Machine Experience

A one-week exhibition at the Harvard Art Museums’ Lightbox Gallery asks where artificial intelligence is headed—and how art can help us explore the world we are making.
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Location
Cambridge, MA

MACHINE EXPERIENCE

The possibilities of artificial intelligence have long seemed futuristic and far-fetched. Today, however, AI technology is making its impact felt in such real-world realms as autonomous vehicles, online searches and feeds, and the criminal justice system.

In conjunction with the Berkman Klein Center and MIT Media Lab’s recently announced Ethics and Governance of AI Initiative, metaLAB at Harvard presented MACHINE EXPERIENCE, a showcase of works by metaLAB artists exploring the emotional effects of algorithms, the uncanny experiences of sensor-enabled computers, and what intelligent machines might reveal about understandings of the nature of intelligence itself.

MACHINE EXPERIENCE took place August 8 to 13, 2017, in the Harvard Art Museums’ Lightbox Gallery. Each day, the gallery featured work by a different artist, encompassing sound, video, and interactive data visualization. The program also included four gallery talks, and a launch event on Monday August 7th from 5-6pm in Lewis Hall 214A at Harvard Law School.

Works featured in the program were the product of emerging and ongoing research, and may appear in new forms and new venues in months to come. For the latest information on individual projects, follow links below, or email snewman@metalab.harvard.edu.

Exhibition schedule:
Nobody’s Listening, by Sarah Newman & Rachel Kalmar

Video installation with sound, 2017

Tuesday, August 8, 10 am-5 pm; Gallery talk 3 pm

Turing's Mill, by Matthew Battles

Multi-channel video installation, 2017

Wednesday, August 9, 10 am-5 pm; Gallery talk 3 pm

Sherlock, by Jonathan Sun

Interactive chatbot, 2017

Thursday, August 10, 10 am-5 pm

Color Rx, by Maia Leandra

Interactive Installation with color prescriptions, 2017

Friday, August 11, 10-4 pm; Gallery talk 3 pm

AI Senses, by Kim Albrecht

Multi-channel video installation, 2017

Saturday August 12 - Sunday August 13, 10 am-5 pm; Gallery talk Sat Aug 12, 3 pm