Readout 1.19
Menlo Park, CA
In a collage of research insights and personal reflections, Readout 1.19 brings an intentional focus to artists, their unique function in society, and their untapped capacity to shape technological development. The document argues for positioning artists as "interpreters" who can bridge scientific innovation with human experience to mediate culture, establishing a foundation for more nuanced approaches to design and technology.
Year: 2019
Medium: Experimental publication
Technical:
Arts research
Theoretical writing
Diagrammatic elements
When I created this publication, I was using writing as a medium to organize my discontented thoughts around the ways modern technology was propagating itself and the realities it was immersing people in. As details about the Facebook–Cambridge Analytica data scandal were surfacing, it became clear that social thereby emotive technologies were manipulating personal data to induce subversive, emotionally charged narratives that engendered divisive realities. Readout 1.19 emerged as a critical reflection following Manifest 1.0, an art installation that demonstrated technology's capacity to facilitate profound moments of human connection. Where Manifest 1.0 proved that technology could create conditions for genuine human encounters, a case study and direct contradiction to predominant social technologies, Readout 1.19 provided the philosophical scaffolding to understand why and how.
Drawing from design theory, neuroscience, and artistic practice, the document contends that artists possess distinct capabilities to integrate technical innovation with cultural meaning — abilities that are increasingly vital as we navigate rapid technological change. By analyzing these practical insights alongside design theory, Readout 1.19 articulates a new vision for how artists can serve as "interpreters" who bridge innovation with human experience, centering artistic insight alongside scientific advancement. The theoretical framework that Readout 1.19 explores proved foundational to the development of more systemic approaches in my later work. Its emphasis on artists as mediators directly informs my interdisciplinary methodology, while its examination of emotion and cognition laid groundwork for the research project Resonance. Being able to articulate my approach to interdisciplinary art marked a pivotal milestone in my practice, representing a shift toward developing systems-level frameworks for cultural change.
