Digital Bodies | Digital Worlds is the work of the Polis group, which explores themes related to virtual and postmodern urban environments and their inhabitants. DB|DW is a virtual art show, which will be available online and on credit-card sized CDr. The show will investigate the aesthetics of radical trans- and posthuman scenarios, such as the relationship between virtual bodies and their environments.

The show will initially be implemented in Second Life, and will be unveiled on December 21st, 2008.

Background:

The Polis group was formed in 2001 by Amon Twyman, Adrian Giddings, Darryl Banks, Vaughan Williams, and Charles Horn. Polis is an art group which explores themes related to virtual and postmodern urban environments and their inhabitants, such as digital arts and transhumanism. Polis is both the group of contributors, and the sum of the groups' work.

A central theme in the groups' work is the development of virtual environments using the VRML97, Second Life, and other 3D modelling formats. See the links on the right for the Polis member sites, access to the free plug-in that you will need to view VRML environments with your browser, and some examples of VRML environments.

The Polis group is planning a virtual art show, which will be put online and distributed in locations around the world on business card sized CDr. The theme and title of the show is "Digital Bodies | Digital Worlds". The intention is to explicitly investigate the aesthetics of radical posthuman scenarios which are implied by many themes of transhumanist discussion.

For example, "uploaded" humans and artificial intelligences would be able to shape their (virtual) bodies and worlds at will: what possibilities exist beyond the tired imaginings of Hollywood science fiction? Might virtual environments be used to augment human cognitive performance, thereby acting as a stepping stone to a posthuman future?

The show will consist of a series of "white cube" rooms, each containing a virtual work by a single artist. What constitutes a single work of art will be primarily discerned in terms of thematic consistency (therefore contributions may be composed of multiple elements or media, as long as those elements are seen to constitute a single statement on the show's theme).

The show will be developed in three phases, and after the third deadline, the show will be distributed. The first phase involves completion of the first "ring" of rooms contributed by Polis group members, providing a template for later contributors to follow. Phase 1 will be unveiled December 21st 2008. The second and third phases will involve invitations being sent out to artists, designers, and other interested parties to submit contributions. Phases 2 & 3 will be opened in 2009.

Note: Individual contributors need not already be VRML97 or Second Life developers, as the final assembly of the virtual gallery will be completed by the project team (for example, an artist may simply submit a 2D image or a piece of text, which will later be translated into the 3D environment).

Get Involved - email the project leader!

- Do you have an artwork, or an idea for an artwork, which you would like to submit for contribution to the show? Remember, works need not respect the categories of "traditional" media, and you do NOT need to have experience with Second Life or VRML97.

- If you do have experience with VR or 3D programming, would you like to help with assembly of the various contributed works into the final gallery space?

- Do you have any experience or contacts within the art world which may be receptive to this kind of work, for the purposes of distribution or planning associated shows in "real world" art spaces?

- Do you have any experience with/enthusiasm for writing commentaries on art works? We will need someone to edit artists' summaries of their works, to write an introduction to the show and its themes, and to write/distribute press releases for the show - to be distributed on the net and at art spaces at various locations around the world.