New Order
Event and exhibition series on Energy, Economy and Art
Mediamatic’s New Order exhibition series explores a world in which energy has become a fundamental principle of our society. Five consecutive solo shows feature new works by Dutch and international artists, designers and architects, each responding to various elements of society - such as politics, economy, health, food and experience - which together combine to outline a complete future world.
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Ubangi woman with a solar tablet-
from Expo 2020 Gbadolite. a research design project by Femke Herregraven, Katja Novitskova, Matthias Schreiber, Chris Lee, Henrik
van Leeuwen and Mikko Oustamanolakis, 2010
With:
Rory
Katja
Sascha
DUS
AIDS
Martti
LiamConcept
The energy crisis has been solved, and the climate crisis is a non-issue. The world looks very different to ours, and yet seems normal to those who live in it. There will be a name for it, but for now we are simply calling it ‘post carbon’.
In a post carbon world, energy is understood not as merely electrical power. Energy is considered in all its various stages and phases: mineral, organic and cultural. It can be compared to the new and social media of today, used in fields from commerce to arts and politics. It is like a currency. New Order will explore the implications of energy's new role in our daily lives. How does it influence our interaction with the city, with public and private power structures, with products, art, and other crossing points of energy and social values.
Themes
Electricity – The death of a centralised energy infrastructure has led to the democratisation of its generation & distribution. Power is now informal, personal scaled, and peer to peer.
Politics – The securing of sources of fossil fuels is no longer the cause of international conflicts, leading to a new era of geopolitical cooperation.
Democracy – The personal autonomy enabled by new local forms of energy has led to a powerful anti-government individualism.
Economy – New forms of energy creation have led to new forms of sharing and exchange, which has created a vibrant informal economic sector.
Society – Personal Carbon Trading is mandatory. Every citizen is allocated a certain amount per annum by the state, with which to invest, donate or trade to suit their lifestyle choices. We donate our carbon in order to participate in carbon-intensive events, such as watching motorsport.
Experience – Our personal carbon accounts follow us around as fuzzy avatars, visible hovering over our shoulders. We monitor them ambiently, looking out for others to trade or work with.
Culture – Energy is no longer considered as infrastructure or science, but as a legitimate
independent creative medium. Galleries are dedicated to it, and biennales curate it.
Health – Preventative Environmental Health has replaced conventional medical pathology, leading to a new awareness of our impacts and responses to our world.
Food – Food production has completed its transition from industrial production, to locally grown to internally manipulated. Using the energy of microbes and bacteria, we are able to digest a new expanded range of substances, grown throughout our cities and dwellings.
City – Faced with the monumental task of renovating our ageing urban fabric to suit this new post-carbon world, governments have overturned antiquated planning controls, leading to a new ecological built environment of speculation.
More information
New Order is an exhibition and public event series, which will take place at Mediamatic FABRIEK, Amsterdam, from February 2012 to May 2012. Curated by Katja Novitskova and Rory Hyde. Click here for a list of all New Order exhibitions.
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AIDS-3D (Keller/Kosmas) doing a presentation at Mediamatic.
Evelyn
Jolien
Paul
Ula
Paul
Katja
Michèle
Alberto
Saro
Willem