MINI SYMPOSIA at AIL Vienna
2023 – 2026
Over the course of the project, a number of mini-symposia have been held at the AIL in Vienna. Here are two examples:
In autumn 2023, the first trans- and interdisciplinary mini-symposium, entitled “Future Relations Dinner DIGITALIS”, took place on the theme of “SENSING LIVING SYSTEMS x AI and Programming”. Experts from the University of Applied Arts and other higher education institutions, as well as from the business world, were invited. All participants brought their favourite dishes, and the shared meal – for eating is one of the few activities that people still engage in with their whole body and using all their senses – provided an excellent setting for the exchange of expertise and insights.
Thus, this conceptual dinner (over the past ten years, MUELLER-DIVJAK has already conceived and implemented numerous different Future Relations Dinners) paved the way for a fruitful exchange of knowledge and ideas in this field. Among those taking part in the dinner and the sensual symposium were Dániel Béres, Martin Reinhart, Konrad Pannagger, Alexandra Graupner, Anna-Maria Irgang, Jeanette Müller and Paul Divjak.
In winter 2024, a Mini-Symposium and Learning Studio was held at AIL in Vienna to synthesize emerging insights from the project. Together with system theorists Felix Tretter, Anita Lung, and Stefan Blachfellner, the SENSING LIVING SYSTEMS core team, explored how scenographic studies can embody fundamental principles of living systems.
Using the installation SENSING THEORY – Shredding Cognitive Overload as a starting point, participants discussed which aspects of General System Theory become sensually and physically perceivable through such artistic interventions. System scientists were invited to engage directly with the scenographic installation, testing their potential to foster embodied understanding of living systems and critically reflecting on their relevance and impact.
