Ghost in the Machine | Group exhibition curated by Erik Berglin

ERIK BERGLIN / TOVE KJELLMARK / DANIEL EATOCK (GB) / MIKAELA STEBY STENFALK / CLEMENT VALLA  (US) / RAHA RASTIFARD / PER ENGLUND / FLORIAN APPELT (AT) / DAVID ÅBERG

The recent development of artificial intelligence as a creator of both text and visual material has begun to seriously question the artist's privileged position. At the same time, modern technology offers new possibilities for artistic expression and exploration, and has consequently become an integral part of many artists' practices. The exhibition Ghost in the Machine brings together nine different artists who work with technology in a curious way, and where the machine is assigned the role of co-creator.

Do machines think, can they be creative? In 1997, chess computer Deep Blue defeated the reigning world champion Garry Kasparov. It has since then been argued that glitches, malfunctions caused by incomplete code, resulted in the chess computer’s surprising and random moves. The same kinds of "glitches" are present in several of the works presented in the exhibition Ghost in the Machine. Advanced technology is coupled with the use of analog methods, but in both cases the apparatus is significant to the visual outcome.

The exhibition lends its title from British philosopher Gilbert Ryle and his critique of Cartesian dualism. The concept refers to the belief that human consciousness exists independently of the physical body – like a ghost in the machine. In an attempt to reverse this reasoning, the exhibition aims to show examples of how machines can make art together with human intervention.

/ Erik Berglin, curator and artist