I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that curated by isthisit? at arebyte Gallery, London
![I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that, 2018. Installation view, arebyte Gallery, London](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/1_Im-sorry-I-didnt-quite-catch-that_Installation_1-800x532.jpg)
![I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that, 2018. Installation view, arebyte Gallery, London](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2_Im-sorry-I-didnt-quite-catch-that_Installation_2-800x532.jpg)
![I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that, 2018. Installation view, arebyte Gallery, London](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/3_Im-sorry-I-didnt-quite-catch-that_Installation_3-800x532.jpg)
![I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that, 2018. Installation view, arebyte Gallery, London](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/4_Im-sorry-I-didnt-quite-catch-that_Installation_4-800x532.jpg)
![I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that, 2018. Installation view, arebyte Gallery, London](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/5_Im-sorry-I-didnt-quite-catch-that_Installation_5-800x532.jpg)
![I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that, 2018. Installation view, arebyte Gallery, London](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/6_Im-sorry-I-didnt-quite-catch-that_Installation_6-800x532.jpg)
![I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that, 2018. Installation view, arebyte Gallery, London](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/7_Im-sorry-I-didnt-quite-catch-that_Installation_7-800x532.jpg)
![!Mediengruppe](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/8_Mediengruppe-Bitnik_Ashley-Madison-Angels-at-Work-in-London_1-800x532.jpg)
Ashley Madison Angels at Work in London, 2017
5-channel looping video installation with sound, Full HD, 16:9, 8 min 07 sec, five 40” LCD screens, five trolley stands, five video players, five cables
150 x 95 x 61 cm
![!Mediengruppe](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/9_Mediengruppe-Bitnik_Ashley-Madison-Angels-at-Work-in-London_1-800x532.jpg)
Ashley Madison Angels at Work in London, 2017
5-channel looping video installation with sound, Full HD, 16:9, 8 min 07 sec, five 40” LCD screens, five trolley stands, five video players, five cables
150 x 95 x 61 cm
![Marie Munk](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/10_Marie-Munk_Dont-Worry-Im-Here-800x532.jpg)
Don’t Worry I’m Here, 2017
Silicone, pigment, wadding, electronics
10 x 10 x 20 cm
![Olga Fedorova](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/11_Olga-Fedorova_Hot-work-800x532.jpg)
Hot work, 2017
Lenticular print
71 x 94 cm
![Harm van den Dorpel](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/12_Harm-van-den-Dorpel_Adoreway-800x532.jpg)
Adoreway, 2016
Digital print
100 x 80 cm
![Harm van den Dorpel](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/13_Harm-van-den-Dorpel_Hybrid-Vigour-800x1203.jpg)
Hybrid Vigour, 2017
Interactive website
Duration infinite
![Sarah Derat and Rachel McRae](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/14_Sarah-Derat-Rachel-McRae_Digital-Dead_2-800x532.jpg)
Digital & Dead, 2017
AR app, urethane, marble powder, acrylic
Dimensions variable
![Sarah Derat and Rachel McRae](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/15_Sarah-Derat-Rachel-McRae_Digital-Dead_2-800x532.jpg)
Digital & Dead, 2017
AR app, urethane, marble powder, acrylic
Dimensions variable
![Iain Ball](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/16_Iain-Ball_Lutetium-Hyperflag-800x532.jpg)
Lutetium Hyperflag, 2018
Digital print on fabric
65 x 98 cm
Bold 2in1 Liquitabs / Tide Pods [genus/symptoms/slimefest], 2009/2018
Fair non bio pods
Dimensions variable
Bold 2in1 Liquitabs / Tide Pods [genus/symptoms/slimefest], 2009/2018
Fair non bio pods
Dimensions variable
Productlaneevol (self titled) [genus/ symptoms], 2009
IBA Naturals Liquid Wick Pyramid Air Freshener
10 x 9 x 9 cm
![Yuri Pattison](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/20_Yuri-Pattison_outsourced-views-visual-economies-800x532.jpg)
outsourced views, visual economies, 2013-2014
