Toni Morrison said a book is not “This is what I believe,” because that would be “just a tract.” Rather, a book is “I don’t know what it is, but I am interested in finding out what it might mean to me, as well as to other people.” This talk’s “I don’t know” is a concept that has been used to describe everything from language to a life stage to the creative power of the internet: generativity. Arguing against uncritical visions of generative AI, I frame generativity as a fact and a force at work across multiple scales of networked life. It is something people do together, and that might yet be done differently.
Kyle Parry is Assistant Professor of History of Art and Visual Culture at UC Santa Cruz. His research focuses on how people use and understand digital media. His forthcoming book, _A Theory of Assembly: From Museums to Memes_, proposes that a cultural form deserving of the name assembly has come to equal narrative and representation in its reach and influence. A second, co-edited book, _Ubiquity: Photography’s Multitudes_, reframes the ubiquity of photography as a political and historical fantasy. He’s working on a new book on generativity.
Date | Time
May 11, 2022 | 12:15 – 1:30 PM [PST]
RSVP by 11 AM on Wednesday, May 11th; you will receive the Zoom link and password at 11:30 AM the day of the colloquium.
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