about PUBlicIMAGinING


~artistic concept~
to instigate processes of re-factoring of surveillance video cams 
(technology, economy and power relations of survailling public)
to fit the purpose of observation by/for the public good 
(inpowering activists, urbanists, researchers, designers...)

~theoretical discourse~ 
to investigate, map, develop and present discourses/work that reflect on:
   * commercialization and demise of public space 
     (as well as it's normalization to standards of "globalization")
   * limits of reactionary critique of surveillance among researchers/activists
   * observation capacity of public (very short, fragmented and inarticulated),
   * possibility of establishing communal media/network resources 
     (clustering technology, expertise and knowledge)

~speculative design~
for a media system for observing slow changes in public space:
   * presentation material that would support discourse/theory in:
     - public sphere (posters, ADs and installations) 
     - cultural/academic environment (publications and events)
   * slow cam - open access observation webcam systems could act as
     a[r|c]tivist's equivalent to surveillance camera systems
   * compiling movies - imaging collections, meta information, media
     and social tools for producing integrated visual media - arteFACTS


INVESTIGATIONS:
*  can networks of tactical&locative media and social&free
software design digital tools to be utilised by general public and
inpower and instigate new models of collective visual memory
*  can use of libraries of aggregated images as tools of
increasing public's attention span and perception grasp 
(time scale : long now)
*  can collective participation in production and ownership of
images generate more social responsibility public awareness and more
involvement in issues of urban/visual/economic changes


APPLICATIONS:
* to experiment with diverse setups of slow cam (preferably but
not exclusively) in South East Europe where this is urgent meter and
changes are evident/obvious, while pubic feels powerless and lacks
illustrative and visual arguments to support the critique.
* to develop a website that would document the project as well as
support use of visual media from SlowCAM (and other sources) and tools
as CompilingMovies (and others) to produce integrated visual media

PUBlicIMAGinING

project initiated by Željko Blaće as speculative design research at Jan van Eyck Academie in Maastricht, on the topic of visual mediation and civic engagement with urban space. Its aims are set: to articulate proactive discourse in theoretical research and examine and test strategies of engagemnet with public in event series. Its production aspect is set in speculative design of open, participatory and distributed media sysyem prototyps that operate as tools for systemic visual observation of urban spaces and utilizing their visual outputs...

Project aims to establish a discourse of a proactive engagement through:
a) designing a prototype media system for the collective production of observation images of urban public spaces, producing visual material that would support different perception modes focusing on suble environmental changes, over a longer periods of time;
b) promoting praoctive discourse and engaging public with articulation of public space (utilizing: posters, public actions, serveys, installations...) and desimanating it in academic environment (using publications, events and conducting workshops)
Production aspects of the project are set to experiment with SlowCAM setups, development of a website that would document/support project development and tools as CompilingMovies as integrated visual media...more on PUBlicIMAGinING!