OH-MAN, OH-MACHINE CONFERENCE

 

 

The OH-MAN, OH-MACHINE conference was established in collaboration with the Tel Aviv University and the Midrasha Faculty of the Arts. It aims to be a meeting point for scholars in the humanities, natural sciences and the arts; Its goal is to expand our understanding of the complex relationship between, man, nature, and technology. The theme of the first conference was “The Politics & Aesthetics of Posthumanism”. Its keynote lectures were delivered by Dr. Sherryl Vint and Dr. Stefan Herbrechter – both leading scholars in the field of Posthumanism. In parallel to the conference, Udi Edelman and Daniel Landau curated the exhibition “HeLa - Forms of Human Existence”. Among the participating artists: Oron Catts, Ionat Zurr, Avi Pitchon, Aya Ben Ron and Aïm Deüelle Lüski. In its second year, the conference partnered with the Print Screen Festival in which we examined the figure of the cyborg with artists Neil Harbisson and Moon Ribas. The keynote lecture was given by Dr. Francesca Ferrando, under the title: “Live as a Posthuman: Posthumanism as a Practice of Existence”.

 

This year, the conference will address the relationship between biology and technology, between the organic and the mechanical. Are they in competition, or do they work in tandem? Do they strive to merge? Is this a ‘natural’ merge or a ‘hostile takeover’? Are there philosophical and practical gaps between these worlds, and which vantage point do we approach them from?