Beyond, Springer, Wien, 2006. For details see http://diebner.de