In this course, we explore Western conventions of artistic autonomy through a historical, philosophical, and material engagement with automation. Automation is most commonly understood as a mechanisation of the process of making and we see it around us in the proliferation of algorithms and robotics. Automation is also a delegation to an external process, a way of "letting the world in," as Robert Morris wrote. But automation is accompanied by accidents and this course will review the history of the accident from ancient Greece into the present. By intervening in social, environmental and technological systems, probing contemporary forms of automation and accident, we will develop a deeper understanding of what autonomy means for artists now and how to engage systems without being instrumentalised by them.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
- develop familiarity with techniques of automation and discuss their use in contemporary arts practice;
- make artworks that critically engage with the politics of technology and autonomy in contemporary art contexts;
- conduct research into practices and discourses around automation and apply findings to studio-based research and creative production; and
- substantiate artistic outcomes with research and rationale.
Other Information
School of Art & Design studio courses have a limited enrolment capacity. Students are advised to enrol as early as possible to maximise the opportunity of securing a place.
Indicative Assessment
- Contextualising research (30) [LO 1,3,4]
- Project and development works made in response to discourse around automation and artistic autonomy (70) [LO 1,2,3,4]
The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.
Workload
130 hours of total students learning time made up from:
a) 48 hours of contact over 12 weeks comprising lectures, tutorials, critiques and supervised studio practice; and
b) 82 hours of independent students research, studio production, reading and writing
Inherent Requirements
Not applicable
Requisite and Incompatibility
Prescribed Texts
Prescribed texts are not required.
Preliminary Reading
Morris, Robert. "Some Notes on the Phenomenology of Making", Continuous Project Altered Daily: The Writings of Robert Morris. New York, N.Y: MIT Press, 1993.
Steyerl, Hito, and Kate Crawford. “Data Streams.” The New Inquiry (blog), January 23, 2017. https://thenewinquiry.com/data-streams/.
Stiegler, Bernard. Automatic Society. Malden, MA: Polity Press, 2016.
Metahaven. The Sprawl, 2015
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
Commonwealth Support (CSP) Students
If you have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). More information about your student contribution amount for each course at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 12
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are a domestic graduate coursework student with a Domestic Tuition Fee (DTF) place or international student you will be required to pay course tuition fees (see below). Course tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2023 | $3660 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2023 | $5100 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.