Digital video (colour, sound, 1080p)
24 min 42 sec
![Bora Akinciturk](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/21_Bora-Akinciturk_Amber-49-from-the-collection-of-The-New-Seoul-Human-Confederation-Archaeological-Museum-of-Ancestor-Tech-Modern-Life_2-800x1203.jpg)
Amber #49, from the collection of The New Seoul Human Confederation Archeological Museum of Ancestor Tech & Modern Life, 2017
Tripod, cheetos bag, sim cards, IBM motherboard, house flies, food soldier action figure head, dolphin pendant, cigarette butts, printed transparent paper, tt net usb inside transparent epoxy cast
112 x 50 x 50 cm
![Bora Akinciturk](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/22_Bora-Akinciturk_Amber-49-from-the-collection-of-The-New-Seoul-Human-Confederation-Archaeological-Museum-of-Ancestor-Tech-Modern-Life_1-800x532.jpg)
Amber #49, from the collection of The New Seoul Human Confederation Archeological Museum of Ancestor Tech & Modern Life, 2017
Tripod, cheetos bag, sim cards, IBM motherboard, house flies, food soldier action figure head, dolphin pendant, cigarette butts, printed transparent paper, tt net usb inside transparent epoxy cast
112 x 50 x 50 cm
![Marie Munk](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/23_Marie-Munk_Look-At-Me-800x532.jpg)
Look At Me!, 2017
Silicone, pigment, wadding, electronics
50 x 30 x 30 cm
![Stephan Backes](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/24_Stephan-Backes_Mask-screen_2-800x1203.jpg)
Mask (Screen), 2018
Video, 10min, screen, Raspberry Pi, speaker, carbon fibre, resin, straps, cables
Dimensions variable
![Stephan Backes](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/25_Stephan-Backes_Mask-screen_1-2-800x532.jpg)
Mask (Screen), 2018
Video, 10min, screen, Raspberry Pi, speaker, carbon fibre, resin, straps, cables
Dimensions variable
![Stine Deja](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/26_Stine-Deja_Foreigner-800x532.jpg)
Foreigner, 2018
Video
5 min 11 sec
![Emma Stern](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/27_Emma-Stern_THE-END-panoramic-render-800x532.jpg)
THE END (panoramic render), 2018
HD inkjet print on aluminium
60 x 40 cm
![Anne De Boer](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/28_Anne-de-Boer_I-am-breathing-800x532.jpg)
I am breathing, 2017
HD inkjet print on aluminium
diam. 50cm
![Anne De Boer](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/29_Anne-de-Boer_breathing-xxxx-am-yyyy-I-800x532.jpg)
breathing-xxxx-am-yyyy-I, 2017
HD inkjet print on aluminium
diam. 50cm
![Anne De Boer](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/30_Anne-de-Boer_bhgemlaanrit-800x532.jpg)
bhgemIaanrit, 2017
HD inkjet print on aluminium
diam. 50cm
![Marie Munk](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/31_Marie-Munk_I-Adore-You-800x532.jpg)
I Adore You, 2018
Silicone, pigments, fabric, electronics
35 x 20 x 20 cm
![Dominic Dispirito](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/32_Dominic-Dispirito_Fag-ash-folly-800x532.jpg)
Fag ash folly, 2018
Manually 3D printed PLA plastic on board
24 x 18 x 5 cm
![Olga Fedorova](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/33_Olga-Fedorova_Between-two-islands-800x532.jpg)
Between two islands, 2017
Lenticular print
91 x 119 cm
![Jakob Kudsk Steensen](https://sciences.earth/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/34_Jakob-Kudsk-Steensen_Pando-Endo-800x532.jpg)
Pando Endo, 2017
Realtime simulation with 4 drone cameras
Duration infinite
I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that
!Mediengruppe Bitnik, Anne De Boer, Bora Akinciturk, Dominic Dispirito, Emma Stern, Harm van den Dorpel, Iain Ball, Jakob Kudsk Steensen, Marie Munk, Olga Fedorova, Sarah Derat & Rachel McRae, Stephan Backes, Stine Deja, Yuri Pattison
Curated by Bob Bicknell-Knight / isthisit?
arebyte Gallery, London
March 22 – April 5, 2018
isthisit? in collaboration with arebyte Gallery are pleased to present I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that, an exhibition curated by Bob Bicknell-Knight featuring 15 national and international artists concerning automated empathy, new age philosophy, digital death and the rise of artificial intelligence in contemporary society.
