“Posthuman Rituals” presented by Rajcic and McCormack
Symposium:
Session Title:
- Rituals, Consciousness and Technology
Presentation Title:
- Posthuman Rituals
Presenter(s):
Venue(s):
Abstract:
As we become increasingly entangled with digital technologies, the boundary between the human and the machine is progressively blurring. A posthumanist perspective embraces this ambiguity, giving primacy not to the individual agents that comprise a system, but to the relationships between them. In this hyperconnected age, our relationships with technology mediate and mould our perceptions of reality, and now they are beginning to define us. This research project explores new possibilities for human-machine relationships, moving away from relationships marked by habitual, unconscious behaviours towards those imbued with intention and meaning. Three works: Mirror Ritual, Message Ritual, and Worn Ritual take inspiration from the mutual entailment of matter and meaning in the dynamic configuring and re-configuring of self-identity. The proposed relationships are not intended to replace or imitate existing ritual practices among humans, but to inspire new forms of shared meaning in the human and non-human assemblages of contemporary culture.
