Exhibition imagines an Internet used by humans and animals

What would an internet built and used by animals in partnership with humans look like? In a technological future, what relationship would exist between animals and humans, if animals, through artificial intelligence mechanisms, were also able to build a world to their image, as humans have done in the last millennia?These are some of the questions that Icelandic artist Kolbeinn Hugi asks in the exhibition 'Animal Internet', which opened at espaço vaga, in Ponta Delgada, celebrating the start of Season #3 of this cultural space managed by Anda&Fala – Associação Cultural. In 'Animal Internet', Kolbeinn Hugi uses several formats, from photography to sculpture, including video, to show, in a universe marked by color and digital, an alternative model of society, in an exercise that we could call 'artistic fiction' about a future that may not be as far away as we think. In 'Animal Internet', Kolbeinn Hugi even introduces us to a new concept of societal organization: Zoocracy, a combination of the Greek words for 'animal' and 'power'.  In an interview with Açoriano Oriental, Kolbeinn Hugi starts by explaining that 'Animal Internet' is “a vision of the future, in a time when animals have access to the internet, through neural interfaces, and can communicate with other species, including humans, using translation algorithms.”Hugi explains that this idea of future comprises such a field of possibilities that his artwork cannot cover them all, focusing instead on concrete aspects. But what then is the 'Animal Internet' that this Icelandic artist would like to see in the future? "I imagine animals using the internet in a very human-like way, namely for communication, for entertainment, for managing everyday life, for education and for decision making." Not least because, says Kolbeinn Hugi, "the democracy we hold so dear among humans is actually a tyranny of humans over all the other species left out, because all decisions are made by one species." Therefore, Kolbeinn Hugi imagines an 'inclusive' future between humans and animals, in a sometimes peaceful, sometimes conflictual sharing of planet Earth.Hugi's work in the Azores does not end with the exhibition 'Animal Internet', since this Icelandic artist will also hold an artistic residency on São Miguel, in order to collect images for a film, which will also include filming in Iceland. The film is based on landscape and intends to launch a future look at the effects of climate change. To the newspaper Açoriano Oriental, Kolbeinn Hugi explains that "the initial idea for this film arises from the similarities between Iceland and the Azores, such as the volcanic landscape, the black sand and hot springs from the interior of the Earth, although in Iceland, compared to the Azores, there is much less vegetation.Projecting the fusion of these landscapes in the future, Kolbeinn Hugi proposes to imagine and question, in a context of climate change, "what the planet will look like or what kind of weather we'll have in the future, for example. Kolbeinn Hugi hopes to complete this year the image collection and production work for this video, so that he can present it in early 2024.