The exhibition also launched the fourth issue of the isthisit? book consisting of essays, interviews and artist features from 50 contributors discussing the complications and assumptions surrounding AI, the automation of work and the corporatization of an unknown future.
The book features contributions from !Mediengruppe Bitnik, Aaron Vergult, Addie Wagenknecht, Anne De Boer, A. P. Vague, Ben Richards, Bob Bicknell-Knight, Bora Akinciturk, Constant Dullaart, Dominic Dispirito, Eleanor Hill, Elvira Højberg, Émilie Brout & Maxime Marion, Emma Stern, Erica Scourti, Eva & Franco Mattes, Harm van den Dorpel, Iain Ball, Jack Thurland, Jakob Kudsk Steensen, Jamie Jenkinson, Jillian Mayer, Joachim Coucke, Joey Holder, Jonny Tanna, Joshua Citarella, Julia Faber, Marie Munk, Mathew Zefeldt, Mathias Jansson, Mit Borrás, Nina Coulson, Olga Fedorova, Pakui Hardware, Penny Rafferty, Sarah Derat & Rachel McRae, Sid & Jim, Stephan Backes, Stine Deja, Thomas Grogan, Thomas Hämén, Trystan Williams, Wade Wallerstein and Yuri Pattison.
I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that, a statement of sorts almost ingrained into my mind from wielding an iPhone with the in-built Artificial Intelligence (AI) known as Siri for the past five years. This response, seemingly obtained by silently murmuring into your microphone, will soon become an announcement of the past, an anecdote that Millennials and early Generation Z’s will gleefully tell their screen obsessed children about through their hyper realistic virtual reality goggles, developed by Amazon and distributed via their nearest drone depot. Exaggerated encounters with early AI assistants will proliferate these virtual encounters, the augmented elderly telling of a time that saw Siri and Alexa unable to participate in any given social situation. Simultaneously the in-house AI will refill everyone’s digital glass, laugh politely at the gentle mockery of their ancestors and experience a thousand similar scenarios concurrently occurring across the globe.
A stereotypical scenario akin to this one is inevitable. The introduction of industry 4.0 has seen a revolution in autonomous production, the Internet of Things continues to evolve, intent on establishing smart homes throughout the western world and our lives continue to be shaped and quietly adjusted by unclear algorithms. Will the autonomous world of the future be a utopian paradise, where intelligent AIs and augmented beings work side by side, enabling the widespread adoption of a universal basic income, freeing the world from jobs deemed repetitive and tedious? Alternatively, will we as a race eventually become irrelevant, catering to our complicated human needs whilst mechanical robots rise up, conspiring to push us into a new age of mass unemployment?
isthisit? is a platform for contemporary art founded in 2016 by its current director, Bob Bicknell-Knight. Online, it operates as a gallery producing monthly exhibitions showcasing emerging to mid-career artists, hosting a roster of guest curators experimenting with the medium of the internet to interrogate a variety of concepts. The website also hosts monthly residencies, where artists are given a web page to create new work that exists on the internet as a piece of net art. Offline, it has held exhibitions nationally and internationally and is the publisher of isthisit?, a book series released on a triannual basis.
arebyte Gallery is a London-based art organisation which supports the development of contemporary artists working across emerging artforms. Through their gallery space and affordable studio complex, they create thriving environments for artists to expand on their practices, explore collaborative working and meet new audiences.